Now is the perfect time to start making preparations for growing this year’s selection of veg crops. Ensure your vegetable beds are ready for sowing ahead of the growing season now.
For existing vegetable beds
You have two choices for how to start prepping your vegetable beds:
Either…
Dig the bed over. Aim to remove weeds, placing annual weeds on the compost heap and perennial weeds in the green waste local authority recycling bins.
It’s best not to compost perennial weeds, as there’s a chance they could regrow in your vegetable beds. This risk doesn’t apply to annual weeds.
Or…
If you want to practice no-dig gardening, cover the beds with a thick layer of cardboard.
In either case add a layer of organic matter such as home-made compost, leaf mould, mushroom compost or well-rotted manure. Then, firm it down using your feet.
The organic matter should be laid to a depth of approximately 10cm (4”) if there are a lot of weeds in the bed. Or 5cm (2”) if the bed is relatively weed-free or mainly full of annual weeds.
Making a new vegetable bed
In either case add a layer of organic matter such as home-made compost, leaf mould, mushroom compost or well-rotted manure. Then, firm it down using your feet.
The organic matter should be laid to a depth of approximately 10cm (4”) if there are a lot of weeds in the bed. Or 5cm (2”) if the bed is relatively weed-free or mainly full of annual weeds.
Pre-warm the soil
Placing a cloche or hoops with thermal fleece pegged over them will help warm the soil. Then, when you’re ready to sow in March, germination rates may be quicker than if the soil hadn’t been pre-warmed.
Plan crop rotation
Make a plan of what you intend to grow in the beds. This should be kept as a reference for the following years, so you don’t grow the same crop in the same space. This avoids a potential build-up of pests and diseases and helps nutrients to replenish.
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David Domoney is a Chartered Horticulturalist, Broadcaster, and Author. David has worked with a number of the UK’s leading garden retailers as a plant buyer and strategic consultant. With more than 30 years experience, in horticulture, David is as passionate about plants now as he was when he bought his first plant at a village fete.
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