I received an email from Ben wondering if it's better to buy plants or seeds to start off his new veg plot.

Personally I start most things off from seed but there's the odd times I've missed the boat and had to play catch up by buying cabbage plugs etc.

Young plants started off by garden centres are great. They have done all the hard work for you, which is very handy if you don't have a greenhouse or you've run out of space.

However they cannot go out into the plot straight away. It's still cold and there's still rumours of snow batting around. These beautiful plants have been raised in wonderful cozy warm greenhouses and they are going to be extremely upset if they are thrown out in the cold straight away.

If you've bought young plants keep them safe for a while yet. They will need to be hardened off and the soil is going to have to be way warmer before you can contemplate getting them out.

This is another reason I like to sow my own seeds, I can plan to the weather, so if Spring is dragging its heels you can slow down your sowing.

Also by sowing seeds you get more choice in the vegetables you grow. You might only get a few varieties of tomato plants but there's hundreds and hundreds of varieties of seeds.

If you are thinking of buying young plants and let's be honest, it's hard walking past those beautiful babies screaming "buy me please".

Don't rush to get them out, pot them on, keep them warm and watered or otherwise you'd be throwing away money and us allotment folk hate that!

My allotment to do list:

Cover plot or beds with black plastic to start warming up the soil.

Mulch around fruit trees, bushes and canes

Feed container grown fruit trees or bushes

Plant new strawberry plants and weed around old patches.

Plant asparagus crowns.

Lots of seed sowing now, kohl rabi, beetroot, broadbeans, parsnips, leeks and radish.

Don't forget cucumbers, aubergine and melons so find a warm window ledge and get those seeds sown.

If you have any questions about your allotment, email: vixlot@outlook.com