February Vegetable Gardening...

Vegetable Gardener's Diary - February, in the UK

February may seem bleak and dreary, but there are still plenty of jobs to be done in the vegetable garden. There are seeds to be sown and parsnips to be lifted.

February is the time to:

Prepare:

- The ground by continuing to dig over the ground, adding manure if desired
- Seedbeds by raking over and covering with polythene or glass

Sow Indoors or in a heated greenhouse:

• Onions
• Lettuce
• Tomatoes (maincrop)
• Leeks
• Peas
• Cucumber
• Celery
• Brassica vegetables

Sow outdoors under cover:

• Broad beans
• Early summer cabbage
• Spinach
• Peas
• Radish

Plant:

• Shallots
• Onions
• Garlic
• Jerusalem artichokes
• Rhubarb

Harvest:

• Winter cabbages
• Cauliflowers
• Kale
• Broccoli
• Leeks
• Sprouts
• Beetroot
• Squash
• Parsnip
• Shallots
• Celeriac

Things to do:

- Continue to chit potatoes and order seeds

- Prick out vegetables seedlings sown during January / early February in the greenhouse

- Pot up young tomato seedlings sown in January

Seasonal Recipes - February in the UK

Beetroot Mousse | Beetroot Pickle | Beetroot & Potato Pie | Beetroot Relish | Beetroot Salad | Broccoli Salad | Cabbage Soup | Cauliflower Cream Soup | Leek Pie | Oven Baked Parsnip Crips | Spinach Italiano | Sprouts with Chestnuts |