Monthly April Fruits and Vegetables Guide featuring Monty
April is a busy month for gardeners, as the risk of frost begins to recede and it's time to start sowing seeds and preparing fruit bushes for the growing season. According to Gardeners' World, some of the key April fruit and vegetable jobs include sowing seeds indoors for tender vegetables, planting early potatoes, and preparing fruit bushes for the growing season.
Gardeners' World also advocates mixing edible and ornamental plants for both beauty and productivity. For example, adding soft fruit plants into vegetable beds or borders can create a visually pleasing and productive garden space. This was demonstrated by Adam Frost, who integrated soft fruit into his vegetable garden.
Regarding sowing tender vegetables, the advice includes starting these off indoors or in a heated environment in April, where they can be kept free from frost risk early in their growth. Later, these young plants can be hardened off and planted outside when the weather is suitable. Using nutrient-rich, well-draining compost mixes and leaving some space at the top of containers for watering also helps support healthy tender plant growth.
In addition, April is a good time to plant early potatoes. To do this, simply dig a trench, add some compost, and plant the seed potatoes, ensuring they are spaced about 30cm apart. As the potatoes grow, continue to cover them with soil, leaving only the shoots visible.
To keep up-to-date with the latest gardening advice and tips, be sure to subscribe to the Gardeners' World newsletter. The site also features a collection of Gardeners' World clips featuring Monty Don, who is often seen laying out vegetable beds, repotting mint, and tentatively sowing tender veg towards the end of April.
In summary: - April tasks: start seed sowing for tender vegetables indoors, plant early potatoes, prepare fruit plants. - Mixing edible and ornamental plants: integrate soft fruit into veg beds for year-round interest and aesthetics. - Sowing tender vegetables: start indoors in compost-rich pots, harden off before planting outdoors.
This synthesis is based on Gardeners’ World 2024 episodes and related gardening advice references shared in the search results.
Gardeners' World recommends incorporating soft fruit plants into vegetable gardens for a visually appealing and productive garden space, similar to how Adam Frost integrated them into his own vegetable garden. Additionally, when sowing seeds for tender vegetables in April, it's important to start them off indoors or in a heated environment to protect them from frost, and later harden them off before planting outdoors.
