In message , Wally
writes
I have been having a discussion with other allotment holders,
I have been pressing on and sowing seeds but others have
told me that it is too early as we could get more frost more snow
and it's generally too cold.
My argument is when plants grow naturally they will drop there
seeds in the Autumn and they will lay on/in the ground all Winter
without coming to any harm and start to grow in the Spring.
So, does it really matter if I plant seeds and a bit of frost gets to them ?

Your thoughts would be appreciated.

Wally


An interesting debate! I understand what you are saying. When
considering there are seeds that, when bought from a retailer, actually
require a short period in a fridge prior to germination, it would appear
to make sense. And broad beans are often sown in November, germinate and
go through tough winters without apparent damage. I believe it is not
the seeds but rather the young shoots that require protection from
frost. For example, if you grow tomatoes outdoors the seeds, having been
left on the ground when the fruit fell the previous year, could, in
theory, germinate during a particularly mild spell in, say, early
spring, but the young plants would soon die in the event of a following
frost. Similarly with runner beans and quite a number of other seed
depositing plants. I suspect the norms we use have been developed over
centuries as proving the most effective way of raising healthy and
productive plants which is surely the objective. Just my opinion .....
very possibly codswallop :-))
--
Gopher .... I know my place!