After what felt like a slow start to the year, at least March seemed like strides were taken forward. Yes, the weather still wasn’t ideal, and the rain didn’t go away, but at least it felt like stuff got done. As spring starts rolling around, and you do get those sunnier days starting, the to-do list does start getting longer and it is always enjoyable when you can start sowing and planting more things. 

Where better to start on the monthly recap than on the most exciting things, what did get planted in March. The first early potatoes were planted during the Easter weekend at the end of March. The first earlies varieties were ‘Swift’ and ‘Home Guard’ – the first is a classic that I have grown for years, and the other is new to me. The name ‘Home Guard’ comes from the fact that it is an old heritage variety that was introduced during the Second World War and all you hear about them is that they are ready very early and reliably give results – so that ticks many boxes for me.  

I also sowed the first row of parsnips. I had zero luck with parsnips last year, nothing germinated at all. So, I pre-germinated the seeds this year on a damp kitchen roll at home and planted them into holes I made that were filled with fine soil. I put two or three germinated seeds into each hole, and I will thin the resulting seedlings down to one, so fingers crossed we should get some parsnips this year. My plan is to do a few sowings so we can get a succession of harvests. Another vegetable that was planted in March was another row of onion sets that I started off at home in module trays.  

Finally, the strawberry plants that I got earlier in the year were planted on the plot. Due to the filthy weather in January and February, I put the bare-root plants into pots to start them off. The time came to get them in at the allotment and it completes what has been a productive winter for adding fruit to the plot – rhubarb, raspberries, currants, and strawberries have all been planted.  

A good amount of seed sowing has been done at home to start crops off. Leeks, kale, cauliflower, cabbage, peas, and Swiss chard have been sown and are starting off in the cold frame. I do tend to prefer growing most crops as transplants rather than sowing directly, apart from the carrots, radishes, and parsnips that you do need to direct sow, but, due to space requirements at home, I think I may have to resort to more direct sowing of crops over the season. The oca and Jerusalem artichoke tubers that I mentioned last month have also been started off at home, the oca are starting life in small pots while I am experimenting with growing the Jerusalem artichoke in large cloth bags. 

It is not all vegetables either, as sowings of sweet peas, zinnia, cosmos, rudbeckia, and scabiosa were done in March. However, in truth, I have not come up with a concrete plan for the cut flowers for this year as of yet. 

The allotment itself is starting to look more ready for the new season. During the month I removed all the old brassica plants and continued clearing and weeding beds. I also lifted the last of the leeks to use at home – those leeks performed really well, and we’ve enjoyed a great long harvest of them over winter. Most beds have now been weeded and raked and given a dose of chicken manure pellets to boost fertility. I also nailed down the planting plan and crop rotation for the year’s veg and started marking out the beds, simply with string lines for now, to differentiate what are planting beds and what are the paths between.

There are so many promising signs on the plot already. As well as the garlic and onions that were planted over winter sprouting strongly, the newly planted rhubarb is doing well already, and all the soft fruit bushes are starting to grow again for the year. The leaf buds are popping quickly – the gooseberries in particular are greening up fast – and all those signs of life are an enjoyable sight as spring rolls on. 

April is going to be busy, but it will be enjoyable as it is going to definitely mean more planting and sowing. As well as getting on top, and keeping on top, of the weeds. There are a few other plans I have in the back of my mind for the month, including adding another much-needed compost bay and working out what to do with the messier back corners of the plot. Every plot has those more unkempt sections, and this one is no exception.