February heralds the beginning of peak harvest time for most of our fruit and vegetables that were planted in Spring and early Summer before Christmas. The flower garden will be blooming as the dahlias, begonias, perennials and Summer annuals reach their showy best.
The longer days of Summer are here along with the warmer days and nights which means plants will grow rapidly. There are many tasks in the garden that will need to be attended to on a regular schedule.
We have had some useful rain in the last month but not enough to sustain good plant growth so watering is needed. Watering is best directed to the areas of the root zone of the plants and given a good soaking so that they may need to be watered about once every 10 to 14 days dependant on how hot and windy the weather has been.
As I write this it has been raining overnight (18mm) which is the first real rain that we have had over the last month, the plants will really appreciate this and it will mean a few days without the need to water the garden.
I noticed that some plants are showing signs of significant frost damage which is causing the leaves to be rather distorted. This may appear as if the plants have been harmed by a herbicide, given time they should grow through the damage.
The frost may have also caused the fruit set on stone fruit plants to drop so it may be a light crop this year.
As I write this we are still experiencing changeable Spring weather, but in spite of this there has been plenty of good plant growth. Although we have had some rain it has been intermittent and the warmer temperatures have meant that some watering is still required. The planting of Summer vegetables and bedding plants should be completed by Christmas to give the plants time to grow to maturity. read more…
As I write this we are still experiencing changeable Spring weather, but in spite of this there has been plenty of good plant growth. Although we have had some rain it has been intermittent and the warmer temperatures have meant that some watering is still required. The planting of Summer vegetables and bedding plants should be completed by Christmas to give the plants time to grow to maturity. read more…
We are now in Summer with plenty of hot weather and the usual periods of wind and little rain, all of which puts stress on plants and gives us the problem of keeping them growing and healthy.
Most of the berry fruits are finishing and the stone fruits are reaching their main production now, then to follow is the pip fruit.
The fruit crops that we are harvesting now are the results of the cultivation that we gave them over the last Winter and Spring so if the results are not up to expectations then review what was done to identify what needs to be done to improve the next crop.
Although winter is still a long way off we do need to be prepared. Spring bulbs will soon be in the garden centres but it is still too soon to plant most of them so choose the best quality bulbs and keep them until the time is right in the Autumn.
Most of the tasks around the garden at this time of the year is what I call maintenance gardening; weeding, watering, pest and disease control and of course, harvesting.
We are now in Summer with plenty of hot weather and the usual periods of wind and little rain, all of which puts stress on plants and gives us the problem of keeping them growing and healthy.
Most of the berry fruits are finishing and the stone fruits are reaching their main production now, then to follow is the pip fruit.
The fruit crops that we are harvesting now are the results of the cultivation that we gave them over the last Winter and Spring so if the results are not up to expectations then review what was done to identify what needs to be done to improve the next crop.
Although winter is still a long way off we do need to be prepared. Spring bulbs will soon be in the garden centres but it is still too soon to plant most of them so choose the best quality bulbs and keep them until the time is right in the Autumn.
Most of the tasks around the garden at this time of the year is what I call maintenance gardening; weeding, watering, pest and disease control and of course, harvesting.
For the last meeting of the year Elaine Alexander attended as the guest speaker. She demonstrated how to create some wonderful centre-pieces for the Christmas table, incorporating fruit and vegetables.
December is the real start of Summer and after a very changeable Spring we look forward to a more settled and warmer time. Overall Spring has been a good growing season and as a result there has been a good set of both stone and pip. Because of this there is a need to thin out the developing fruit so that the size and quality of the crop is achieved.
The planting of Summer annuals needs to be completed and with the possibility of water restrictions mulching in as much of the garden areas as possible should be done to help retain soil moisture.
In October’s meeting Alan Jolliffe shared a new product which helps to prevent Codling Moth on apple trees. ‘Bird Proof’, is a non-toxic, tacky repellent gel which can be used to form a repellent band on the tree-trunk which lasts for several seasons.
Peter Saunders provided the third instalment of A Visual Guide to Gardening through the Year complete with a slide-show. His tomatoes in the tunnel house are now flowering. He uses trickle irrigation to ensure water gets to the roots and not the weeds. This also prevents an overly humid atmosphere which can encourage fungal diseases.