New for Old, or budget small garden ideas

Sitting with my cup of tea before the fire browsing the choice of seeds available, new to 2025 from all the suppliers and growers my wanted list is huge! How to choose the right seeds, the best ones for my space? I have to be realistic with only a small patch of ground and no greenhouse or polytunnel (yet). As the pundits for supermarket shopping encourage us  - look in the cupboards and make a list before buying. Old packets of seeds may still be viable, perhaps not full germination but enough to start me off.  But that won’t stop me trying some new varieties to replace the ones that failed or disappointed.

My little propagator is currently full of chillies and peppers which I will grow on in large containers outside on my patio once the last frost has passed. I have started these off first as some chilli peppers can be slow to get going, taking upto 31 days or preferring higher propagator temperatures. If you have room then aubergines are another crop that benefits from extended warmth and longer germination times.

I will follow these with a few different tomatoes in February / March; my favourite cherry tomato seeds plus some salad tomato types suitable for growing outdoors. Tomatoes are generally quicker growing and are liable to grow pot- bound and stressed if started too early without sufficient light and space to protect the plants from frost.

Sadly the autumn sown broad beans rotted so I will re-sow those. I might start them off in modules rather than direct sowing and wait for the snow to clear. I have been looking at climbing peas and beans, thinking vertical gardening by growing tall varieties to adorn a fence. I’m also a bit ‘potty’, I’ve found growing a courgette plant in a large container feeds me all summer. Cherry tomatoes and strawberry plants can cascade from hanging baskets to provide luscious mouthfuls without taking up ground space.

Not everyone grows veg of course but uses their space for bedding plants and flowers for hanging baskets and containers. It’s heartening to see my sweet peas sown in tubs and exposed to the weather have survived the onslaught of wind, rain, snow and plummeting temperatures.

However it’s still very cold, with snow and ice on the ground  so I must confine myself to writing the labels for the seeds I do have and whittling down my wish list.

Happy New Growing Year.