Mid March 24, under way outside

Written by

Charles Dowding

Last Updated

March 17, 2024

Overview

There's a lot you can sow now, see below. Also there's no rush to sow the warmth loving plants except for tomatoes, aubergines, peppers, and chilies.
All of the cucurbit family need extra warmth to grow successfully, wait until April before sowing them, details below.

Thanks to no dig, you can continue in almost all weathers. In the main photo I am sowingcarrots just six hours after a 14mm / 0.6in downpour on soil already at 100% moisture capacity. The surface compost stays aerated, soft and not sticky. Drainage below is even and good.

The weather here so far in March has been dull and damp, with warm nights lifting the overall temperature, but no days above 14°C, 57°F until 15.7°C, 60°F on 17th March. See my advice below about damping off and be very careful not to overwater seedlings.

Spring onions damping off after initial 90% germination, old seed and dense compost, propagation issues — Spring onions damping off after initial 90% germination, old seed and dense compost

Sow under cover

From mid-March, new sowings include celery and celeriac - leave those seeds exposed to light, with a glass tray over, or in a clear plastic bag for about 10 days.

Tomatoes if not yet sown, and tomatillos.
Then late in March, melons and dwarf French marigold.
An excellent time to sow fruiting plants such as tomatoes, peas and broad beans is 22nd to 23rd March because those dates are 2 to 3 days before full moon, which encourages rapid growth. Also they are 'fruit dates' (moon in a fire constellation) which means the balance of growth turns towards fruits more than routs and leaves. It's a small difference and not one to lose sleep over if you miss those dates. I sowed most tomatoes 14th March.

For leeks, sow only varieties for early harvests. Early April is good for most leeks. Basil too.

‍Later sowings under cover Wait until mid-April to sow cucumbers for cropping under cover, 20th–25th April before sowing courgettes, sweetcorn and squash, May before sowing summer beans, alsocucumbers for cropping outside.

HARDENING OFF, I rarely do it except if I need to make space in the greenhouse, and I park on a table outside any seedlings we do not yet have time to transplant.
However, if your plants are raised under lights, they need to harden outside before planting.

See this short video for tips on when seedlings are ready to plant outside.

Mouse damage to pea seedlings, stem eaten so the mouse can eat the seed. So we set a mousetrap before the next night, and caught it — Mouse damage to pea seedlings, stem eaten so the mouse can eat the seed. I set a trap and caught the mouse the following evening. This can happen to direct sowings as well.

Turnips multisown ten days earlier, are ready usually after 18-20 days in these CD60's

Sow outdoors

From mid March you can make outdoor sowings direct in the soil.Such as carrots, parsnips, onion, spring onion, spinach, radish, turnip, coriander, dill and parsley, first early potatoes too. Any cover of fleece will speed germination.

Find tips and timings in my No Dig book, which we sell on offer with my 2024 Calendar. Also in a popular offer with the No Dig Children's Gardening book.

Another wet day, and Adam is managing to sow carrots into drills in compost made with a hoe.. The combination of no dig and hand work means we lose no time to weather, and do not get muddy boots.

Small garden of 25 m²

I am using the Fryd app to demonstrate planning your plantings. By June everything in this garden will be new plants, except the strawberries continuing.

Growing under mesh (slid back for the photo) is spring cabbage and spring cauliflower, transplanted 2nd October. They have been covered all winter. A fleece cover at the back is over newly planted radish, all explained in this video.

No dig small garden 16th March, cabbage and cauiflower on left front, 6.5 months since sown — Small garden 16th March, cabbage and cauliflower on left front are 6.5 months since sown

Fleece

The 30gsm thickness lasts for several years, see this site. While Andermatt sell fleece and mesh made from plant material. I am trialling some now and do not know how long it lasts. The manufacturers claim is three years which would put it on a par with most synthetic fleece, although sometimes one can make them last longer.

I heard of Andermatt through working with Crocus on a products collaboration, details coming soon.

Fleece differences 30gsm left, 25gsm and damage from being older right, is not ideal because Minty the cat dives in for shelter and warmth. Plants prefer the 25gsm extra ventilation and light.

Damping off seedling problems

‍This rapid and disheartening destruction of seedlings is from a combination of leaves and roots being too wet, for too long, in humid air. The best way to prevent damping off is by watering less frequently.

During the past week, I have watered most of my plant trays only once. Normally at this time of year it would be around four times a week, before days of sunshine.

The compost needs to become a little dry between waterings, because roots need air and leaves attract mildew when often wet. Hence it's best to water in the mornings, allowing leaves to dry before night.

Lettuce thickly sown in a tray, and we have pricked some out already. This is to show how thick sowings can quickly rot and decay from lack of air movement. — Lettuce thickly sown in a tray, and we have pricked some out already. This is to show how thick sowings can quickly rot and decay from lack of air movement around damp leaves - the grey mould you see is of whole leaf-clumps. I had watered only twice since sowing, but the air has been 100% humid for so much of the time.

Water, my recommended products

‍I give the Plantsurge device a wholehearted recommendation. It's in two halves and is easy to apply: the two halves of its magnets clip over any half inch / 12 mm pipe or hose. Since using one in my house from December 2022, all scale has fallen off the kettle, so it's softening the water.

Salads in the polytunnel have shown even more vigour, and all for just £45. Claim an automatic 10% discount when buying from this link. Or use the coupon Nodig when buying from plantsurge website.

On my products webpage are other devices related to water, which again I warmly recommend after using them.
One is Analemma (scroll down halfway) which gives an almost unbelievable smoothness and taste quality to any water. I also pop the device into beer and wine, again the improvement is fantastic!

Another I recommend is Newton who make gravity-powered water filters, use the coupon CHARLES10 for 10% discount at checkout.

Plus of course copper tools, and the Castor trowel in particular. For larger areas of seeding weeds, the Hydra hoe is fantastic. It's expensive so not worth it for small gardens.

Magnets encased in two plastic halves make the Plantsurge device secure around any half inch/12 mm hose or pipe, and the water becomes magnetically structured after passing through. This is the fourth phase of water described by Gerald Pollack in his book of 2012, and it's good for plant growth.

Garlic

Yellowing tips on leaves during early spring are common, after fluctuating weather conditions. Applying seaweed to the leaves can promote healthy growth.

Having maximum soil health (no dig), or growing under cover, are preventative measures against rust, which is more common than previously. Find more details in this £2.50 garlic guide.

These garlic look alright for the middle of March, despite some leaf yellowing. The white stems are mustard killed by frost. I love to see how they're being pulled into the soil by earthworms who create this circular pattern as they pull them down, and there is a large worm hole in the middle of each white clump.

Compost can be imperfect looking

1/4 brown and 3/4 green is a good rule of thumb for decent results. The brown is anything woody, green is fresh materials and the proportions are not strict.

I have some lovely compost in the middle bay of these three pallets, see this short video. Over the last few months we have turned the two outer heaps into the middle. That is now 7 to 9months old with a fair few worms, very usable at this stage.