Garden Work

If you are lucky enough to have a heated propagator and a greenhouse, you can sow seeds of tender bedding plants such as pelargonium…

If you are lucky enough to have a heated propagator and a greenhouse, you can sow seeds of tender bedding plants such as pelargonium, begonia, busy lizzy, lobelia and petunia now. While it is possible to sprout them indoors, unless you have a very bright area, they are likely grow thin and etiolated at this time of the year. After the seeds have germinated and been pricked out they will need no further artificial heat, but keep them frost-free and make sure not to over-water.

Meanwhile, broadbeans can be sown outdoors in the milder areas of the country. Not only can you eat the beans, but also the young pods (at two or three inches long) and the upper leaves, which you cook like spinach.