What to sow and grow in December.

This month is your last chance to sow your Garlic if you haven't already. You can still direct sow your Broad Beans, but even if you don't manage to get any Broad Beans in before the end of this month you can always wait until the Spring and plant them then, you just won't get such an early crop.

Again, like last month you can get some Onion sets in or over wintering Onion seeds like Japanese 'Senshyu Yellow'. Sets can go in the soil direct, but personally I'll now be sowing Onion seeds in pots in my greenhouse to be potted on later in the New Year.

Land Cress, Parsley, Coriander and Lambs Lettuce (also know as Corn Salad or Mâche) are all winter hardy and can be sown now. I like to sow these in pots or troughs close to my kitchen back door where I don't have to go far to pick them.

The Importance of Soil Health

World Soil Day is December 5th

One teaspoon of healthy soil contains around 100 million bacteria and 800 feet of fungal threads. The smell of the microbacterium and micro-organisms found in soil, compost and leaf mould lights up neurotransmitters in our bodies that release serotonin (a mood-lifting hormone) so in effect, soil is an antidepressant. Wow!

Soil health is more important now than ever. It takes 500 years for nature to create an inch of topsoil, but 25 billion tons of it are lost each year.

Soil, like trees and the oceans is a carbon sink. A carbon sink is anything that absorbs more carbon from the atmosphere than it releases.

We can however as food gardeners help to make good, rich and healthy soil ourselves for our fruit and vegetables by following these few simple steps.

1. Compost - Whether you make your own or buy it in, adding organic matter to soil will do it wonders.
2. Mulching - Spreading wood chip or leaves around your plants will keep things warm when it's cold and cool when it's hot by stopping water evaporation. They will both rot down slowly releasing their nutrients into the soil.
3. No-Dig - Disturbing your soil as little as possible will allow all the worms, fungi and micro-organisms to do their job.
4. Go organic - Avoiding artificial fertilisers and pesticides as these over time damage the soil and the life that lives within.
5. Natural soil improvers - Adding things like manures (pelleted rabbit manure), blood, fish and bone and seaweed products all help to feed the micro-organisms which in turn feed your plants.

Health soil = Healthy plants.

And here's another one of Ben's jolly video's to watch.