August 2020 Kitchen Garden Guide

 

July was terribly dry, with mild nights. Today it is forecast to snow almost to sea level, with plenty of rain elsewhere. This winter at the bottom of the world will test the plants and seeds in our gardens as they try to work out if it is time to grow or best to stay dormant a while longer. One thing we can be sure of is that it is time to sow tomatoes, as far off as a summer harvest seems.

Tomatoes

I have written about sowing tomatoes many times. The gist of it is:

1.   They really do need bottom heat for good germination. Use a brewer’s mat or terrarium mat or silicone terrarium tube or lash out on a heated seed raising kit.

2.   Covering the seed tray with a sheet of glass before germination keeps moisture in and rodents out. This applies to all seed sowing.

3.   Once germinated, they need LOTS of sun plus the heat mat. Water sparingly. Use warm water. Water with a weak liquid feed every couple of weeks.

4.   Pay attention to how they look. Spindly = need more sun. Yellow = too much water. Not growing = need more warmth or food.

5.   When you pot up, add some blood and bone and sulphate of potash to the mix. Only pot up to tiny pots, then slightly bigger and so on, and ONLY when they look too big for the pot they are in.

6.   In Cygnet, I plant mine out in late Nov or early Dec. They should then be strong, dark green and flowering.

7.   Make sure you prepare the soil now, in your garden, for planting out. Get all your supplies now, including this next suggestion….

8.   I make 750mm rounds of sturdy, 100mm-square, wire mesh, 900 – 1200 high. It comes in 30m lengths. Cut lengths of 2400mm and you will get 12 rounds. Whites is the only brand I have found here. Chicken wire is too flimsy for this job.

9.   I now have 2 x 30m rolls. It’s a big outlay, but I put them around clusters of raspberries and any plants needing support. They will last forever and never get tangled or squashed etc. Helpful to reduce swearing in the garden!

10.                I plant my tomatoes 750mm apart and put a mesh circle over each one, joined one to the next, for strength. I bang in one stake at the edge of each, for more strength in our windy summers. In the centre, with each tomato plant, I put a twirly, metal stake (from Shiploads). I keep all the tomato growth within the circle. I have used this method forever and it is foolproof. You will find dozens of uses for these circles, after the tomatoes finish, I assure you.

 

 

 

Annual, biennial, perennial …. in the kitchen garden

Annual means grows to maturity and sets seed in one year = lettuce, basil, tomatoes, pumpkins. These plants readily self-sow if you allow the full life cycle to complete. Easy to save the seeds (but some will cross).

Biennial means it takes 2 years for the whole life cycle to complete = kale, sprouting broccoli, beetroot, celery. These will also re-sow, given time. Easy to save the seeds (but some will cross).

Perennial has 2 meanings:

1.   Always visible (but may be deciduous), doesn’t die down, lives for many years = fruit trees, currants, wasabi, herbs like rosemary, bay etc. These are generally best propagated by cuttings or grafts.

2.   Grows, dies back to the ground then comes again next season from the same roots = artichokes, asparagus, rhubarb, tarragon. This should be labelled herbaceous perennial. These are best propagated by division.

Curly Leaf

It is time to see that the early fungus that causes leaf curl on peaches, nectarines and related fruit trees does not get a hold, by spraying every nook and cranny of every branch, stem and bud with a copper spray. Peter Cundall recommends Burgundy mix, which you can make yourself, because it does not clog up the spray nozzle, like Bordeaux can.

Burgundy Mixture:

1. Dissolve 50 gram of washing soda (from supermarket) in 2.5 litres of warm water.
2. Dissolve 50 grams copper sulphate in a separate 2.5 litres of water.
3. Slowly pour the dissolved washing soda into the dissolved copper sulphate.
4. This is Burgundy mixture. It is at its most effective strength when freshly mixed so must be used immediately or within a couple of days.
5. Spray thoroughly over the bare branches of peach, nectarine and other stone fruit trees to help control leaf curl and brown rot disease. It is also useful when sprayed over raspberry canes in late July/early August for control of raspberry rust and on apple trees that had scab last year.

The mixture colours the sprayed plants blue. The spray can withstand light rain but should be re-applied after persistent rain and done at least twice before any buds open. Do not spray once the leaves and flowers open.

Plant and sow in August   Plant rhubarb, strawberry runners, raspberry canes, asparagus and get all deciduous trees and shrubs in before they leaf.   Start sowing summer vegetables with bottom heat: ·         Tomatoes ·         Capsicums ·         Chillis ·         Eggplants…. Good luck! And while you are waiting for them to mature, why not grow some sprouts in the kitchen for a nutritious and delicious treat for your taste buds and body…. lentils, chickpeas, fenugreek, buckwheat   Sow now in trays to plant out later: ·         Onions including red, salad, spring and most others ·         Broad beans (it is not too late) ·         Coriander ·         Brassicas ·         Asian greens ·         Lettuces ·         Peas to eat as pea shoot microgreens