The Kitchen Garden

Vegetables

April should be the time to start the kitchen garden in earnest, but still be ever vigilant of the late frosts.

• Plant runner beans in 3in pots of general purpose compost under glass, for planting out next month.
• Leeks can be sown in short rows or in pots, for planting out in rows later on.
• Plant onion and shallot sets, 6in apart, pushed into the soil until just the tip shows.
• Sow courgettes, cucumbers and outdoor tomatoes in individual small pots under glass.
• Prepare celery trenches and holes for runner beans and courgettes with plenty of manure or compost.
• First and second early potatoes should all be planted by now and will need earthing up as they grow, but cover the soil with a protective blanket of heavyweight horticultural fleece if frost is expected.
• Indoor tomatoes, chilli peppers, aubergines, melons and cucumbers need sowing now, one to two seeds per pot in a propagator or on a warm greenhouse bench.
• Sow peas, mangetout, lettuce, carrots, beetroot and autumn-maturing cauliflowers directly into the ground if the soil is warm enough.
• This is the last month to plant out maincrop potatoes, spacing them about 12in apart.

As your kitchen garden develops, you'll need to thin out seedlings otherwise crops will become straggly and won't crop well. Check your seed packet for the ideal distance between seedlings, it will depend on the type of crop. You can usually transplant most vegetable thinnings except root crops, these tend to mature a little later than the other seedlings so you can enjoy the thinnings in salads and soups.

Don`t forget to water seedlings before and after thinning if the weather is dry. To keep a succession of crops, continue planting most salad and root crops at four weekly intervals and try some of the “cut and come again” varieties of lettuce and spinach.

Keep an eye on pests this month, birds, slugs and snails all enjoy the rewards of your efforts, so cover up where you can and put a few pellets around your leafy seedlings. Alternatively have a walk down the garden after dark with a torch and remove the slugs and snails manually and drop them into a bucket of salty water.

Fruit Garden

It may be necessary to water newly planted fruit trees and canes if this month is dry and keep an eye particularly on wall trained trees or fruit grown in containers as they are more prone to drying out.

Keep weeds, especially grass, under control as they will compete with fruit trees and bushes for both food and water. Feeding tree and bush fruit need not be an annual event, but now is the time to do it if appropriate.

Remove tied on grease bands that have been in place over winter. Towards the end of the month untie branches of wall trained figs which have been bundled together for protection - leave until May in cold regions. Remove any crossing or frost damaged branches. Cut back any branches that have become long and bare leaving a small stump of around 5cm to encourage new growth from the base.

Tie in and begin to train vines, they will be growing quickly very soon. To get a good crop it is important to train them well, otherwise they will soon become a mass of leaf and little fruit.

Select the strongest shoot on each spur for training. Pinch back weaker growths on each spur to 2-3 leaves to act as reserve shoots in case the selected shoot breaks during training. Top-dress Citrus in containers using compost made up of equal quantities of loam, garden compost, coir and sharp grit. Hand pollinate peaches and nectarines using a ball of cotton wool or a soft bristled paint brush. Repeat daily from when the flowers first open until the petals fall. Remove blossom from newly planted fruit trees, the trees will need all of the energy to establish well. Prune fan trained stone fruits such as cherries, plums and nectarines. Prune out any shoots growing either into the wall or directly away from the tree. Then thin out any overcrowded and crossing shoots, remove any dead, diseased or damaged shoots. The remaining shoots can be tied to the training wires. Pruning cuts heal quickly at this time and therefore reduces the risk of fungal diseases, silverleaf and bacterial canker.

Plant bare root strawberries once the soil begins to warm up. Strawberries like a well-drained soil, rich in organic matter. Don't overdo the fertility though - you will encourage unwanted lush growth. Continue to cover strawberries for an early crop with polythene tunnels or glass cloches. Remember to ventilate on warm days, especially around flowering time for pollinating insects, replacing covers at night.

Sow melon seeds towards the end of the month for planting out in a cold frame in late may after the last frosts. Sow two seeds on their edges into small pots, cover with 2cm of compost and keep at a temperature between 22-26°C. Once germinated remove the weaker seedling and grow on at around 25°C.