To ensure vegetable plants receive the maximum amount of sunlight position the garden beds, or at least the rows, so they run in a north and south direction.
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Vegetables need at least six hours of sun each day.
Luscious Leeks
For beautiful, longer white stems on your leeks, hill up the stems with soil, leaving only about three to four centimetres exposed three to four weeks after planting seedlings then again two to three weeks later.
BEAUTIFUL BEANS
Climbing beans are a very economical crop to grow because they are heavy croppers over a long period.
Provide a climbing support before sowing seeds in spring into a well-drained, friable soil that has been previously limed.
Give a good watering after sowing then none until shoots emerge.
Don’t overwater at this time as it can rot the seeds.
SPINNING OUT
Spinach is thought to have originated in the Middle East and taken to Spain by the Moors in the 13th century.
The first seeds to arrive in Australia came with the First Fleet in 1787.
Seedlings are easy to grow with English, Winter and Perpetual varieties available.
Spinach is an excellent source of beta carotene and a good source of vitamin C, potassium and folate.
KIWI CARE
Kiwi plants can live up to 20 years so it’s worthwhile providing a strong support and to implement a regular pruning regime.
This will help prevent the vine becoming a tangled mess and avoid a decline in the quality of fruit.
In the first few years, the leaders of the female plant are grown on unchecked and trained into position with laterals cut back to several buds to keep them compact.
For vines that have fruited prune the fruiting laterals to the third, fourth or fifth bud beyond the previous season’s fruit buds.
Where laterals are congested, some can be removed all together.
Male plants are best pruned after flowering.
FEEDING FLOWERS
Wait until azaleas, camellias and rhododendrons have finished flowering before you feed them with a specific fertiliser, compost, Dynamic Lifter or blood and bone.
To move an azalea, the ideal time is in winter or early spring before the new growth appears.
WATER WATCH
One of the major problems for houseplants is water-logging.
The first signs usually appear as a yellowing of the lower leaves followed by dry blotches.
The solution is often a matter of tipping out any excess water from the saucer after watering and checking the drainage holes to make sure they’re not blocked.
