Am I a bit late or are you lot a bit eager?

[ancee]

Hiya Reading post upon posts on here, it seems that everyone has started seed sowing and early too? Do I have the only packets of seeds that say plant in April? I usually get going end of March begining of April. Am I being a bit late? Everything seems to be ok when I do, but am I missing out on anything by leaving it later? I mean, does stuff germinate better or grow better when it's planted earlier? Perhaps I should throw the packet instructions away and just go for it!!

[binley100]

Well, some stuff like broadies can be sown early but for the rest well............guess we're all a bit impatient

[taff]

I haven't sown anything yet, only planted garlic in January, so don't panic, there are others who are not so with it yet too

[Nicos]

I've not sown anything yet either!

[Thelma Sanders]

All I've sown is Onions and a few cabbages in modules in the greenhouse - oh and early spuds in pots are in there as well


ooops forgot the tomatoes for the Early Sowing thread, and the peppers and chillis

[MarkHackwell]

I have started quite early this year as a result of our small greenhouse i thought i would start some stuff off early so I can get that planted up and use the heated propagators again for more crops as well as for when I sow the flowers. You may find it better to have waited as the light levels are now beginning to improve and the days are getting longer so you will catch up I personally prefer sowing my peppers and tomatoes in January and have found that sowing some early vegetables has a benefit to extend the growing season. I'm way ahead of where I was last year and was a little bit impatient if im honest and it didnt all pay off. I noticed last year I did one thing wrong and that was sowing my Melon Seed too early so have put that back this year Still most of the stuff sown from January and February can be sown now and you will still get the same crop maybe a little later or maybe the same time

[Jamesy_uk]

Impatient is the word, I have always been a nightmare but this year it has been unseasonably dark and cold unlike last March which was unseasonably hot and meant my lovely big seedlings then sulked when April was rubbish. I Just had to pull up 9 very leggy Romanesco seedlings and re sow them but my Cabbage and Brussels are hanging in there o.k along with my Lettuce, Pak Choi and Peas.

[SarzWix]

A lot of my early sowings are destined for the polytunnel, so they're earlier than ones that will be planted outside

[out in the cold]

Actually now slightly regretting starting my beans early.

They are massive and I cannot get them near the garden yet in this weather. I am getting a bit scared that they will be damaged by being in pots for too long

[RedThorn]

Aunty Flum would be telling you that it's still too early and that the seeds you plant in the proper time would catch up and be roughly producing at the same time.

That said it's up to each person how much they want to experiment

[SarzWix]

Just sow some more chick I know it feels like condemning your babies, but 3 weeks before last frost date is when they want to be sown, and half of that time would be spent hardening them off so they grow more slowly. If you really really can't bear to compost them, you're going to have to set a big outdoor pot up with canes and try to wedge it on a window-sill...

[Dotty Sarah]

Every year I promise myself that I'll wait until it's warm enough outside but once again this year I already have too many tomatoes and chillies inside and the peas and beans in my little grow house are desperate to be planted out but only yesterday it was snowing and the plot isn't ready yet! As soon as the days start to get just that little longer the temptation is too much to bear.

[Veggielot]

Probably just being a little over optimistic in my case but hand some spare seeds so thought I might as well try doing a few early. Most of what I have tried has shown little sign of doing anything. Sweat peas, peas and onions are the only thing that has grown but now scared of planting them out. Had a few others come up but I think the frost has killed them off.

Was always a bit of a gamble, you win some you loose some. Still have time to sow some more.

[veggiechicken]

I have broad beans, dwarf peas, tomatoes, lettuce, mixed salad leaves, beetroot, cima di rapa and some other odds and ends on the grow - all started indoors but the toms went out in the GH today and the broadies have been there for weeks. The only thing I've planted outside is garlic and I shan't be sowing anything outdoors for a few more weeks.

[cptncrackoff]

I've only just sown (last night) the first round of seeds of stuff for the greenhouse - Toms, cues, peppers.
Apart from that I've got onion sets from last year, broad beans overwintering - and some peas just sown in the conservatory.

I'm going by the weather rather than the date, this weekend I'll sow some cauli and sprouts in the conservatory. If I didn't have a greenhouse and conservatory I would be holding off, although there were people down my allotment two weeks ago sowing parsnips etc etc without protection I felt the ground was too cold, and still is.
All my carrot packs say sow from Feb ... really!? I'd be interested to hear of anyone who plants their carrots religiously in Feb and has good germination rates, that's not a challenge... I really would, with it due to go 'chilly' again mine wont be going in just yet.