As soon as we hit March, everyone is getting hyped to be able to sow all their seeds. Is it still a little early for most plants? Yes. Are we going to start sowing them anyway? Absolutely. The key thing here is not to be too disheartened when we end up with a lot of leggy plants that aren't really going to survive, if they even grow at all. I am the absolute queen of getting disheartened and doubting myself if a seed doesn't germinate within the first couple of days but we all need to be realistic here! Due to the effects of global warming, we can get away with sowing some seeds earlier but results are in no way guaranteed.
You may have seen on Instagram I've already been having success with sowing nasturtiums but that's really about it. I've had a lot of failures too which have been a result of sowing too early, not using the appropriate compost/soil and living between two homes means I am not with my seedlings 24/7 to take complete care of them. So, I'm calling February a write off and starting again and here is what I'll be sowing this month!
1. Pumpkins!
Guys, gals and non-binary pals, it is officially the month we can think about growing our pumpkins! I had pumpkin plants last year but they failed so this year I am getting a head start and starting them indoors. I am going to sow them towards the end of March to give them the best fighting chance. I will be sowing Baby Boo, Jack Be Little and Wilko's Jack O Lantern variety.
2. Radish.
I'm not a big fan of radishes. My boyfriend is so I know he will gobble them all but I do like to have one in a salad occasionally. Growing your own brings extra peppery tasting radishes so I will probably like my own homegrown a bit less than the store bought but I really wanted to give them a go. I am sowing these now in batches as it is a good idea to succession sow these babies. I'm keeping mine outside in my Wilko greenhouse and they seem to be doing awesome already!
3. Tomatoes.
Technically my boyfriend is sowing these guys from seeds we saved last year. I do have a back up packet I got free with Kitchen Garden magazine for if these don't take but if all else fails, we are happy to cheat our way with store bought plugs in a month or two.
4. Leekies.
Okay so my original sowing of leeks was an epic fail. I tried to use some lower quality soil to try and foster hardier seedlings for when I plant outdoors but they just didn't even germinate. Whether it was the soil, lack of light, or just bad luck, who knows? This time I've used compost fresh from the bag and am keeping them in the greenhouse with the radish to see if the radish can provide some gentle encouragement.
5. Sunflowers.
I have 3 successful(ish) sunflowers that I sowed early February but these were definitely more experiments. I think two will be good enough to go outside in a few weeks but I think I will sow some more directly in to the soil later in the month.
6. Dahlias.
I am so jealous of everyone's dahlia tubers but honestly, I don't currently have the space to grow dahlias. I don't have an allotment so we grow everything in the garden and I need to prioritise my favourites. However, every time I see dahlias in vlogs and on instagram, I fall more and more in love with them so when I went to pick up some extra pumpkin seeds, I also left with some dahlia seeds. I know. I know. I am mental for thinking I will manage to grow dahlias from a seed but it's an experiment! I have a plastic cupcake tray leftover from a colleague's birthday and I am going to use that as my dahlia propagation station. Let's give it a whirl.
7. Peppers
This is another one that my boyfriend is growing and as a result I don't have much to say. We use a lot of peppers so it would be lovely to grow our own. We are trying the sweet Californian Wonder mix from Wilko because it was the cheapest and honestly I couldn't tell the difference.
8. Sweet Peas
Confession: I don't understand the sweet pea hype. I am an imposter. However, I am not sure I have ever smelled them and apparently their smell is the most compelling part so I am curious. There is a spot in the garden where a dead plant has been removed (rip) and it does seem the perfect space for some sweet peas. I think I may be a bit late in sowing them as everyone on Instagram has already pinched theirs out weeks ago but better late than never. I will give them a go and if they don't work out then there is always next year.
I would love to know what you're all planting this month so please leave a comment if you are sowing any seeds in March. Also, if you have any tips for what I am growing, I would love to know those too.
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