IF YOU want super early new potatoes you are a tad late — but it’s not TOO late.

You can steal a march by planting-up a tub, growing sack or large pot with some seed spuds, ideal if you haven’t much space.

It’s so easy to plant-up now in a greenhouse, a good five weeks before its time to put them in the patch — or encase the tub in bubble-wrap in a sunny spot if you don’t have a greenhouse.

It’s not only desirable to have the first, gorgeous, taste of new spuds early but it is also economical.

Three or four seed spuds in a redundant recycling tub are enough.

Because they have the optimum growing conditions they will produce many pounds of potatoes.

Simply pop them in an eight inch depth of rich soil or compost, mixed with well-rotted manure and a sprinkling of seaweed, if possible.

As the shoots emerge cover them with more of the mixture.

Earthing-up encourages roots to form along the emerging haulm, thus producing many more potatoes.

This year’s tubs contain the widely recommended early variety Lady Christl, which has gained the coveted RHS Award of Garden Merit.

It is a relative newcomer, bred in the Netherlands in 1985, and looks as well as tastes good — because it has no eyes it is easy to sponge clean, retaining the taste in its skin.

The texture of the attractive light-yellow flesh is waxy but it also has a creamy, buttery texture and taste — the perfect blend.
 In the plot, International Kidney has its place every year. It’s grown commercially as Jersey Royal and I always harvest it small as a First Early.

Rocket, a superb, high-yielding, Scottish potato with good all-round disease resistance, will rub ‘shoulders’ with the old, knobbly, Pink Fir Apple, the waxy salad spud, Charlotte — and, for contrast — the floury British Queen and Maris Peer, which I always harvest young.

Even well-known varieties widely available in the shops taste so much better, fresh from the good earth.

                                                                       TOP TIPS

  • There’s still time to split and move rhubarb crowns even though they will have started to sprout. Use a spade to cleave the crowns and create new rejuvinated plants from old. Rhubarb can be forced now by placing an upturned tub or bin over the crown. The tender pink stems will be ready in about eight weeks.
  • Sweet peas can be started off now. Soak the hard seeds overnight in lukewarm water before sowing in a propagator.
  • Prune rose bushes this month while they are still dormant. Cut branches back to just above a bud, making sure to remove any crossing or dead branches.
  • Prepare the ground for early peas. Place a cloche or tarpaulin over the soil this month, to warm up the ground a few weeks before sowing.