Kitchen Garden Forum

So, its January. What have you all been up to?

What have you been sowing?
What have you been doing in your greenhouse, polytunnel or on your patch?
What's on your list of things to do before February?

Or are you just hunkering down, keeping warm and drooling over seed catalogues!

Sowed onion seeds & sweet peas in the propagator, but not heated & plant light set up for when they show. Tunnel has a few things growing & harvesting stuff in there, (frilly sprouts, celeriac & spring onions are happy) & winter lettuce are taking off but not big enough to harvest! It is mostly tidying, washing pots, repairing, pruning & burning hard tree trimmings & soft wood trimmings & putting compost on the beds. That is for Jan & even in Feb for the soft wood burn of the autumn raspberries. I'm sitting on my hands & being patient but my fruit trees are confused & starting to bud. Can't do nought about that so may or may not get a good crop this year - but that's growing for you! (I'm not good at sitting on my hands either) so by end of Feb if weather allows I will sow other stuff under fleece or mesh!

Welcome to the forum oleiniw! Ask away on any topic - we don't bite & there are some super clever growers on this site & they acknowledge the fact we remember how scary it was when starting out & needing help & advice!

I somehow managed to grow brussel sprouts in a container and they survived a couple of days light frost. Theu started on my balcony and have now moved to the new garden. It's still growing and I'm wondering when to harvest, because it's really not the season! Or am I wrong?

hunkering down, keeping warm and drooling

Brussel Sprouts are tough as old boots Elmigo & like the cold! Winter is their time, although not for sowing, they go in much earlier in the year (end of Spring) & mature & come into early winter with little buds & if lucky you get some for Xmas. But keep coaxing your guys on as the tops of Brussels are delicious even if you don't get the sprouts.

I didn't know that about the tops of brussel sprouts! Last year I harvested broccoli and ate the leaves too, they were delicious but usually they end up on the compost heap.

The tops of Brussels sprouts are even more delicious than the sprouts themselves in my opinion!

Been down to the allotment this morning sprayed the greenhouse with Jeyes then washed it with soapy water then jet washed it, looks like a new one now, well chuffed.

Mostly clearing stuff, taking what crops I can (parsnips, celeriac, a few bits of chard and what I can rescue of my leeks), feeding the birds and quite a lot of weeding (the damn willowherb seems to grow and spread irrespective of the season or weather!)

Most important in January is to relax in your shed and/or greenhouse and look through the brochures......and choose this years holiday destination!!!

Snooky, don't forget you're now supposed to plant trees to account for your carbon footprint if you're flying abroad, so maybe plant some fruit trees from all those catalogues !

A real january job for me is germinating spinach. I just never thought this would happen! Spinach already germinated outdoors when it's close to freezing temperatures.