Seed List P-W

For winter and spring vegetables you must start with suitable hardy types of seed, which should be sown and planted out at the time suggested on the seed packet, making an allowance for our shorter growing season. Brassicas require to be always protected from the birds with netting, while broad beans and peas need fine mesh protection from birds and mice when young. Try starting broad beans and peas in pots in February in greenhouse or cold frame, and then plant out under cloches for early crops.
For continuity of cropping, try sowing one half of the row of a vegetable in April and then July. Particularly useful for salad crops, peas and beans. Also try sowing varieties that have different cropping times. F1 varieties tend to crop all together.
Our short growing seasons require the sowing of seed varieties that have a shorter period from planting out till harvest. A few seed catalogues give this information.