MARCH IN THE VEGGIE PATCH

Photo: It's time to prune those fruit bushes.

It’s time for me to look at my imaginary vegetable patch. I will have the real thing in a while but for now I will have to pretend that I’m planting things. My back garden is drying out a bit so it won’t be long before I can go out there and build some raised beds and get rid of the old carpets that are keeping the mud from seeping under the door.


If I were in a position to plant something then now would be about the time to put in rhubarb, horseradish, asparagus and artichokes. These are all perennial plants so plant them around the edges of the beds or put them in a clump on their own, that way they won’t be an obstruction when it comes to getting the beds ready for seedlings.

Seed potatoes should be coming out soon, especially early varieties. The seed potatoes tend to get too hot and get soft quickly in the shops. Sometimes the roots have grown and tangled together, so it’s a good idea to get them early, even if it means keeping them in the dark in a cool place for a week or two. It’s better than them spoiling in the shop. Spread them out in a box or cardboard egg box and sprout them in a shed or on a cool windowsill in the house in a few weeks when the ground has warmed up.

SEED SOWING
Start onions from seed in trays or pots later on this month, I personally like the single cell trays as there is no root disturbance when it comes to planting time. Put them in a sunny spot indoors. Keep trimming the tops to about four inches (put them in your soup) and plant them out in March or April.

Here’s something even I can do now as I have some fish boxes. Plant lettuce and radish seed and cover with clear plastic or glass and put in a sunny spot outside. Keep the frost off the plants by covering them with a blanket or something similar if a cold spell sets in.February is the time to prune fruit trees. Cut back old or diseased wood from pear, apple and cherry trees and cut back overlapping branches which will cut out light to the centre of the tree in summer.



Fruit bushes such as grapes, raspberries and blackberries could also be pruned now. Make sure that you use sharp tools for cutting. If you cut cleanly there is no need to use any pruning paint or sealer after the job is done.

Horticultural.