February sowing and growing guide ~ let’s get going!
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- čas přidán 11. 09. 2024
- oops ... sorry about the audio, forgot to clip my mic on!
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Day length is now increasing by 4 minutes a day, that’s one of the reasons that I’m always so excited for February, because it marks the end of the steady decline of winter. It’s still cold and often very wet, but under cover the over-wintered plants don’t care, they’re responding to those extra minutes and starting to grow again. I especially notice how their leaf quality improves, dull, limp leaves are soon glossy and crisp again.
My January sown plants are almost all planted now and my last few autumn sown plants are being cleared out of the polytunnel and greenhouse shelves. All that cleared space is a strong signal of things to come, all of those February seedlings!
Many of my allotment beds are full of little plants that have been focusing their limited energies on putting down roots, or at least that’s what I tell myself, and they suddenly start showing weekly leaf growth, I’m a progress junkie, so I revel in that visible growth.
Perhaps most exciting though are the first sowings of the summer fruits, destined for the conservatory in March and the greenhouse in April, so much promise of spring delights to come. I know some people want to wait, to take it slow and safe, but that’s not for me, I want to eat the richest home grown diet that’s cost effective (I don’t spend any money on gardening that I don’t save off my food bill by gardening), so I'm full steam ahead now!
That's why I find myself brimming with enthusiasm and excitement in February, I’m far too impatient to wait until spring.
Here's the February growing guide that I showed in this video, but this one is sorted by sowing date: airtable.com/a...
Here's the more detailed guide: airtable.com/a...
Here is the chapter of my eBook on growing in February: steverichards....
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My books and videos are all grounded in what I actually do, I make sure you can see the evidence. For example if I suggest sowing carrots in November, take a look at my monthly tours to see them growing and my harvest videos for May to see the actual results. I'm not just about regurgitaing information from the backs of seed packets!
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Hi Steve, it’s Steve here too! I want to send my thanks to you for all you share here and in your ebook/database. I got my first allotment (130sq/m) In December and you have helped me get rapidly up to speed with successions, bed plan etc etc. Can’t wait to get started soon! Keep up the good work
Thanks for the feedback Steve, exciting times ahead for you! : All the best - Steve
Lets go Steveeeeeeeeeee! I love your channel. Your resources really are the best.
Thanks, if only I had more than a couple of hours a week for all this media stuff
So much going on, when many don't even start till march 😊
Logged onto CZcams for the first time in months! Love the new greenhouse 😍
Only way I can compete with those living in barmy Essex Alex
Hi Steve, have you thought about making one of them vegetable calendars, something we can put up in our kitchen that relates to your ebook? I know I would buy one of these off you so probably others would also. Thanks
I have, but I have so little time for jobs like that, I wanted to create a pdf version that I could give away, but that people could also get printed. I'm trying to talk one of my daughters into doing it, but right now she's too busy globetrotting.
I plant allot of potatoes every year, about 350 pounds this year. Most are for the farmers market. I always purchase mine as early as the supplier gets them in stock, first week in January. Our planting date is mi February. I take them out of the bags and put them in milk crates in a dark storage area, about 70°. They are always well green sprouted by planting time.
That's a lot of potatoes! My modest collection for February are all nicely chitted now and ready to be started this week : All the best - Steve
I'm definitely sowing field beans again, just for the reason you suggest Steve but I don't have huge success with spinach anyway. I wonder what the nutritional profile is.
I loved seeing you laugh Steve ❤
I'm always laughing in real life, learnt the hard way, in my working years, that it's better to laugh at life's problems than get angry or depressed : All the best - Steve
@SteveRichards yes, it helps keep us sane, especially laughing at ourself...which is definitely needed fir me...lololol.
Great video, gonna sit and write dates fown later wanna try and get ahead this year
good show, cheers Steve
Wow ...this is so helpful...Thankyou.
Thanks for the feedback Rachel : All the best - Steve
I'm a bit excited to see chilli pepper shoots already. I put them on a heat cable and covered the pots with a clear plastic food pot for the humidity. The temperature wasn't always above 27C so I'm thrilled how good they look.
I germinate all of mine just in the house, at about 20-22c above a radiator on a little shelf : All the best - Steve
@@SteveRichards ah, well done.
I've planted peas, black magic kale, thinking of doing chard and baby gem lettuce too. Oh and loads of garlic last autumn
That's a great start, just be aware that Black Magic will go to seed on you some time in May or early June, so be ready with a follow on crop. You'll notice that I don't sow chard until April, because it too will go to seed in spring, if you start it now, that's why I grow beetroot early, the leaves are very chard like, lettuce is fine now, provided you protect it with fleece when you plant it out in March : All the best - Steve
@@SteveRichards ah thanks for tips 😃
Hi Steve. Thank you yet again for a brilliant, informative video- go to be the best on you tube, although, as you said, so easy to get overwhelmed with all the info and thank you so much for the newsletter, which is invaluable to refer to. I downloaded a pdf sowing guide for January, which I find such a useful reminder and ideas reference. Is there one for February, besides the growing guide please? I aim to build these sowing guides into file so that , when I order my seeds in December, it acts as a gentle tick list to check my seeds for what I will need. Thank you. Happy gardening 😃
There is, it will be in this week's newsletter. Overwhelm is a bit issue, I keep trying to make it all easier, but unfortunately if you want a rich diet all year round, that comes with some complexity : All the best - Steve
@@SteveRichards yes of course. I sometimes can't remember all of what i need to do. I do find yours newsletter really helpful, but I also like to print out your monthly sowing guides as i like things in paper format to refer to. I don't always have my laptop to hand and I don't own a smart phone/i-pad etc. Cheers steve 😃
Hi Steve, love you videos. Q. Can I plant up the Kalettes seeds now in Poly tunnel? 😊
Hi Vanessa, kalettes are best sown in March and germinated in a house, then they will grow on fine in a polytunnel until May when they are planted out, but not planted in a polytunnel, it will be too warm for them, they grow best in full sun or light shade outside. I sow a few in February, because I'm growing them in a shadier spot, see more here: steverichards.notion.site/Individual-growing-guides-bc279089de074c0ab0bfedc4f41d54dd?pvs=4 : All the best - Steve
Thanks for all the good advice in your videos. Can soil be too rich for beets? They are grown in deep raised beds. I love them but I never seem to get good sized beets. I add compost every year.
It can Carol, if it's too high in nitrogen then the beets will be all leaf : All the best - Steve
Hi Steve, I’m new to your channel. I’m amazes at the amount of food you grow! Quick question please: why would you need to use grow lights for peppers in April, in the greenhouse? Isn’t it bright enough at that time of the year?
It's bright enough for seedlings, but not to ripen fruits and I will only have them on early morning and early evening when the greenhouse is in shade. Which is what I'm doing now as well : all the best - Steve
I suppose you use grow light for your onions as they look so fantastic? I don’t have grow light and don’t seem to manage to get strong looking plants like you 😢 Claire Bristol UK
that's probably not the reason, my greenhouse is in light shade all day long in winter, so I give them a few hours under lights to compensate. The key with early onions is to grow them cold, but frost free, so they grow slowly. There are a few things that might cause you problems: pricking them out, heat mats, propagators, growing inside on a 'sunny' window sill, any of those in your case? : All the best - Steve
I've just harvested a purple cauliflower in my greenhouse . Autumn sown September maybe have you got them that early? Only one the other 3 are tiny plants still
I haven't, sown in September, that's amazing, I'd love to know more, sowing date, variety, pot or soil, full sun etc : All the best - Steve
Can i ask 2 questions.
Any way u can show, how u store your seed potatoes?
Do u have a video on how to grow peas? I always strugglr to get them to geminate or there go soft and mushy
No special way, just the way we store all of our potatoes, either in the tubs they grow in, or in shallow boxes, covered with a fleece blanket.
I only grow early peas, because we eat them fresh and don't want pea moth I do it like this czcams.com/video/3oSz3-bGeQU/video.html
@@SteveRichards ok I got mine in my cupboard under the stairs, there light that gets into the cupboards is that ok
@@SteveRichards thanks for the video
Yes, that's fine, just move them into the light as soon as they start to sprout
Hi Steve! I potted a load of my brassicas on last year (copying you) but sadly a lot of them have bolted! Should I have potted them on further? Perhaps I missed a video of you doing that.
Hi Katie, which types and when did you sow them? : All the best - Steve
Thanks for replying@@SteveRichards ! The bolting ones are Minaret (romanesco). I'm guessing it's because they're not suited to over winter?
There are a few general reasons, if the plants are sown too early in September they will be too big in February and they will think they are in their second year and go to seed, also sometimes if they are left in pots that are too small, they will get stressed over winter, too hot, too cold, too dry and that stress drives them to seed. Sometimes it's just bad luck choosing a variety that doesn't work. I always recommend doing a few sowings, starting in mid September and ending in late September, weeks matter in autumn. If you have grow lights an early October sowing is also more reliable. btw I saw the video where you showed off you new plot, it looked lovely, how exciting for you, did you get the adjacent plot too? : All the best - Steve
@@SteveRichards thank you for this! This year I’m going to keep better records of what I sow so I can be a bit more scientific/organised (and by the way thank you for changing my life by introducing me to Airtable. I use it for everything!). And yes we did get the full plot in the end! I keep meaning to upload more videos of it all.
@katiesvegpatch yes, airtable is great for a disorganised person like me, makes me seem super organised to the outside world
Hi Steve. I am following Your amazing work. Thank You for sharing all this precious information! I have a question: I use Your sowing tables which You linked into Your vegetable Year-round-growing-guides. At the "How-to-Grow-Onions-salad-spring-bunching" the "Sowing and harvesting periods" chart is not working. Can You please help me?The charts are working at other vegetables, this is an exception.
Thanks for the info, I’m hiking today, I will fix it this afternoon : all the best - Steve
It's fixed now, silly mistake at my end : All the best - Steve
Thank you, I appreciate it!
Cerboata is a fabulous lettuce. You should try it.
I'm always on the lookout for a good lettuce, what's special a out this one Sheela?
@SteveRichards it is a great cut and come again and very slow to bolt. Also pretty cold hardy. I grow it on a large scale organically and it's one the chefs love.
closest I can find is Cerbiatta lettuce
@SteveRichards sorry just noticed my typo. Yes it's Cerbiatta. Good detective work Steve.
I've bought some, thanks for the recommendation, what time of year does it grow best?
New space heater?
Yes, I'm just writing about it in a new chapter of my book on the greenhouse steverichards.notion.site/Greenhouse-Design-and-Growing-Guide-b3bf5d6ee29f4feaaa1671b0ea0a42f9?pvs=4 : All the best - Steve
I wonder if Graffiti is the same as Violetto?
It's not Gill, so much better than any Violetto I've ever managed to grow : All the best - Steve
@SteveRichards okay. Its just so much cheaper.
@@lynnpurfield9430 yeah and there's always a reason
@@SteveRichards mmm, true.