This week on the Veg Grower Podcast, Richard takes us through that wonderful mid‑April moment when everything suddenly bursts into life. The allotment is waking up fast, the kitchen garden is buzzing with activity, and even the potting shed has a surprisingly important topic to tackle. There’s been planting, sowing, weeding, rescuing, and—thanks to a small accident—some very seasonal cooking too. It’s been a full and productive week, and Richard shares it all. On the Allotment Richard begins the week down on the allotment, where the next batch of potatoes has gone into the ground. This time it’s the Maris Piper, the first of the maincrop varieties and one of Richard’s favourites for roasting and chipping. The method stays simple: a hole, a seed potato, a sprinkle of fertiliser, a layer of compost and a good watering. There’s excitement too, because the Rocket potatoes planted earlier in the season have now pushed their first leaves through the soil. Those tiny green shoots are always a reassuring sight, a sign that the season is moving forward and that the first harvest isn’t too far away. A few weeks ago Richard sowed carrots and parsnips on the south side of the greenhouse, and they’ve now germinated. They’re still tiny, but they’re up, and that’s what matters. They’ll need careful watering, but it’s another sign that spring is well underway. Richard has also planted out onions grown from seed—a fiddly job, but one that should pay off with fewer bolted onions later in the year. And the broad beans have gone in too, both the overwintered plants and the January‑sown experiment. They’re now tucked into the old straw bale bed and mulched with straw to help keep the moisture in. Seed saving is a big focus for Richard this year, so a couple of parsnip plants have been left in the ground to flower. They still look like ordinary parsnips for now, but once they bolt, they’ll provide seed for next year. And while weeding the asparagus bed, Richard accidentally snapped off a couple of spears. Not ideal, but they came home and ended up inspiring this week’s recipe. In the Kitchen Garden Back home, the kitchen garden has been just as busy. The greenhouse has been warm—very warm—and the autopots have kept the tomatoes, cucumbers, chillies and peppers perfectly watered. They’re growing strongly and won’t be long before they start flowering. The cold frame, however, has been a battleground. Slugs and snails have found their way in and eaten Richard’s cucumbers. Because he doesn’t use pellets, it’s back to the usual routine of nightly slug patrols, a bucket, and the chickens enjoying the spoils the next morning. The upside‑down clay pot trick is still working well, giving the slugs a cool hiding place that makes them easy to collect. Out in the main beds, Richard has been tackling the weeding in small, manageable sections. One area by the shed had become a bit of a dumping ground for pots, so he cleared it, trimmed the grass, and planted an apple tree there instead. It won’t fruit this year, but it’s a long‑term improvement to the space. Some of the potted fruit trees haven’t survived last year’s dry summer and this winter’s cold snap, including the citrus. A few might still come back, but replacements may be needed. Meanwhile, the seed sowing continues in the shed—more beans, more sweetcorn, more of everything really—and the heated propagators have now been switched off for the season. Recipe of the Week: Asparagus & Potato Traybake This week’s recipe came about thanks to those accidentally harvested asparagus spears. Asparagus has such a short season and such a delicate flavour that when it’s ready, you really do have to make the most of it. Richard made a simple asparagus and potato traybake with a lemon and herb dressing. Potatoes were roasted first, then chopped asparagus and red onion were added along with a little more oil and seasoning. While that finished cooking,
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33 mins