Whether you have 15 minutes or an hour to spare, you can always put your time to good use in the productive garden

SOW CARROTS 15 MINS

This time of year is perfect for sowing carrots. Find a spot in your patch where you can add a row or two. There’s no need to dig over the soil and chop it up to a fine tilth. If you’ve added compost regularly and the soil drains well, the structure will allow carrot roots to penetrate. Just rake it level and make straight, shallow sowing grooves on the surface. Water the grooves well, dribble in some seed, cover with 0.5cm of soil, and water in. Lay a plank of timber over the rows to help keep the soil moist (remove when seeds germinate).

MANAGE SNAILS AND SLUGS 30 MINS

Snails and slugs love the cool, moist conditions of April. Regular patrols will help keep numbers down and minimise damage to your seedlings. The best time to do this is in the evening when they’re most active. Go out with a torch, and squash any that you see. During the day, you can also check the crevices between rocks, around garden edging, and among strappy-leafed plants where they rest and stay cool. They’re suckers for beer, so set out a few saucers of beer as a trap. It really does work, and the snails and slugs die happy.

EXPAND YOUR COMPOST STATION 60 MINS

Too much compost is never enough! If you feel like your homemade supply of garden gold is getting dangerously low, make plans to expand your composting operation. Need more bins? Buy a couple of lidded compost bins and find a spot for them – close to your vegie beds is best. Or collect old timber and other materials to make more compost bays. Don’t forget the stuff you need to fill them. Most compost heaps need more carbon, so look out for wood shavings, newspaper, cardboard, woodchip and dried leaves, and start stockpiling.