With lots of weather but more sunshine forecast, the windowsill juggle continues! What a difference some sunshine out of the wind and rain makes, keep up the indoor sowings.
Outdoors, watch out for slugs. Look under pots, bags of compost, logs, or other dark, damp places, and combine their removal from your patch with a long walk! It’s also time to start collecting materials to prevent the slugs from munching young plants and seedlings when it is warm enough to plant outdoors in the next couple of months—ground eggshells, pet hair, and coffee grounds are a few firm favourites.
Tatties
Earlies can be planted in pots, bags or open ground from now on, in frosty spots it might be advisable to hold off until the end of the month.
Peas
Best sown in regular batches into deep pots onto warm, sunny windowsills. Young plants, like those pictured, can be (hardened off) placed outside during the day and brought back in overnight to acclimatize before planting out next week. This helps develop sturdy young plants rather than spindly, weak ones.
Berries
Still time to glean strawberry runners from neighbours and get plants established in the soil or pots.
Greens
Spinach, mixed leaves, lettuce, parsely and coriander are best started off indoors on warm windowsills for growing into young plants and transplanting outdoors in a few weeks time.
If bringing pots or compost in from a garden space do check for small slugs sneaking in under the edge of pots or in your soil they will munch new seedlings over night.
Finally
Where you have the space do remember to plant for pollinators; pot marigold, poached egg flowers, sunflowers are all firm favourites and whilst they grow on to provide nectar from midsummer onwards let the dandelions and pollinators flourish!
