Vegetables in April

Mangetout peas started indoors in March are using their tendrils to climb up the strings around the wigwam made from four hazel posts.  Strings are positioned with a 10cm gap between them.

The hardy Meteor peas which were started indoors in March in a window box look healthy and strong.  Soon these will need staking with multi-branched twigs so that the tendrils will grasp onto them.

First early Home Guard new potatoes were sown outdoors in a hessian bag in mid-March in a mixture of 50% peat-free compost and 50% good soil.  They have emerged and will need protection with newspapers or horticultural fleece if frost threatens.

First early Home Guards sown indoors in mid-March have to be earthed up. This entails building soil up around the bare stems to encourage a higher yield and protect the tubers from turning green in sunlight. 

Chantenay Red Cored 3 carrots grown indoors in a dustbin in mid- March are making good progress.