Brian - a self-confessed non-expert - relies on his great experience and sense of adventure to grow the best vegies at home. Scroll down for his latest blog or click on a topic to see what he's been up to.
The good news is the rain has come, which the garden really likes.
And the beans have started to sprout! (pic left)
The not-so-good news is that the snails have come out. See before (middle) and after (right) pics above!
Tomato Maintenance
Pinching off tomato shoots (bottom right) helps to get the bush grow taller.
This means you are removing the main stem, forcing the plant to grow two new stems from the leaf nodes below the pinch or cut.
As seedlings, when they are 100-150mm tall, pinch them back to force new growth. This doesn't affect fruiting because the plant is young and hasn't bloomed.
Tomato plants can be pinched again as soon as new growth grows 50-75mm if necessary.
It’s starting to warm up and the gardening is getting serious in my mini market garden.
For me it’s all about getting more out of a small garden, picking fresh veggies and just enjoying your garden without it becoming a chore!
These 2 small gardens have been producing salad for more than month. To give you an idea this is what is in the beds:
Silver beet, Italian lettuce, Parsley - curly and continental
Wasabi rocket, Garlic, Chives, Thai basil, Spring onions, Curly endive
Snap peas - the yield had been incredible this year with the warmer winter, and we have had fresh peas all winter and the latest planting is just as good.
This will be the last over summer as it will be too hot , that’s when the beans will take over.
Just planted:
Cherry bomb tomato - I prefer the small varieties and they are better against pests in my area
Snake beans - should be ready to sprout as the soil gets warmer and I want them to get a head start before the tomatoes get going
And an experiment - 2 fearsome chillis - tabasco and guajillo!!!
About a month later we're into spring and our early planting is really paying off.
Already harvesting lettuce, endive and wasabi rocket!
The new lot of snap peas are full of growth and just producing fresh young sugar peas (pulled the previous crop of peas out this week end and replacing them with tougher summer crop of beans).
Will use climbing beans and snake beans to make maximum use of the space. The snake beans can go crazy so plan your trellis system out.
The mango tree loves the dry spring of Sydney at the moment and is full of flowers and hopefully mangoes very soon.
To get the best out of your garden it’s important to understand the different parts of your garden and plant varieties that are best suited to each area.
This is especially true if you want to extend your gardening season.
There will be areas that are naturally more protected and warmer so select varieties that are suited to these spots.
These lettuce (above) were planted at the same time however the ones pictured right get more direct sun, are more sheltered and the bricks behind the plants absorb the sun's heat and keep the air around the plants warmer.
It's all about light and shade
It’s just as important in summer to plant varieties that are not as tolerant to the sun and heat in the more sheltered or shaded part of the garden.
These snap peas growing on Whites Vegie panels and have supplied a crop all through winter as they are in the warm part of the garden, however they will not survive the heat once it warms up.
There is a new crop on the way in a slightly more sheltered area and you can see that it’s loving the warmer spring weather that’s already here and is rapidly climbing up the vegie panels.
Blog #004 Rain & Snails / Tomato Maintenance
