March in the garden

Outdoors, when conditions are favourable - sow carrots, parsnips, beetroot, broad beans, peas, spinach, swiss chard, lettuce, summer cabbage and cauliflower, but do keep an eye on the weather forecast and be prepared to protect the beds if necessary.

In a frost-free greenhouse make the first sowings - of peppers, tomatoes, cucumber, celery, globe artichokes and salad leaves. Celery and artichokes can be transplanted outside later in the spring.

If time is at a premium but you still want home-grown vegetables - why not try Module Grown Vegetable Starter Plants. These have been expertly grown under optimum conditions to produce a well developed root system, ready to romp away as soon as they are planted. Marshalls have a wide range of varieties and even offer a choice of despatch dates so you can have staggered planting - avoiding a glut of one variety.

Potatoes can be planted in well prepared beds - in the milder parts of the country, but wait until late March or early April if you live in cold area. I am lucky to live in the south, so I have already planted my first early potatoes. I chose Swift this year, with Charlotte and Maris Peer chitting in the shed in waiting for another few weeks. Traditionally early potatoes should be planted on Good Friday. How ridiculous! Good Friday comes at a different time every year. I go by the weather conditions and the soil conditions rather than the date.