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Q: Dear Ken, I have the following vegetable seeds: climbing bean, runner bean, swiss chard, mangetout and spinach perpetual. When will I be able to sow these directly into the soil outside or should I pot them up now and put them in my unheated greenhouse? Many thanks and enjoy your radio programmes – Dennis from Tiptree
A: The beans are the most fragile vegetable and cannot be planted directly outside safely until the middle of May. You could start them off in the greenhouse in a couple of weeks time [March]. Being careful to watch the weather and waiting until all the frosts have finished you can then plant them outside into soil. Mangetout can be sown directly outdoors now [February and March]. Just watch as they emerge if we have severe frost then cover the seedlings with horticultural fleece. Swiss chard and Spinach perpetual you can sow outside in mid April.
Don’t forget a great place to purchase quality seeds is from Kings Seeds online now. They have a wide selection of vegetables available.
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