Cottage Garden

Seed sowing can start seriously under cover this month. If you have a heated propagator or warm, light windowsill, start sow seeds of tender summer vegetables in pots or modules, especially slower- growing ones such as peppers and aubergines.

Tomatoes for unheated greenhouses and tunnels will often catch up if not sown until early March, and cucumbers can wait even longer. You can sow seeds hardier crops direct into greenhouse and polytunnel borders - rocket and carrots, for example, are best treated in this way.

However, I usually sow peas, lettuce and brassicas in modules for transplanting so I can give them more attention and keep them out of the way of slugs and mice. For extra warmth, sometimes I take pots and trays  with seed sowing into the house, just until the very first signs of seedlings emerging; alternatively, large seeds such as peas can be pregerminated on paper towelling in a warm place before sowing.

These early seed sowings need all the help they can get to give good germination and avoid 'damping off (where seedlings rot at the base and topple over).

Sow in Feb.  without extra heat:

lettuce, kohl rabi, calabrese, summer cabbage, radish, annual spinach, cutting salads (leaf lettuce, rocket,

cress, oriental greens), carrots, sugar peas, early peas, broad beans

Sow this month with extra heat:

tomatoes, peppers, chillies, aubergines, spring onions, onions, celery, celeriac

• Make sure plant seeds pots and modules are clean.
• Add sharp sand or vermiculite to seed sowing compost. If necessary, as it needs to be well drained.
• Use new seed - this should germinate more quickly and produce more vigorous seedlings than seed that is several years old.
• Provide extra heat for germination where possible.
• Don't overcrowd seedlings and give them good light so they don't get leggy.
• Don't overwater your seed sowing.