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Raise new mint plantsIf you're already dreaming about sipping a cool mint julep in your summer garden, now's the time to get your mint plants ready for the job. Take cuttings from established mint plants to keep the drinks tray supplied all summer

Learn how to grow an early crop of beetroot in or out of the greenhouse, in this video project featuring Sarah Raven.late-FebruaryMore on growing vegetablesPlant profile of beetroot variety 'Boltardy'Growing potatoes in a binGrowing parsnips from

Place card collars around the stems of brassicas to prevent an attack of cabbage root flySow pots of herbs such as parsley, coriander and basil Plant out early potatoes, onion sets and shallotsThrow sheets of fleece over fruit trees on frosty nights

Plant herbs in decorative pots, and keep close to the house so you can reach them easilyPull up soil around the developing shoots of early potatoesStart sowing salad crops at regular 3-4 week intervals to ensure a regular supply for picking

Tie in new shoots of blackberries and cane fruits to support wiresSow sweetcorn in deep pots, raising strong young plants to transplant into the garden in JunePinch off strawberry runners as soon as they develop, to stop them competing

bushes and treesDig up and pot up roots of mint to force early shootsBuy shallots, onion sets and seed potatoes

Cover soil with cloches to warm it for early sowingsFinish winter pruning fruit trees and soft fruitsCut stems of autumn-fruiting raspberries to soil levelChit seed potatoes, standing them in trays in a light but frost-free positionPlant Jerusalem

Cover rhubarb with an old bucket to exclude light and encourage early pickings of long tender stalksPrune gooseberry bushes to open up the centre of the bush to improve air circulationChit seed potatoes in trays in a bright, frost-free position

'Helichrysum petiolare x2Parrot's beak, Lotus berthelotii x2Large, deep pot Multi-purpose compost, crocksCover the bottom of the container with crocks, then half-fill it with compost. Carefully ease the plants out of their pots.Make the blue potato bush the centrepiece

Cover rows of strawberries with cloches to encourage early fruitingPlant early potatoes outside in rows, or in large pots of compostSpray fruit trees and bushes with fungicide to prevent powdery mildew disease attacking themPick off faded