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We are now rapidly heading towards mid-summer and the garden should be at its peak. Hopefully you are enjoying outdoor living and making the most of pleasant evenings and weekends. Keep up the maintenance and use a high potash (K) feed on everything that is budding, flowering or fruiting. I must admit I am struggling with the weeding and can always find something better to do instead. I also, still have some bare patches in the lawn that need re-seeding. Otherwise I am managing to follow my own advice.
Remember to pinch out the tops of climbing beans, runner beans and aubergines to encourage the plants to thicken up and produce more harvest. Also pinch out the tops of tomatoes and the side shoots so that all the energy is directed into producing fruit. Carrots and beetroot should be ready and maincrop can be lifted when the haulms yellow and wilt. If you want thick skins on your potatoes cut the haulms downs and leave for another 2 weeks before lifting. Store in hessian sacks or if you want to take the risk just leave them in the ground. I have been doing that for years now and other than minor slug damage have not suffered any adverse effects… yet!! Test sweetcorn by pressing the cobs with your thumbnail and look for a milky juice that indicates that they are ready for picking. Then either cook immediately or freeze as the sugar turns to starch very quickly and the flavour deteriorates. This is also when the caterpillars get to work on the brassica and Provado will deal with them as well, being an all round pesticide.
I mentioned last month that rhubarb should not be picked after the end of June which started a bit of discussion with people who stated that they quite happily pick theirs right through summer. Which made me wonder why you shouldn’t pick your rhubarb after June!!? There are lots of little “rules of thumb” in gardening which advise you on what to do without actually providing a reason. What I have found is that rhubarb likes cool wet conditions and thrives in relatively low temperatures and plenty of water which is why it gets going early in the year. As the weather turns hot and dry it stops growing which normally coincides with the start of July. When this happens it is best to let all the stems die down naturally as this strengthens the crown. However, if you keep it watered or we get a wet cool summer it will keep growing. I transplanted mine last November, when the plant is naturally dormant, to a low lying area of the garden which gathers rainwater and it has been the best ever. It is still throwing out fresh stems so I will take another pick and see if it continues to grow, if it does I will take another pick until it visibly stops growing. Then the time is right to let it die back.
We are into fruit harvest and you may well have already taken cherries and possibly plums although my Victorias are a few weeks away. Remember to prune plums before the winter as this can expose them to disease. Hopefully you thinned out apples and pears and have some large fruits developing. Cut back the fruited stems of summer raspberries after harvesting.
We are having a reasonable summer so far with some good days, although early June was a bit of a washout. Personally I am just happy that the lawn isn’t getting another bashing after last year, although that may still happen. Do make the most of it, I am planning on having lunch on the patio and organising a BBQ for next weekend. The Duchess spotted a clever little patio set with a fire built in to the centre of the table so we can all sit round the BBQ and keep warm while we eat. Then when the evening gets a little chilly light the chiminea to keep the party going before the ladies retire indoors. You can then politely join them or maybe the men can have a last beer outdoors while the embers burn down. Summer should be good fun!!
We are always looking for new members and try to encourage a fun attitude towards friendly competition. So if you want to grow your own fruit, vegetables and flowers or even enter any of the 3 shows we hold each year, then please get in touch, we would be happy to hear from you.
If you are interested in becoming a new member, (all ages are welcome), please contact Rosey on: 01634 377812 (evenings) or Email: rosemary@ringwoodaccounting.co.uk
Sean Barry - Upchurch Horticultural Society
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