The plot in April

Jobs on the plot

• Plant maincrop potatoes. And start earthing up the earlies as their shoots show.
• Sow tender crops indoors. Courgettes, squash, sweetcorn, runner and French beans, in pots on a windowsill.
• Thin seedlings. Thin rows of carrots, beetroot and lettuces before they crowd each other.
• Protect from late frost. Keep fleece handy. Cover potato shoots and fruit blossom on cold nights.
• Keep sowing salads. A short row every fortnight from now until August.
• Start weeding weekly. Ten minutes with a hoe each visit keeps the plot under control all year.

Times are for an average year in the English Midlands. Go two weeks earlier in the mild south, and two to three weeks later in the north and in Scotland.