Sowing Timeline

My recommended sowing dates

You can sow vegetables at different times to ones I suggest. They will grow, but the outcomes will be different, such as lower yield, more pest and disease, and perhaps a tendency to flower rather than leaf.

Hence, for example, I do not recommend sowing salad rocket and mizuna in the spring because it’s their flowering season. Although many gardeners do and are happy with the smaller yield and insect-damaged leaves, compared with healthier leaves and more weeks, even months, of picking, from August sowings.

Sowing and planting

Mostly I use these words to describe sowing seeds, and planting plants. Except for planting garlic and potatoes!

- ‘Sow’ is for setting seeds in soil /compost, from celery to tomato to garlic, even potato. Many seeds are small and early growth is therefore slow. In cooler climates, I recommend sowing under cover to speed this early part of most plants’ lives.

- 'Plant' refers mostly to setting out a plant with leaves (garlic and potatoes excepted).

• How big your plant is when you set it in the ground is your call.
• I recommend planting small ones on average 4 weeks after sowing, except for tomatoes, aubergines etc.
• Always plant before the roots have used all available compost and before you see leaves going yellow or purple (lack of nitrogen mostly).
• Older plants take more time to establish so you lose cropping time in the end.
• Use fleece/row covers in spring to help young plants establish.
• Fleece reduces light by 15-30%, but in spring this doesn't matter because there is a surplus of light, and fleece converts some of the surplus to otherwise-absent warmth. Result: net gain.