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Well, Summer has definitely arrived with a vengeance and temperatures soared into the 30s in July. All going well you are on top of the garden doing gentle maintenance, albeit a lot of watering and enjoying outdoor living. Sun loungers should be getting good use with evening meals and BBQs on the patio. There have been mutterings of 2022 matching the Summer of 1976, but it needs to keep going for another couple of months yet.
Hopefully, the lawn managed to get a second weed and feed in early July. If not, hold off until we get some rain unless, of course, you are regularly watering the lawn. I have chosen to stop watering mine and let it go. It has taken on a curious marbled appearance as the old meadow grass from the original lawn has turned brown, and the Canada Green is holding its colour. To get a fully drought resistant lawn would require a complete re-seed. Lawns will green up again when the rain returns but will need a lot of scarifying… if you can be bothered. Dead thatch at the roots can allow disease to get established, so it is a good idea to get it all out.
The early Potato crop has been excellent this year with very little scab on the skins which indicates dry weather. Scab isn’t a problem as it easily peels off, but for those who like to exhibit their produce it is a nuisance. That is why exhibition growers cultivate their exhibits in bags rather than in the soil. I am old fashioned and like to grow in the ground. My main motivation is for the kitchen, but on show day, I have to stand back and make way for the winners.
The Broad Beans are harvested and the ground can be re-utilised, and normally I would plant a crop of Turnips to be ready by the end of October. The Beans were spaced out more this year and not so badly affected by Chocolate Spot which is a fungal infection. The Climbing Beans are flowering, and the first pick is very close. A number of Marrows have self-seeded, and the small fruits are starting to swell. It will be interesting to see what variety they are because the crop has failed for the last two years, and I do not know where the seeds have come from. The last Marrows to be grown successfully were Tiger Cross which is a very large Marrow, and I would love to take some seed to the new house. It’s also a good time to think about sowing winter vegetables with a number of new varieties available as well as old favourites like Durham Earlies. This will provide Spring Greens and then provide Cabbage in April/May.
The Braeburn Apples have been thinned out further to take the load off the branches, and the remainder will be allowed to swell and should be ready for picking by late October. The amount of effort that goes into hybridising new varieties of Apples is amazing. The Braeburn is a cross between Granny Smith and Lady Hamilton and combines the tart crunch of a Granny Smith with the red colour of Hamilton as green apples are not highly popular. It was a great commercial success, but things moved on to Gala, a cross between Kidds Orange Red and Golden Delicious and then Jazz, a cross between Braeburn and Royal Gala. Cripps Pink, also called Pink Lady, is probably the next big thing in the UK now that restrictions are lifting. It is also being grown in Upchurch!
If you are looking for an active hobby, horticulture is a good option, and there is just so much to it. Commercially it was always regarded as a low value business, but that has changed in more recent years, and it never ceases to amaze me what people are prepared to pay for plants that can be grown from seeds and cuttings. But as I have always said, gardening is to be enjoyed otherwise you are doing it wrong.
All this talk of Apples has put me in the mood for a chilled Cider. Cider can be made from any of the varieties mentioned, but probably the best Cider Apple is Dabinett which is not a culinary Apple and is grown mainly in Somerset… to answer your question… Thatcher’s!
UHS is always looking for new members and tries 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 shows we hold each year, please get in touch. We would be happy to hear from you.
Sean Barry - Upchurch Horticultural Society
