Sow when they want to Grow

Normally by this time of year I’ve done loads of seed sowing in the greenhouse, but I’ve been concentrating on getting the garden tidy before everything starts into growth, so other than autumn-sown sweet peas, January-sown broad beans, and setting our potatoes to chit, it’s all still to do. I’ve come to the conclusion that delay is a good thing – ok, I won’t get super-early crops – but neither will I be struggling with low light levels and seedlings sulking in low temperatures.


The key indicator is the sudden flush of seedlings appearing in the borders – some good e.g. honesty, some bad e.g. ground ivy. If they are growing strongly without my assistance, so will the seeds I sow. And they will be strong and sturdy, rather than willowy and frail which can happen with early sowings – especially now that I’ve cleaned a winter’s grime off the greenhouse windows.

Honesty Lunaria

It’s quite cold and dreary today so I will take the opportunity to sort through my seed storage box and see what I need to buy and get some labels written that are legible, rather than scrawled in haste in the greenhouse with a pen or pencil that has seen better days. Note to self: throw them away instead of optimistically trying to write with them – if they didn’t work in the autumn, they certainly won’t work now.