Planning the Garden during the Year: what to do from October to March

Hi everyone! During these months, we wanted to help you to ensure that your garden has been in perfect condition so that now, once the summer is over, here in Spain, you can enjoy some good vegetables. For those of you who read us from other parts of the world, of course we will continue giving maintenance advice and we hope that you will send us your doubts since, as you read in the article URBAN ORCHARD ADVICE, you have us here to answer your questions

plan the garden

Continuing a little from where I wanted to start this article, I think it is important to be able to plan our garden from the beginning so as not to have surprises during the year or have doubts. For this reason, in this new article I would like to discuss with you the care that an orchard has during the year. I will start from October which is the beginning of autumn, and I will finish in September. Let’s go there!

The orchard in October

Autumn has just begun, our land may be tired after the efforts it has made in summer to be able to harvest our products and what we have to do is fertilize the land well so that it is not depleted. To choose the fertilizer, I remind you that we wrote an article called 5 WAYS TO FERTILIZE where you will find that it is humus, fertilizer or manure.

It is also a good time to grow fruit bushes such as blackberries, raspberries, blueberries… which can be used both to eat and to delimit our garden, as well as to plant strawberries. Another activity that we must not forget is to monitor and empty the irrigation system that we have to prevent frost and possible subsequent breakdowns, since the demand for water in the winter orchard is going to be less than that in summer.

November

A good month to start planting our garlic, better in November than in December since then January is hard, and the plant may suffer and finally die from the cold. There is a saying that says “ days that go by in January, garlic that the farmer loses ”. Keep that in mind. Garlic must be planted at a good depth (about 20 cm) and I recommend that you pad it a bit to prevent weeds from growing. Another plant that you can start planting is broad beans and in this month, you can also start tilling and manuring some areas of our garden.

Orchard in December

With Christmas close, we must not neglect our land. In this month, the preparation of our land is essential, for this, being able to carefully plow our land is essential. Of course, we have to start planning our garden knowing where we are going to plant everything.

The areas that we have dedicated to the cultivation of winter plants such as strawberries, garlic or beans can be padded with straw to better maintain the condition of these plants.

January

Entering the new year, something to which we can dedicate time is to the creation of seedbeds in our house. As we told you a few weeks ago in another article, you can use recycled items such as frozen boxes to create one or you can buy them. As you like. The plants that you can start sowing in the nursery are Swiss chard, lettuce and escarole.

On the other hand, you can start making a hot seedbed in your garden (like the one in the image) for planting onions, leeks and spring onions. Protecting the area well, cultivation in situ in the terrace can be very effective.

To make the hot seedbed, you place manure next to straw and create a flat surface on which to place the seedbed. Then, you cover it with plastic to maintain the optimal temperature inside.

Gardening in February

We can continue with the seedbed, but now we will place the rest of the vegetables inside it. In this way, in spring we will have all the seedlings of the vegetables prepared. Also, plants such as chard, lettuce, spinach, radishes or beets can be planted directly in the ground if spring begins to appear, but I recommend that if you have doubts, wait until March. In the same way, you plan to plant fruit trees, it is the best time.

Keep an eye on the garlic, loosen the soil so it doesn’t harden into a crust.

March in the orchard

Spring is here, and the work in the orchard begins to increase. Plowing, binaring (plowing for the second time), fertilizing and cleaning are the actions that you must carry out to prepare the terraces with their furrows where we can sow.

Speaking of sowing, lettuce, spinach, carrots, radishes… we can start sowing at the end of the month. Like potatoes.

I leave you the preparation of the land with a «motocultor»

Orchards, are they like mathematics?

No chic@s, these times you have to manage them according to the seasonality of the year. In other words, this is more or less a pattern, but it doesn’t mean that the same way potatoes are planted at the end of March or at the beginning of April, one year you will have to plant them in the middle of the year.

In the next article, the next 6 months.

Greetings to all