Allotment Month Planner - January
General
- If the soil is not too wet and the weather allows it, dig over any beds ready for planting in spring.
- Clear and burn any rubbish which will not compost
- Plan Rotation
- Prepare my seed order
- Check any crops in store for disease, damage or rot.
- Cover with Black polythene or cloches, any beds that will be used for early crops. This will help to warm the soil.
Potato Family
- Order Potato tubers and when they arrive place in trays to chit.
Legumes
- Nothing doing
Brassicas
- Clear away stems and roots of cabbages that have finished cropping.
- Clear away the stems of Brussels Sprouts that have been picked.
- Purple Sprouting Broccoli and Kale should now be ready for harvesting.
- Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage (Winter and Savoy), Swede, and Winter Radishes.
Harvest
Onions
- Open onion/shallot sets and lay out to stop rot and/or sprouting
- Shallots can be planted if the soil is well drained.
- Leeks.
Harvest
Roots
- Carrots, Parsnip, Salsify and Scorzonera.
Harvest
Other Vegetables
- Clean Asparagus beds ready for spring, and mulch with well rotted manure or compost before growth starts.
- Clean any decaying leaves from over wintering lettuce in cold frames.
- Celery may need extra protection if the weather is severe.
- Plant rhubarb roots and cover established rhubarb with compost. To encourage early rhubarb growth cover with straw or a large bin.
- Take Chicory roots into the greenhouse for forcing.
- Winter Spinach.
- Lift Celery and Jerusalem Artichokes as required.
Harvest
Herbs
- Nothing doing.
Fruit
- Inspect stored fruit and discard any that has rotted
- Check stakes, ties, framework supports and wires and replace or repair, if required
- Continue pruning trees and bushes
- Mulch rhubarb crowns well with compost or well rotted manure
- Plant new fruit bushes and raspberry canes as soon as you get them, and any time until February.
- Trees and bushes grown on grass need a nitrogen feed this month.
