Clouds of snow-white blackthorn blossoms are coating hedgerows, filling us with anticipation of what’s to come; woodlands turning assorted shades of green and the garden brimming with colour reminding us of a painter’s pallet.
Next week the clocks spring forward granting kitchen gardeners that all important extra hour to diligently plant, weed and tend to their flock of tiny saplings. Although March is invariably an inconsistent month when it comes to climatic conditions, snow and/or flooding are still to be expected, there is plenty to be getting on with to ensure that you have a bountiful harvest in the sunnier months to come. It might seem a distant memory but summer really is just around the corner now.
Here are our top tips to keep you busy in the spring kitchen garden:
Construct hazel supports and arches
In our garden one of the first signs that spring is truly in the air is the assembly of the architectural framework of the kitchen garden in the form of bean arches and wigwams.
Although we’re still a way off planting our beans and watching them enticingly envelope these rustic structures now is the perfect time to prepare for an abundance of luscious legumes later in the season.
Digging a compost filled trench underneath your newly formed framework will give your beans the best start to life when you do eventually get them in the ground.
Plant your first earlies
Now’s the time to get your first early potatoes in the ground and mounded up with plenty of earth, ready for that unmissable first crop of new potatoes that taste truly sublime when cooked as soon as they are pulled from the ground or pots.
If you haven’t already, pop the rest of your potatoes in a light, cool but frost free spot to start them chitting, ready to go in the ground in the coming weeks.
Plant under cover
It’s finally time to get more of your best-loved vegetables started from seed. If, like us, you’ve been sitting on your hands trying not to make the mistake of planting your seeds too early this will come as a relief! Onions, beetroots, lettuce and parsley can all get popped into your carefully prepared seed trays ready to start germinating.
Remember not to plant all of the seeds at once to stop you ending up with a glut which can be a little overwhelming. There are after all, a finite amount of ways you can eat lettuce leaves!
Plant strawberry runners
Picking strawberries that have been gently warmed by the afternoon sun and devouring them immediately is one of our favourite sweet treats in the kitchen garden.
Strawberry plants are very versatile and can be grown in a myriad of suitable spots from living walls and hanging baskets to in your kitchen garden beds. They are a fantastic addition to a garden that is short on space. Now is the time to take runners off existing strawberry plants and transplant directly in the garden or buy/order online new plants for delivery.
We’ll soon be receiving our deliveries of broad beans, peas, herbs, carrots and brassicas ready to plant out.
If we’ve piqued your interest and you hanker for a kitchen garden brimming with healthy organic nourishment and would like help planning, planting and producing your own crop of fruit and vegetables, our team of experienced horticulturalists are on hand to help guide you.
