April

To the organic gardener, Comfrey is invaluable. It’s easy to grow, easy to use and incredibly beneficial to the garden. Leaves can be used as a top dressing or chopped and mixed with leaf mould to make a base for potting compost. You can make your own organic liquid feed or use as a compost activator.

Coriander 'Slobolt' is a variety for leaf production that is resistant to bolting and running to seed. It isn't a hard plant to grow and of course, fresh herbs and spices have far better flavours than dried ones. Home grown herbs are infinitely superior, the difference can be quite startling.

Coriander 'Leisure' has been bred specifically for large, flavoursome leaf production, a particularly fine variety of superb quality. Extra slow bolting, it is particularly suited to hot weather regions. It is an excellent herb for slightly shaded areas, is very easy to grow and makes a good window box herb.

Coriander is not one of the world's favourite flavourings, it's two of them. This dual purpose herb is grown both for its seeds or fresh young leaves. 'Santo' is probably the best variety of coriander for leaf production as the plant combines very slow bolting with an upright habit and excellent flavour.

'Plomyk' is a corn variety that is grown for its dried seeds that are later used to make delicious, home-made popcorn. Usually sown in May to June and harvested August to September. Perfect for home made popcorn at a party or movie night!

Native to the eastern Mediterranean, Costmary leaves have an aroma which has been described as like garden mint with hints of balsam. Costmary is one of the most interesting and complex of all herbs, it can be used for many purposes, culinary, medicinal aromatherapy or ornamental.

Courgette Ambassador F1 is an attractive variety and an outstanding hybrid that gives attractive dark green courgettes over a long period. A popular professionally-grown variety and well known for the home gardener, it is an early fruiting, high yielding courgette which matures in fifty days.

Courgette 'F1 Gold Rush' is an extremely beautiful variety with smooth, thin yellow skins and crisp flesh. It is an early, rich cropping courgette with tender flesh and an abundance of bright yellow fruits. The compact plants yield prolifically and are ideal for smaller gardens or pots.

The Genovese courgette is a popular early variety that is very productive. It produces beautiful, light green cylindrical fruits speckled with grey, with a smooth skin and has an excellent flavour. The plants have an open bush habit which is helpful when harvesting. Sow April until July, harvest June onwards.

Courgette 'Tondo di Piacenza' produces spherical, dark green glossy fruits with a firm texture and good flavour. This versatile variety can be cropped at different sizes depending on your preferred recipe. Harvest at golf ball size for eating whole in salads, or slightly larger for slicing into stir fries.

Watercress has risen to a starring role in elaborate culinary preparations and is as beneficial for the health as much as the palate. This highly nutritious aquatic herb has a lovely mustardy bite most commonly served raw as a garnish or as part of a salad.

For centuries, Samphire was food for the poor, free to those who picked it, usually ordinary people living by the sea. It is ironic that today it is regarded as a specialty food and is often served with an accompanying price tag. Somewhere between asparagus and seaweed in flavour, Rock Samphire has the thrill of a mermaid’s kiss.