What to grow NOW!
Matthew Oliver, edibles specialist at RHS Garden Hyde Hall, gives the low-down on the pick of the crops to sow, grow and savour now
Plant onion sets
Onions are easy to grow from sets, as you are essentially planting a miniature onion bulb to grow on. Space individual bulbs 10-15cm apart with 30cm between each row. You can plant them a couple of centimetres deep with just the ’necks’ showing, or much shallower so they are able to stand upright. Cover with wire or netting for the first few weeks to stop the birds pulling them up until rooted. Reliable varieties include ‘Sturon’, ‘Stuttgarter’ and ‘Red Baron’.
Easy alternative
Growing celery can be difficult and time consuming, but growing par-cel is not and has a similar flavour. This is a leaf rather than stem celery that combines the qualities of both celery and parsley, can be harvested as required, used as cut-and-comeagain and even has edible seeds if it runs to flower! Sow indoors in March, lightly covering the seed sown in shallow seed trays.
Try something exotic
Want to grow something different? Then try ‘Chilean Guava’ (Ugni molinae). It’s low-maintenance and super tasty. Spring is a great time to be planting woody plants as the ground is warming up so it's the perfect time to give it a go. These are small, lowgrowing evergreen shrubs that don’t need any pruning and are hardy in all but the most extreme of winters. White flowers appear in spring and produce bright pink fruits in late summer which taste like strawberry sweets. Said to be Queen Victoria’s favourite fruit!