WHAT TO DO IN THE GARDEN THIS WEEK
Everything is absolutely humming in our garden at the moment after the heavy rain and the warming of the weather. And quite literally humming, as well, with the bees and bumblebees getting out and doing what they do best when the sun appears. But as the weather warms and it rains less, we’re expecting our coriander and rocket to set flower and seed. If you’ve got these in containers it may pay to place them in areas that receive quite a bit of shade. The alternative is to repeat sow. I like to have a succession of sown seeds, so there is a continual harvest. Another trick you may like to try at this time of year if you’re missing some winter veges, such as broccoli, is to source heat-resistant varieties. Broccoli is typically grown in the cooler months of autumn and spring, but you can extend the growing season into the warmer months if you plant heat-resistant varieties.
I must admit, I’m kind of over winter (note to weather gods), but for those of you who know how to change that boiled broccoli into a crisp broccoli salad you may like to try the following suggested in the 2022 NZ Gardener Garden Diary.
“Summer Green” tolerates warmer weather and can be sown from spring through to late summer. “Green Midget” produces an initial 20cm head followed by a secondary flush of 10-15cm heads around the cut stump.
If you prefer huge heads, go for “Green Dragon” or the commercially grown F1 hybrid “Marathon” (McGregor’s and Egmont Seeds). Or try “Gai Lan” (Kings Seeds), “Green Sprouting” (Yates) or “Broccoletto Rapini” (Egmont Seeds). These tender sidesprouters all taste like broccoli.
Plant Maintenance
At the moment we’re doing some light pruning of summer veges, such as eggplants and tomatoes. I’ve been pinching out the tips of my eggplants, which are about 30cm high at the moment, to make for bushier plants that will put more energy into growing fruit and less into growing canopy.
And my ageing dad is doing his bit by pruning our tomato plants, although I fear he’s going to prune them within an inch of their life. I say, dad, if the bush tomatoes are fruiting, pinch out the side shoots for sure. But please, leave some leaves. He just tells me to mind my own business and that he’s been growing tomatoes long before I was born. We’re supposed to have our own individual plants that we look after but he can’t help himself and is constantly interfering with mine.
I’ve also started removing leaves covering fruit vines such as grapes and raspberries to let the sun get at them and ripen. But I know what you’re thinking, and I’ve also been told off by the tomato pruner. “You’re just encouraging the birds,” he says. I’ve got old curtain nets to protect fruit against hungry birds.
I’m just a bit worried about all this rain we’ve been having and have seen my tomatoes split in the past because of excess watering. It’s a tricky business getting the watering and sun elements right to get the best looking and, more importantly, best tasting fruit.
Sustainable growing
Also dealing with excess rain water at the moment is Pakaraka Permaculture grower Yotam Kay in Thames. Kay and partner Niva were awarded the peer reviewed Farmer of the Year at the 2021 Organic NZ Awards.
U C OKay has been really busy planting, sowing and harvesting, making use of the recent rain, but I manage to catch him on the phone as he heads out to the farm. “The main challenge we’re facing right now is keeping a good handle on the weeds,” he says. “The wet spring has been a blessing as it helps support the newly seeded and transplanted crops, but it makes it harder to weed efficiently.”
Kay makes use of permaculture, a self-sufficient and sustainable way of growing food that draws inspiration from nature, where farming systems complement each other through crop diversity, resilience, natural productivity and sustainability. It’s about doing what is best for the environment and for your garden, he explains. Thames is lucky in that it enjoys the best of climates with the warmth associated with the north and the high rainfall in the Waikato. Ideal weather for growing veges.
At the moment they are harvesting lettuce, mizuna (green, red), beetroot (raptor), peas (shiraz), potatoes (swift, rocket), tomatoes (various), garlic, kale, artichokes, cucumber (melen), courgette (partenon), squash (acorn) for local supply, including households, commercial cafes and retailers.
“We tend to get a good few cuts from most of our greens, and then we will cover them with weed mat for 2-3 weeks or hoe and immediately replant,” he says.
To ensure the pantry is full and customers are happy he’s transplanting lettuce (multileaf salanova), capsicum, cucumber, courgettes, basil (genovese), zinnia, cosmos, tomatillo (grande verde), cabbage (greenboy) and watermelon (sugar baby). And to ensure a succession of product, he’s direct sowing carrots (bebe), beetroot (raptor), coriander (picante), parsley, dill, mizuna, radish (super red), turnips (Tokyo turnips), rocket, spinach (black glove), spring onions (purplette), fennel (Florence) and cover crops.
They’re already growing microgreens (radish china rose, diakon, rambo and Fiji pea feathers), tomatoes, pumpkins (red kuri, acorn, triamble, butternuts), edible flowers (violas, cornflower, borage, calendula), potatoes, beans (dwarf, runner and climbing), sunflowers, onions (storage), curly kale, corn (country gentlemen and popcorn), asparagus and artichokes.