- Details
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Bring forward spring harvests by starting your first sowings under protection which will make you gain a few weeks. Even in a smaller garden, it is worth the trouble!
The protection
Seeds in the ground can be protected in different manners, in order of increased efficiency: under a cloche, a protecting fleece, a removable tunnel or again under a frame. A simple fleece allows you to already gain 4 to 5 °C, but it has to be removed as soon as the seedlings start to come up. The weight of the fabric could damage them. Cloches are useful for smaller seedlings (on very small areas) especially those on pots.
The right vegetables
It is mostly carrots, radishes and spring salads which are sown very early on, under protection. Aromatic plants which are long to come up such as Parsley are also sown early. Vegetables which are planted early such as onion and garlic have no need for protection.
The method
1 Rake the soil, beforehand weeded and cleaned, to level up the soil. Break the large clumps (of more than 5cm wide).
2 Dig a small furrow, 5cm wide and 2cm deep, with a stick or the metal of a tool for example.
3 Drop the seeds into it, not too close together: one seed every 2cm is enough, unless you are using older seeds (past three years old, all seeds do not raise at 100%).
4 Cover up with approximately a 5mm layer of compost or fine earth.
5 Press down lightly with the back of a rake or a flat object. Do not press down too much: you just need to push down the soil a little bit but you do not want it to form a "shell".
6 Cover with a wintering fleece (a forcing fleece) and embed it so that the wind does not lift it up.
There is no need to water before the seeds germinate, as rain is going through the net without disturbing the seeds. - Photos (7)
Sow spring vegetables (under cover)
The protection
Author: Jean-Michel Groult
Copyright
Copyright
Sow spring vegetables (under cover)
Rake the soil, beforehand weeded and cleaned, to level up the soil. Break the large clumps (of more than 5cm wide).
Author: Jean-Michel Groult
Copyright
Copyright
Sow spring vegetables (under cover)
Dig a small furrow, 5cm wide and 2cm deep, with a stick or the metal of a tool for example.
Author: Jean-Michel Groult
Copyright
Copyright
Sow spring vegetables (under cover)
Drop the seeds into it, not too close together: one seed every 2cm is enough, unless you are using older seeds (past three years old, all seeds do not raise at 100%).
Author: Jean-Michel Groult
Copyright
Copyright
Sow spring vegetables (under cover)
Cover up with approximately a 5mm layer of compost or fine earth.
Author: Jean-Michel Groult
Copyright
Copyright
Sow spring vegetables (under cover)
Press down lightly with the back of a rake or a flat object. Do not press down too much: you just need to push down the soil a little bit but you do not want it to form a “shell”.
Author: Jean-Michel Groult
Copyright
Copyright
Sow spring vegetables (under cover)
Cover with a wintering fleece (a forcing fleece) and embed it so that the wind does not lift it up.
Author: Jean-Michel Groult
Copyright
Copyright