A Unique Child: Grow your own - Spring is with us

Spring is springing and the grass is rising! Despite the April showers and sometimes icy winds, the sun, when it shines, is beginning to hold some real warmth. Responding to the lengthening days and warming soil, fruit trees are blossoming and the seeds you have sown indoors should be growing well.

You can now start sowing some seeds outdoors, but be watchful for frosty nights.

Garden duty

Continue or start planting tomato, pepper and aubergine seeds indoors. Also marrows, courgettes, pumpkins and squash can be started.

If it was too cold in March for outdoor sowing, then now you can sow seed outdoors for beetroot, carrots, chard, leeks, radish, spring onions, peas and spinach. Prepare the soil well, raking and removing stones and large clumps of soil.

Protect your outdoor sowings with fleece or polythene until the danger of frost has passed.

Thin out rows of seedlings as soon as they are strong enough to handle. This allows the individual plants room to grow, resulting in larger vegetables.

Indoor-sown seedlings are ready to be potted up when they grow their true leaves (above the initial rounded seed leaves)

Sow herbs according to instructions. Most commonly used herbs are easy to grow and suitable for containers in small gardens too. Many prefer sunny sites, but mint and parsley are tolerant of some shade. Mint should be kept in a container because it becomes invasive.