Lentils
How do you sow lentils outdoors?
Sow your lentils in soil that has drained and warmed sufficiently for germination. Spring sowing can begin before every light frost has disappeared: young lentils tolerate some cold. Adjust timing chiefly to your climate, soil and variety. Avoid frozen or waterlogged ground.
Choose a sunny, well-drained position and weed thoroughly. Young plants compete poorly with weeds. Break up clods to prepare an even surface. Use whole seeds intended for sowing with good germination potential; peeled or split cooking lentils are unsuitable. Make drills about three centimetres deep, then distribute seeds roughly five centimetres apart, adjusting to the instructions supplied with your batch.
Cover with fine soil, firm lightly and water if moisture is lacking. Keep rows accessible for early weeding. Do not leave the sowing saturated through automatic routine watering. Label the variety and sowing date so you can follow emergence. This preparation aims for even establishment. Harvesting the dry seeds comes later, once pods have developed sufficiently, rather than forming part of the sowing operation itself. Watch the first seedlings closely while they are still small.
When and how do you harvest your lentils?
Harvest your lentils for dry grain when the pods are maturing and the seeds are fully developed and firm. The foliage turns yellow and the pods become brown and dry. Check the lower pods first: they usually mature before those at the top. Timing depends on sowing date, variety and climate; September and October are not universal harvest months.
Once most pods are mature, cut the stems close to the ground and handle them gently over a sheet or container. Very dry pods can split open and drop their seeds. Avoid waiting for every late pod to dry if the earliest ones are already shedding. Finish drying the plants under cover in a dry, well-ventilated place, either in small bundles or spread in a shallow layer.
Shell the dry pods by hand or thresh them gently onto a clean sheet. Sort the seeds to remove soil, plant debris and damaged grain. Let them finish drying before putting them into an airtight container: sealing damp lentils encourages mould. Store your harvest somewhere cool, dry and protected from light. Rinse and cook the lentils before using them in salads, soups or stews.
Lentils
- Type : Vegetables
- Subtype : Seed vegetables
- Botanical Family : Fabaceae (papilionaceae / legumes)
Characteristics
- Lifecycle : Annual
- Exposure : Full Sun
- Frost Hardiness : Frost Resistant
- Cultivation Difficulty : Medium
- Mature height : 40 cm
Sowing & Planting
- Greenhouse Growing : Not Required
- Sowing Depth : 1 cm
- Plant Spacing : 4 cm
- Row Spacing : 30 cm
Maintenance
- Maintenance : Low
- Water Requirements : Moderate
Other characteristics
- Soil Type : Humus-rich
- Soil pH Preference : Neutral
- Pest Sensitivity : Moderate
- Disease Sensitivity : Moderate
- Weed Sensitivity : Moderate
- Pollination : Self-pollinating
- Propagation : Sowing