April can be a mixed bag of weather, often unpredictable, making visits to the allotment (or garden) difficult if you don’t have a shed or greenhouse in which to retreat. Nights are chilly and frosts are still troublesome so don’t risk planting out anything tender. There’s plenty of things that you can be getting on with this month, such as sowing or planting hardy crops outside. If it’s particularly chilly where you are, try covering the areas of soil where you want to sow with cloches, warm soil makes for successful germination. Keep a roll of horticultural fleece to hand, you never know when you may need it.
More jobs that can be tackled this month:
- Harvest the first Asparagus spears of the year
- Plant Asparagus crowns in a well prepared trench or sow seed indoors
- Sow Parsnip, Carrots and Broad Beans direct outside if the soil is warm
- Get areas of soil ready for sowing by covering with cloches
- Erect Runner Bean poles
- Plant second early or main crop Potatoes
- Pot on Tomato and Chilli seedlings
- Keep sowing crops such as Peas, Spring Onions, Radish and salad crops for a continuous harvest
- Harden off young plants raised indoors before planting out. Move them outside during warm days and then back in at night
- Keep the hoe busy!
- Make the bees happy – sow wildflower seed mix direct where they are to flower
- Cover blossom of young fruit trees with fleece if frost threatens
- Harvest established early Rhubarb for those warming crumbles
- Plant out Onion sets if you didn’t do it last month
- Sow some flowers such as Sunflowers and other half-hardy annuals indoors
I will be posting jobs each month for the veg and fruit garden. Depending on the weather, some of these jobs may not be possible to carry out, but can be tackled another time once conditions are right.
Claire Browne
/ April 18, 2012I will be looking forward to the monthly jobs. I am never really sure when to plan second potatoes, my grandad did tell me first weekend of May.
Flighty
/ April 21, 2012I’ve done most of the jobs that I need to do this month with just hoeing, weeding and some sowing flower seeds to do if the weather permits.
Clare you can plant your potatoes now as it’s the length of time that they’re in the ground before harvesting that varies. They can all be planted at the same time although most people do stagger them over a few weeks.
peaceandquietlife
/ May 1, 2012I love this! As a beginner gardener, the logistics of gardening are beyond me. This is a great way to help others get organized!