Time for salad leaves – if conditions are clement

Vegetable growers have a whole range of distractions at their disposal on the gardening front this week, provided the weather holds out.

So claims the BBCs Gardeners World, which states that if conditions remain good, gardening fans can take the opportunity to sow lettuce and salad leaves.

Other plants which should survive if the threat of frost is past include spinach, radish, rocket, watercress, cauliflower, cabbage and mizuna.

Meanwhile, potatoes already maturing beneath the soil are likely to be throwing up shoots, which should have soil pulled up around them.

"Trim leggy rosemary bushes to promote bushy new growth," the publication adds, observing that herbs kept close to the house will be most easily accessed when cooking.

Earlier this month, the Huddersfield Examiner observed that Mediterranean cultures are much more willing to include different types of radish in their diets than UK consumers, and urged would-be chefs to explore the black, white and golden varieties available as well as the familiar red roots.