New calendar

[JD]

Hi Charles,
I just bought your new calendar for next year and wanted to clarify a point. In November you give dates for sowing broad beans outside and undercover. Is the undercover date for sowing undercover and then transplanting outside (which I think), or for sowing AND growing undercover?
When would be your optimal dates for this year (Cambs), and when would you subsequently plant them out? Thanks for all your great work.
Jan

[sue]

Hi hopefully he meant sowing , I sowed mine last week

[charles]

Yes Jan it’s for sowing undercover to plant outside, sorry not to be clear on that, it’s rare to grow broad beans undercover but I suppose a few people might.
Because of the incoming cold weather, I am sowing earlier this year, a few today in fact then early November, all undercover, safe from birds and rodents.

[fzjohnson]

Phew … I also sowed outside today during our lovely warm day, after making a new bed using my own compost. Because of rodents though I have covered with a large hoop mini poly-tunnel, temporarily. We are expecting cold weather too so this might stay up for a while.

[JD]

So I have also now sown a few today, following the master. They’re in root trainers. I’ve not grown broad beans over winter before. When you plant them out do you give them some winter protection of cloches/fleece or do you plant them out ‘naked’ so to speak? It can be pretty windy on my allotment.
Thanks for your reply.
Jan

[charles]

Broad beans are tough when seedlings. The idea is to have then smaller than say 3-4in/7-10cm through winter, so they stand weather more easily.
However they do benefit from a mesh cover in winter, as do most plants, and growth will then start earlier in March say.

[Author]

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