What to do in the Kitchen Garden in February

*The following information is designed for a temperate southern hemisphere garden  – In particular it is designed for a Melbourne garden.  This is meant as a general guide, indicating the type of things I plant, sow and harvest.  If you have had success with doing things differently then I would love to hear from you and I can update these pages accordingly.*

February is generally when my mind starts to turn to my winter garden.  What I want to grow, and where I want to grow it (ideally considering what I will grow where the following summer).  February is when I usually sow my Brassica seeds (hopefully avoiding the worst of the ravages from cabbage moths).  Most of February though is spent eating.  Beans, Tomatoes, Eggplants, Basil and the first of the Capsicums if I’m lucky are all delicious at this time of the year.

 

Seeds to Sow (either direct in the garden or in punnets etc):

Beetroot, Beans, Broccoli, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Carrots, Celery, Kohlrabi, Leeks, Lettuce, Mustard Greens,  Parsley, Radish, Silverbeet, Spring Onion,  Turnip, Tuscan Kale

Garden maintenance I need to perform:

• Continue to harvest from herbs to ensure good growth.
• Continue to tie up the tomato plants as they grow.
• Mulch, mulch, mulch
• Clip, prune, cut off dying foliage, check for diseases and pests

Harvesting now:

Seasonal Plants: Basil, Beans, Cape Gooseberries, Capsicum, Chillies, Corn, Cucumber, Eggplant, Pumpkin, Strawberries, Thai Basil, Zucchini

It should be possible to harvest these plants all year round if correctly succession planted:

Broccoli (but it is very susceptible to pests during the warmer months), Beetroot, Carrots, Celery, Kale, Lettuce, Parsley, Radish, Sage, Silver Beet, Spring Onion, Thyme