New season

The new gardening year has begun in John’s garden, and there are plenty of jobs to get on with before the weather warms up

N ow that 2019 has passed and that very wet year is behind us, we look forward to 2020 hoping that there’s a warmer and sunnier year ahead.

Yet again, we seem to be having a mild winter, and halfway through January, the garden has not seen one snowflake.

The first snowdrops are in flower and the aconites are not far behind.

The wet December put a stop to the winter digging, but there were a few frosty days when it was OK to crack on with it.

Then, in early January, gales dried up the surface just enough to allow digging without mud sticking to the wellies.

My compost heap got emptied and the new one was started.

I was pleased to get the winter digging session completed by the middle of January.

Other allotment plot gardeners were all on site getting the land sorted, erecting greenhouses, repairing fences and sheds, and installing bed systems to help organise the plots.

Our communal shed was busy, as you always need a break from the graft and there is always someone putting on the kettle. It was brilliant to be sitting outdoors for a coffee break on a warm January day.

I always draw up a rough guide at the end of the season of where the next crops are going in the following year, so that I can plan a rotation – which I need so I can allocate garden compost to those crops that need the most.

The peas, beans, onions, leeks, sweetcorn, courgettes and pumpkins get a good helping, then the potatoes and brassicas also get some, but the root crops and salads are fine on land that was composted the previous year.

The short day length limits time spent outdoors, but we gardeners can always find a few indoor tasks.

This is a great time to browse through new catalogues and see what new varieties of vegetables, flowers and fruit we can try out.

I try to get my seeds ordered by the end of January as some plants, such as onions, broad beans and sweet peas, get an early start.

Last year, the winter was so mild that my early seed sowing started in early February with onions and sweet peas, then I was taking chrysanthemum cuttings in mid-february as there was plenty growth on the stools in my unheated greenhouse.

I also started my begonias in midfebruary, followed by broad beans and salads on a warm windowsill.

February last year was so warm, in fact, that I got my first early potatoes

The short day length in January limits time spent outdoors, but we gardeners can always find a few indoor tasks.