What to sow in winter

With the arrival of winter, many of us might think that nothing can be sown until spring returns, which would be a most rational thought considering that in many places the temperatures drop below 0 degrees, and that even significant frosts and snowfalls occur.

However, in temperate and / or mild climates, you can always have a seedbed prepared, even in the coldest time of the year. So if you want to make the most of the season, discover what to sow in winter.

Edible plants

There is nothing better than growing your own food. See how it grows thanks to the risks you give it, having you control over its cultivation, deciding at all times what to use to fertilize it and how to treat it in case it has any plague or disease. For this reason, before spring arrives you can start sowing some edible plants, either in a sheltered seedbed or directly in the ground as long as the weather is mild.

Chard

All the chard They can be sown throughout the year, the most favorable times being in spring and autumn. They are sown in pots or in the groundIt is very advisable to spread many seeds in the corner reserved for them in the garden since this way we will have many more leaves that we can collect.

Get seeds by clicking here.

Garlic

Garlic is one of the horticultural plants that does best in the cold. To plant them, simply you have to bury a garlic clove in the garden or plant it in a pot in winter.

Celery

El celeryAlthough it seems a delicate plant, it can be sown in winter without problem. Holds the cold well, and also, can be grown in a pot.

Pincha here to buy seeds.

Onions

All the onions, like garlic, are plants that are sown during the winter. To get some big bulbs, it is important that they are sown either in the garden or in large pots, 40cm in diameter or more.

Get seeds from here.

Spinach

All the spinach they are sown in late winter, when temperatures begin to rise. They do not resist much cold or frost. To have more controlled germination, it is highly advisable to sow them in a seedbed and later pass them to the garden or pot.

Buy them here.

Broad beans

All the lima beans They are very fast growing plants that can withstand cool temperatures well, but not strong frosts. For this reason, if you live in an area with a mild climate you can sow it in winter directly in the garden; If not, you can start growing them in pots in a greenhouse or indoors - in a room where a lot of light enters.

You can get seeds from here.

Lettuce

Lettuce is a vegetable of very easy cultivation that you can sow throughout the year, especially in spring and fall. It grows quickly, and you can grow it in a pot or in soil.

Buy seeds here.

Ornamental plants

Ornamental or garden plants are those that, as their name suggests, beautify the place where they are. The vast majority of those that are grown need heat to grow, so winter is not always the best season of the year to sow the seeds. But things change radically if you have an electric germinator (like the one they sell here), or even a reptile incubator (no, no kidding: plants that need constant temperatures of 20-25ºC, like palm trees, germinate much better in an incubator than in a normal seedbed).

Temperate climates trees

Trees in temperate climates, most of them deciduous, need to be cold in order to germinate. Therefore, it is best to sow their seeds as soon as they mature, which is usually in autumn or early winter. If the climate is mild in your area, you will have to plant them in a tupperware with vermiculite, and keep them in the fridge for three months.

Some of them are:

• Maples (Acer): they are trees or shrubs that reach a height of between 1 and 30 meters. They have a very characteristic leaf, similar to the palm of a hand, which changes color in autumn before falling. See file.
• Horse Chestnut (Aesculus): Aesculus are large trees, being able to reach 30 meters in height and even exceed them. They have webbed leaves as well, but the lobes are separate. These are green, deciduous, and in autumn they turn yellow before falling. See file.
• Beech (Fagus): they are a genus of very slow-growing deciduous trees, with simple, whole green or brownish leaves. They can measure 20 meters or more (the common beech, Fagus sylvatica, reaches 40 meters). See file.

Snowdrop

La snowdrop o galanthus nivalis It is a small bulbous plant, about 15 cm tall when in flower, which blooms in the middle to the end of the season. It develops elongated green leaves, and from the center comes a floral stem with very tiny 1 centimeter white flowers. It resists snowfall very well, so it is advisable to sow precisely in winter so that the seeds get a little cold before germinating.

Buy seeds here.

Palm hearts

El palmetto It is a small palm tree, in fact it rarely exceeds 2 meters (although it can reach 4 meters), whose scientific name is Chamaerops humilis. It has green, fan-shaped leaves and thin trunks about 20 inches thick. It is one of the few species of palm trees that can be sown in winter, either outside if the climate is mild, or in a sheltered nursery if, on the contrary, there are frequent frosts and / or snowfalls.

Get seeds.

Rosebush

The roses they are mostly deciduous shrubs, many armed with thorns, that bloom from spring to autumn. Without a doubt, the fastest way to get new specimens is by multiplying them by cuttings towards the middle or end of winter (February / March in the northern hemisphere), but why not try it for seeds? These sowing at the end of winter is recommended, when it is still cool (not cold), in a pot with coconut fiber or substrate for seedlings for example.

Do you want seeds? Click here.

Trachycarpus

Palm trees of the genus Trachycarpus they are characterized by having a thin trunk, often protected by fibers, and a crown with relatively few fan-shaped leaves. However, they are one of those that most resist low temperatures, even snowfalls. What's more, can be planted in a pot in autumn-winter.

Tulip

El tulip o Tulipa sp is a bulbous that blooms early, in spring and sometimes even earlier. The fastest way to get a grown plant is to plant the bulb in the fall, for example in a pot that is more or less as wide as it is high, but you can also sow the seeds during the spring in a pot.

Wisteria or wisteria

La wisteria o Wisteria is one of the largest and most vigorous climbers that can be had in a garden. But also one of the most beautiful: when it blooms, numerous hanging clusters of lilac or white flowers, depending on the variety, sprout from its branches. Therefore, if you want to have a copy and that it costs you little, We encourage you to sow the seeds in winter, as they will germinate in spring.

What are you waiting for to get seeds? Click here.

Do you know other winter crops?