Action plan: Nigel Colborn's essential jobs for your garden this week

Sprout your spuds

Should you intend to grow potatoes this year, prepare the seed tubers for a rapid start.

It's too early to plant outdoors. But to get your crops off to a rapid start, the tubers will benefit from being 'chitted' now.'Chitting' means initiating growth by encouraging the tubers to produce young shoots before they're planted in the ground.

You can do that by placing them in a seed tray, or in cardboard egg trays. Make sure the part of the tuber with the most buds faces upwards.

Should you intend to grow potatoes this year, prepare the seed tubers for a rapid start - you can begin by 'chitting' them now, by placing them in a seed tray or cardboard egg trays

To sprout safely, the potatoes need to be in a frostfree, preferably warm place with reasonable light. A conservatory or windowsill in your house would work, or a frost-free greenhouse.

Over the next few weeks, tubers will produce short, stubbed shoots with tiny leaf buds.

When the tubers are planted from March onwards, those shoots should be between 1cm and 2cm long.  

Chitted potatoes will produce green shoots above ground soon after planting. Those will need overnight protection if frost is forecast.

If you want a quick crop of super-early potatoes in your greenhouse, pot those up now.

If you start them off in half tubs or special potato planters, they could provide you with small but delicious new potatoes in spring.

PREPARE FOR A VEGETABLE FEAST

If you have spring bulbs planted anywhere in your garden, take special care not to walk on them (Sungold tomatoes

Although it's too early to sow vegetables outside, it's a good time to buy seeds.

With greenhouse F1 hybrid tomatoes, there are usually only a few seeds in each packet, but Tomande will always come true.

Left-over brassica seeds can be relied on for at least three years.

DELICATE BULBS ARE EMERGING

If you have spring bulbs planted anywhere in your garden, take special care not to walk on them.

It's very easy to damage the shoots as they emerge. Try not to walk on the bare soil of beds or borders, too.

Wet soil will compact more easily than later, when it has drained and is drying off. Plants do better in cared-for soils.

Unopened crocuses in early spring. Nigel warns that delicate bulbs are beginning to emerge this time of year, so if you have spring bulbs planted anywhere in your garden, take special care not to walk on them

READER'S QUESTION

Two springs ago, three leafless yellow flowers appeared in my garden. Later, large leaves appeared where the flowers had been. More leaves have appeared and spread. What are they and how do I get rid of them?

Jon Hill, via email.

Your pretty yellow flowers were coltsfoot, Tussilago farfara. They're a herb which was used to cure coughs. Coltsfoot is a pernicious weed and is difficult to eradicate.

Nigel's plant of the week is the Edgeworthia Chrysanthia 'Red Dragon', a close relative of the winterflowering daphnes

Whenever those big leaves appear, remove as many of the running roots as you can. The leaves will keep coming, but if you dig them out, they'll stop. agree about the flowers they're pretty, but better enjoyed in the wild.

PLANT OF THE WEEK: EDGEWORTHIA CHRYSANTHA 'RED DRAGON'

Everyone loves winterflowering daphnes but here's a beautiful close relative.

Also known as Paper Bush, this has open, slightly sparse growth and small, oval, pointed leaves.From late winter, tightly packed clusters of fragrant flowers appear. 

Flowers on the common species are lemon yellow, but on the variety Red Dragon they're a fiery, orange-red.

Edgeworthias are not fully hardy. If grown in a sheltered spot, close to a south-facing wall, they will survive most winters. Like daphnes, they're slow growing.

But if you can be patient, those hot flowers are worth the wait.