My first flower seeds have germinated!
Derek Brooks Prize-winning veg from the allotment and a smaller garden in greater Manchester with impressive summer bedding.
I’ve had a load of manure delivered and, between showers, I’ve been barrowing it onto the allotment beds. I’ve also brought some home and put it on the chrysanth beds, but the ground’s too wet to dig it in.
I’ve sown tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and aubergines in my propagator in the greenhouse. The tomatoes have germinated and are ready for transferring into small pots and the exhibition onions sown in January have already been pricked out into small pots.
I’ve got my seed potatoes from our horticultural supply hut and also some to take to our local primary school. I’ve got some onions to take there as well. The potatoes have been stood in trays and put on my greenhouse shelf to start them into growth.
The first flower seeds have germinated and I’ve sown more in my propagator. I’ll be sowing more until early April. These later sowings won’t need the propagator as the greenhouse will be warm enough by then.
I’ve been taking chrysanth and dahlia cuttings regularly and will continue taking them until April. The first batch of chrysanths taken in January have rooted and been transferred to 8cm (3in) pots. The first dahlias weren’t taken until February but should soon be rooted. I’ve been re-potting all my plants that are in 13cm (5in) pots and over, which I do every year at this time. I take them out of their pots, remove some of the compost and re-pot them in fresh. The compost I remove doesn’t get wasted as I mix in more fertiliser and use it for other things, usually potatoes.
I’ve also boxed up the begonia and gloxinia corms and achimenes tubercles and put them in the propagator to start them into growth. Some of these I’ve kept from last year and some have been bought in.
Winter and spring containers in the garden aren’t at their best yet but they’re looking promising. Snowdrops are still looking good.