Winter is fizzling away (the snow this morning aside!) so it’s time to look at what needs to be germinated in February.

A reliable source informs me that last frost (hereafter: “F-Day”) is the first week in April for Ireland and that in Dublin it’s a week before that (on account of the sea and concrete). Working backwards from F-Day it would seem that some plants need to be germinated now in order to make it out in time. I went through what I have in my seed arsenal and did a bit of research. My findings about germination and various other tidbits are below. This is all secondary research and not from my own experience so send on any suggestions or corrections!

It now being the start of February means that 6 things need to be done – potatoes, chilies, lettuce, broccoli, peas, tomatoes.

Four of the above require seed trays. The tomatoes are covered in cling film to help retain moisture during germination. The pot on the top left is a mystery to me – girlfriend won’t tell me what’s in it.

Here are the Charlotte or salad potatoes ready for chitting – this is in the cooler room in the apartment. The egg cartons help the chits, or sprouts, to grow freely while keeping the potato upright. Takes 4-6 weeks.

The trellis for the peas I fashioned out of bamboo. If there are too many shoots, I may supplement the trellis with some taught twine or wire for the shoots to grow up. You have to be careful not to use anything with too big a circumference as the shoots’ tendrils are quite small. Apparently.