INDOORS : New Moon at 01h23 (UTC) — the lunar cycle resets quietly while you sleep, and by morning the ascending moon paired with a leaf day makes this a fine stretch for nurturing seedlings under cover. Prick out young lettuce (‘Little Gem’, ‘Merveille des Quatre Saisons’) into 7 cm modules filled with multipurpose compost, burying the stem up to the first true leaves to encourage a sturdy base / Sow Swiss chard (‘Bright Lights’, ‘Fordhook Giant’) and perpetual spinach in seed trays at 1 cm depth, spacing seeds 3 cm apart; these vigorous germinators reward early indoor starts with transplant-ready plants by mid-April / Check on celery (‘Victoria’, ‘Tall Utah’) started last week: thin to one seedling per cell and maintain a minimum night temperature of 15 °C to prevent bolting later / In Mediterranean climates or heated glasshouses, a second sowing of basil and flat-leaf parsley in small pots of fine compost will give you a useful head start before outdoor conditions settle.
VEGETABLE PATCH : The soil carries that particular cool-damp smell of early spring — rake a prepared bed to a fine tilth and direct-sow spinach (‘Matador’, ‘Medania’) in drills 1 cm deep and 30 cm apart; thin to 15 cm once seedlings are established, as crowding reduces leaf size and speeds bolting / Sow land cress and corn salad (mâche ‘Vit’, ‘Jade’) in short rows 20 cm apart — both tolerate cool spells and will bulk up quickly as days lengthen / Where soil is still heavy and cold, delay outdoor sowing and instead prepare drills by working in a 5 cm layer of fine compost to warm the surface and improve structure ahead of next week / Rocket (‘Runway’, ‘Skyrocket’) sown now in a sheltered spot or cold frame will germinate within 5–7 days; cover with fleece on nights below 4 °C to protect emerging seedlings.