And they're off

The weather has suddenly turned much warmer so seed sowing has started. We have planted some broad beans in pots. Learning from last year, we are planting far fewer plants this year since we were overrun with beans last year. We are also only planting one in each pot and starting in bigger pots. The aim is to transplant the young plants into the row where they will grow at just the right time. Last year we planted the first batch out when the plants were lanky and soft. We planted the last batch out much too late and they didn't really do much. We have many, many times more seeds than we need, so I'll see if my sister and here children want some when they visit later this week. The beans are saved seeds adapted to our northern climate, but they should do well in Kent too.

We have also started our first batch of leeks. Spreading the planting to extend the season does no good what so ever with long growing plants like leeks, but we spread the planting a bit to lessen the load of plant trays and to not keep all of our eggs in one basket. We want more leeks than last year if we can, we had finished all of ours before the end of the season and could easily have used many more. We also took a few when they were small - very late planted - and they were very good raw too.

I need to get the shelves in the greenhouse finished so we have space for the young plants. Our method last year was to plant almost everything in trays or pots and then to plant out as strong plants that don't need to be thinned. The plants were mostly sown at home and as soon as they sprouted they were moved to the greenhouse. It worked well, even though it goes against many people's ideas and against the instructions on the seed packets. We'll do it again this year.