What a difference a year makes!

Looking back through last year's gardening diary the Marches of 2012 and 2013 could not be more different. Last year was a steady procession of seed sowing and ground preparation as the sun shone ever warmer towards month end. My peach tree was in blossom by mid month, I had sown numerous hardy and semi-hardy crops and my spuds were already planted into the bone dry earth. The temperature exceeded 20C on many days and the biggest concern was the lack of winter rains. In fact, the water companies had just declared drought status over large swathes of eastern England with hosepipe bans introduced. Of course it all fell apart only weeks later, but March 2012 was excpetionally warm, dry and perfect for spring gardening.

Roll on 12 months and it is a completeley different story. As we reach the (albeit early) Easter weekend, often a trigger for some serious gardening thanks to the two days off work, the past month seems like it will be the coldest March since 1962!

It has been a persistently cold month with more snow falling than I can ever recall. By Sunday 24th March it had snowed pretty much non-stop for 48 hours. I visited the allotment to feed the birds and found the snow deeper than I have ever experienced on this plot. The sheer volume of snow required some serious clearance from the brassica tunnel, which was in danger of collapsing.

Photos taken Sunday 24th March

Snowy view from the top gate

Brassica cage groaning under the weight of snow

Looking back across the plot through the mini orchard

Raspberry canes and the greenhouse - dreaming of summer!

So what does this mean for the allotment now? Well, the prolonged wintry weather means not much has happened. There are signs of spring everywhere - swelling buds on fruit bushes and trees, emergent dandelions, etc. - but there has been no discernible progress for several weeks. The ground has been unworkably wet and cold or covered by thick snow! Last year I was worried that early blossom would be damaged by late frosts - which it was. This year the fruit buds are nowhere near ready to come into blossom. I actually see this as a good thing. That's not to say that they cannot be damaged by a very late frost again in 2013, but given that the apples are unlikely to be in bloom until late April/ early May they do stand a chance of coming through unscathed.

I guess this is one positive thing to come from a cold early spring. Last year the problem was an exceptional and unseasonably warm and dry spell, triggering premature growth, followed by prolonged cold and rain. The March we are experiencing in 2013 is not exactly seasonal but I'd much rather cold now to be replaced by better, stable weather in April and May than the other way round. Nature has a way of catching up, provided April is a more benign month and doesn't send the country back into the freezer again...

I think my biggest concern is the delay the weather will have on what I would consider to to be traditional allotment progress at this stage in the year. The ground is cold - possibly still frozen - and very wet. I should soon be planting potatoes and sowing peas, beans, parsnips and alliums direct. This will now have to wait at least a fortnight, if not longer, as they'd just sit in cold, wet ground and sulk or rot. The soil will not be warm enough for beetroot, carrots and similar allotment staples for several weeks yet. The hungry gap will be longer in 2013 than previous years.

I have tomato seedlings at home that have been potted on once and sit on windowledges straining for light. Even inside they look cold! I don't want them to get too drawn and leggy but there is no chance they can go outside for ages yet. They could be potted on once more before I run out of window space so it's not quite time to throw in the towel... I also have sweet peppers that now need pricking out and potting on. Aubergines (Ophelia F1) and Okra (Clemson's Spineless) have been sown but are yet to emerge. Within the relative protection of the cold greenehouse, the broad beans and onions I sowed a long time ago have germinated. Protected from the harshest weather, they'll be fine until conditions improve enough for them to be planted in the open ground.

So, 2013 has got off to a very slow start. If we now have a normal run of seasonal weather I am hopeful that everything will catch up over the next few weeks and months. If it stays cold we'll have a much condensed growing season and it will be another tough year for allotment holders up and down the country. Roll on spring proper!

The first day of spring

The meteorological winter is now over. Today is the first day of spring! It's starting to feel a bit more springlike too. It will be a while yet before the hedgerows green over but there are catkins on the hazel, the buds are bursting on the hawthorn and the blackthorn looks like it will soon be in flower. My rhubarb crowns have also woken up and one is now covered by a terracotta pot to force some tender pink stems.

The allotment remains just about in its winter stasis, although I'm certain the annual weeds will soon start to germinate. I'm about on track - just - and another dry weekend should see everything ready at the plot for the next few weeks of frantic digging and sowing.

I took delivery of my four newest fruit trees in February and they are now planted and tied in. Three apples grown as oblique cordons on MM106 rootstock (Scrumptious, Pitmasten Pineapple and Christmas Pippin) and Pear Concorde on Quince A rootstock. The pear is to be grown (hopefully) as a three-tiered espalier. It is currently a twig about 45 cms tall, which is dwarfed by the post and wire support against which it is planted, and is a long way from the elaborate framework of laterals and spurs I hope to create. I intend to track its progress on camera and show how an espalier tree can be created quite easily with a bit of time and know-how.

I've also completed the greenhouse glazing and it now houses the first sowings of the year. I have put one of those mini greenhouse frames inside and replaced the ususal plastic cover with fleece. I have two types of broad bean (Stereo and Crimson Flowered), onions (Santero and Lilia) and the first sowing of leeks (Musselburgh) in module trays. It has been quite grey and cold with limited sunshine but I'm hoping their coccoon of fleece, within a larger greenhouse, should keep the temperature just about warm enough for germination. Nothing was showing after a week so I'll check again tomorrow.

My potatoes are chitting nicely indoors - Anya, Red Duke of York, Charlotte and Rooster - and I might try a few Anya in pots in the greenhouse soon. That way I should have some small salad spuds by June and before I am ready to lift the Red Duke of York from the outside beds. As ever, timing is critical to ensure that the indoor crops get a head start and can then be put outside or harvested before the space is required for more tender subjects.

The final update is that I have now converted my old poly frame into a brassica cage. I had already netted it bar one end. This enabled the pigeons to fly in and gobble some savoy cabbages. They are now fully enclosed by pigeon-proof netting and I hope the damage is just cosmetic. In the next few weeks they should heart-up and give us some tasty greens.