April

• Tender annuals and vegetables will certainly need to be kept frost free at this time, but many of the perennials that are bursting into leaf may also need a bit of horticultural fleece or newspaper over them to protect those tender shoots if the weather turns cold.

• Continue to divide congested perennials. For most, wait until the first signs of growth then lift and split. Discard the dead or woody centre of the clump and replant the younger vigorous parts from around the edges. Hostas should be divided before they break into leaf. Save any spare plants you have as we are still hoping to have a Plant Sale for the Club in late May

• Start to sow Runner Beans, Sweetcorn, and Curcurbits (squash, courgettes, pumpkins, etc) under cover now. These will germinate and grow qucikly and will be perfect for planting out in mid-May once frosts have passed

• As the days continue to warm, be careful to keep plants well-watered. This is especially true for salad crops as water stress will encourage lettuces to flower rather than continue to grow leaves.

• In the vegetable garden, it’s time to direct sow carrots, parsnips, radishes into previously watered soil and to plant out any onions, shallots, or garlic that has been started in pots under glass.

• The warming days and nights will also give your lawns a burst of growth but keep the cut set higher than normal for the first few cuts.