It’s all about the preparation this month and resisting to start seeds off too early. In the UK, we have cold weather and sometimes snow in January so unless you have a heated propagator then no seeds can be sown not even in the greenhouse.

How to Prepare your Vegetable Garden for the Growing Season

• Clearing and weeding the vegetable beds, ready for growing in a few months time.
• Add new compost or manure and dig in. If using the No dig method, just place about 1 to 2 inches of compost on the top of the existing soil.
• Look into buying or creating Cloches with fleece over them to warm up the soil ready for planting.
• Not that we need anymore excuses to buy more seed, but if you want to grow a different variety or you need some seeds, now is the time to look at the suppliers and buy what you need.
• Make a vegetable plot plan on paper or on the computer. Then make a separate sow month or sow date sheet to get organised on when seeds need sowing, transplanting and harvesting.
• If you want to plant potatoes, look for seed potatoes and pots to grow them in.
• Tidy and organise the greenhouse, shed or potting bench and check you have all the compost, seed trays, pots that you need for the growing season ahead.
• Check on any vegetables still growing for example Leeks and use them as and when ready to free up more space for the new growing season.
• Organise your seed packets. There are so many different ways to store your in boxes, tins, photo albums etc

Resources for Beginner Vegetable Growers

Here’s a few Free Guides to help you get started on How to Plan your Vegetable Garden.

Plan your Vegetable Plot – Part 1 – Deciding what to grow and where to grow it.

Plan your Vegetable Plot – Part 2 – Weather, Sunlight and what you need to start growing.

Plan your Vegetable Plot – Part 3 – Choosing a Vegetable Variety to grow.

More Parts coming soon in early 2024!