Dill
Dill is hugely popular in scandinavian countries, which means it's well suited to the cool damp english climate. It has a wonderful aniseed flavour thats great in salads, and spectacular with fish.
It often self-seeds, so grow it once and you'll find plants popping up around your garden for years to come.
Time from seed to plate: 8 weeks
Sowing Calendar
Sow
Sow dill seeds from April to July. Sow either by 'station sowing' - planting 3 or 4 seeds 1/2 inch deep together in clusters 12 inches apart in both directions, or sow seeds in gutters. Gutters are our preferred option because you don't have a problem with weeds.
Fill the gutter with compost, firm and create a shallow groove down the centre about 1/2 an inch deep. Sprinkle the seed in sparingly, aiming for one every 1/2 inch or so. Water gently but thoroughly.
Sowing method: Gutters
Like coriander, dill has a tendency to run up to seed, so it 's good idea to sow a fresh gutter every 4 weeks.
Grow
Thin station sown plants so one remains in each cluster. Plant out gutter sown plants when they're 3-4 inch tall. Separate the plants with a trowel and transfer to final growing positions, spaced at 12 inches apart in both directions.
Keep them well watered to stop plants going to seed.
Harvest
Dill will be ready to harvest 6-8 weeks from sowing. Leaf production lasts for about 2 months, after which you'll hopefully have some more plants reaching maturity!