Planting the first seeds of the new year

For the past few weeks, Spring has been making fleeting appearances in the garden;  cameos of snowdrops and hellebores against the stark, bare backdrop of winter. But now buds are showing on the fruit trees, daffodils are in full bloom and spring is now centre stage, which means lots of work backstage to create a stunning performance for the next act. 

In this garden at least, it means a great deal of time sowing seeds in the greenhouse. Frosts make outdoor sowings impossible, so undercover it is. 

(The first Camellia's of Spring)

We've been sowing seeds for this garden for over 30 years and the novelty has never worn off. I still smile every time I see seeds debuting through dark, damp compost. 

We have a large propagator which provides both protection and bottom heat to make germination faster. It is thermostatically controlled, recording both the temperatures inside the greenhouse and the propagator. 

Now being able to control the propagator heat is easy enough, but more difficult to control the greenhouse temperature. More than once we have lost a batch of seedlings due to a sudden burst of spring sunshine. Attention to everything at this time of year is key. 

We have a large propagator, purely because we sow large amounts of seeds, but anything can become a propagator. A seed tray covered with a plastic lid works well, as does a plastic supermarket punnet covered with cling film. Putting them on a light airy windowsill above a radiator aids germination even more so. 

One of the joys of gardening is growing things on a shoestring. The key to success is to spend your money on good seeds and good compost. Make sure all your equipment is clean and only water with tap water. Rainwater is fine, once your plants are planted out, but can cause something called "damping off", if used to water seedlings.  

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