It’s February! Here are some jobs you can be doing with the kids in fruit and veg garden over the weekend:
- Force rhubarb plants for an early crop by putting a pot on top of the emerging crown.
- Mulch perennial vegetables such as Asparagus and Artichokes with well rotted manure or garden compost.
- Start chitting early potatoes – stand them on end in a module tray or egg box and place them in a bright, cool, frost-free place.
- Start sowing vegetable seeds such as onions and celeriac under cover now.
- Prepare vegetable seed beds by removing all weeds and forking in plenty of compost. Cover prepared soil with sheets of black plastic to keep it drier and warmer in preparation for spring planting.
- Cut autumn-fruiting raspberry canes to the ground to stimulate new canes, which will fruit in the autumn. Cut the tips off summer-fruiting raspberry canes that have grown beyond the top of their supports; cut just above a bud.
- Prune apple trees and pear trees whilst they’re still dormant.
- Prune blackcurrant bushes, gooseberries and redcurrants to maintain a productive plant structure ideally into a goblet shape with an open centre.
- Mulch fruit trees with well rotted manure or garden compost taking care not to mound mulch up around the trunk.
