21 Jun

SUNNY GROWING CONDITIONS ENCOURAGE ME TO HARVEST ALLIUMS AND POTATOES EARLY AND TO USE THE FREE SPACE TO GROW ON COURGETTE AND PUMPKIN PLANTS – FOURTH WEEK IN JUNE 2010

Posted by Trevor Sargent in Courgette, Garlic, General, Onion, Watering. Tagged: .

Great weather if you like watering and if you have access to water. Luckily I find early morning watering with my 8 watering cans quite therapeutic and a good time to think about what the day ahead has in store.

This being the longest day, I am set upon harvesting the patch growing onions, shallots and garlic. If garlic is best harvested on the longest day, then I am bang on! Each crop  is being lifted with the help of my garden fork. The waft of garlic aroma bodes well for flavoursome meals in the months to come. I lay out the garlic, onion and shallots on the warm dry pavements to dry off the soil so I can brush off any loose soil before hanging the produce to dry in a cool dry location.

In the middle of the empty patch after clearing young weeds I left only cosmos which will flower and keep the bees happy later in the summer. I plant 8 courgette plants in ring around the cosmos which have been well watered in. I will mulch the soil around these plants with newspaper and cover the paper with grass clippings.  The sooner the leaf cover grows the less chance weeds have to grow too. Covered soil will slow down evaporation further which means less watering needed as well. Mulching also results in less blemished and cleaner courgettes which won’t be lying on bare soil as they ripen.

The potatoes, both early (Colleen) and second early (Carlingford) have been growing away in  strong  bags. The earlies are ready so out they come.  I tip over the  grow bags to collect the lovely new potatoes. Once boxed for short term stortage,  (earlies are not as good as main crop for long term storage), I put back the compost and soil mix in each growing bag. These bags are now ready to have a pumpkin seedling planted into each bag. I must remember to keep the pumpkins well  watered as those bags can easily dry out if not watched each morning especially in this halcyon heat. You may notice me trying not to squint in the early morning sunshine during the Youtube video clip about all this posted below!

15 Jun

FIFTY VISITORS LAST THURSDAY EVENING TO OBSERVE AND DISCUSS THE RAPIDLY GROWING ‘GROW IT YOURSELF’ PHENONENOM – THIRD WEEK IN JUNE 2010.

Posted by Trevor Sargent in Beetroot, Cabbage, Garlic, General. Tagged: .

Last Thursday, 10th June, 50 fellow kitchen gardeners dropped in at 7pm for a ’tour’ of the garden and I managed to rustle up a cup of tea and cake  for them all.  It was Naul GIY group through Denise Dunne of The Herb Garden who first mooted the idea of a GIY garden visit and it turned out to be a very enjoyable and informative evening, (for me anyway!).

Naul was well represented as were GIYers from Skerries, Bog of the Ring, Lusk, Rush, Lucan, Donabate, Swords, Malahide, Garristown, Ballyboughal, Smithfield in Dublin City and of course Balbriggan GIY stalwarts were there too. I learned a fair few things myself from the banter during a balmy blue sky evening.

For example,  we were told garlic cloves are  best sown on the shortest day so they can be harvested on the longest day. So I look forward to celebrating the longest day by harvesting my modest garlic crop. It was suggested the Minister for Finance would appreciate a bulb or two. Supplying the Minister with garlic is the least I can do for my country!

The garden tour was also a win-win in that I had a very bushy cabbage patch which I needed to clear to make way for young beetroot and rainbow chard plants growing too big in modules. Lo and behold, the cabbage bush was stripped bare before the night was out. So over the weekend the remnants of last years brassica patch was finally transformed into a new season beetroot and rainbow chard patch. I hope my guests enjoyed cooking and tasting  this heritage variety of ‘everlasting cabbage’ which is generally not for sale in the shops.

Sadly this is but one example of fruit and vegetable varieties which used to be common but are now no longer widely available. I read that 100 years ago the USA had 100 times the varieties of edible plants available commercially compared to today. Humankind is becoming more and more dependent on fewer and fewer food species of flora or fauna. Worldwide three quarters of all food now derives from just 8 species. I read also that 98%  of all commercial seeds are controlled by just 6 companies, DuPont, Monsanto, Syngenta, Dow, Aventis and Mitsiu. At the same time, a third of all USA health spending is on diet related problem and Ireland has a history of copying US trends,

So as well as kitchen gardening being an instument of healthy community resilience, co-operation and self-reliance, there is also a important job to do in maintaining and enchancing the diversity of food species that have been developed over generations  to make communities not just wealthy but healthy too.

Photos courtesy of C.Finn:

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9 Jun

GROWING TOMATOES ON AN UPSTAIRS SOUTHFACING WINDOWSILL – SECOND WEEK IN JUNE 2010.

Posted by Trevor Sargent in Planting climbers, Tomato. Tagged: , .

No more space for tomato plants in the phone box sized greenhouse. The 2 plants in there already are filling out and starting to flower. So with plants to spare, I needed another south facing growing space under glass. Time to experiment and try a windowsill. Not wanting to destroy the wooden window sill, I lined 3 window boxes with plastic and then filled each with a mix of soil and compost. 3 tomato plants to each window box and position them on an upstairs window sill to get maximum light.  This is not ideal as light from one side is not as good as light from different angles in a greenhouse. Nevertheless with nine plants I should get some tomatoes.

Once the plants grow tall and tomatoes form supports will be needed. So I tied twine from each window box close to where each plant was growing and fixed each length to a cane spanning the brackets holding the curtain rail. Just need to water and feed now to encourage healthy growth and fruiting.

The variety is Brandywine. I may have been a bit late in sowing in late April but time will tell. I’ll post up a couple of photographs when I get a chance.

1 Jun

STAKING AND TYING UP SUNFLOWERS AND TOMATOES IN THE NICK OF TIME – FIRST WEEK IN JUNE 2010.

Posted by Trevor Sargent in Planting climbers, Tomato. Tagged: .

With watering most mornings and calm warm weather, I have seen all young plants as well as hedge and lawn put on a spurt of growth. Unfortunately, injury to my right arm, (pulled ligament – 6 week recovery ahead – don’t ask, long story!), has curtailed me in the garden. So the lawn and hedges, front and back, are growing away to their hearts content, cheered on by a good crop of runaway weeds.

However, it is time to be ‘glic’ and engage more brain than brawn. The sunflowers and tomatoes are growing taller by the day. As long as winds are light – no problem! But just as the motorist and passengers have to wear safety belts, the gardener needs also to support plants which could be flattened if winds get up.

So, out come the stored bamboo canes from the shed for another year of use. Out come the twine and scissors, also. No heavy lifting needed (thank God!), just snipping and tying of twine after pushing stakes into soft soil (using left hand only)!

Just in the nick of time too. Last night heavy rain fell and the potato haulms were fairly bowed down as a result when I left to catch the train this morning. The potatoes are sturdy enough to recover. However, had I not staked and tied the sunflowers, I’ve no doubt I’d be counting losses today.

Meanwhile, the tomatoes are tied up under glass. I see small yellow flowers beginning to form. So when the tomatoes follow the flowers  and fill out, those trusses will be already supported enough to bear the weight of the mouth-watering aromatic fruits.

25 May

APPRECIATING THE ROLE WEEDS PLAY AND TRYING TO SEE WEEDING AS A SORT OF THERAPY – FOURTH WEEK IN MAY 2010

Posted by Trevor Sargent in Bees, General, Radish, Weed control. Tagged: .

I have just finished making a DVD (with friends from Glasnevin, Balbriggan and Lusk Tidy Towns Association,)  called ‘The Wildflowers of Fingal’. As a result I have a new perspective on what we gardeners call ‘weeds’. The dandelion flower for example is an important food source for bees. Humans need bees not just for honey but more critically to pollinate many of our food plants, whether courgette and tomato flowers or clover which in turn creates meat and dairy products.

So it is good to know weeds are doing some good next time someone casts a disapproving look at your ‘wilderness’. Mind you I do like a fairly tidy garden so I can see what I need to see growing and so I can reach plants, water them and pick crops as they ripen. So I weed as necessary.

It is good to hear some agricultural advisors speak well of some deep-rooted weeds. Plants such as dock and dandelion take up  and make available again nutrients which have been washed down out of reach of shallow rooting grasses and clovers etc. Dr Charles Merfield, Organic Agriculture Research Scientist when he worked in Johnstown Castle for Teagasc spoke in detail about the biological feed back systems at work in fertile soil. Roots excrete  what soil needs to make food for roots. So while weeds may be a problem in one way, in another they are helping maintain a healthy soil for the plants you actually want to grow strong, tall and tasty.

Not so tall but very tasty are the radishes which I have begun to sample this week. The crisp bite and peppery flavour is undoubtably best when picked , washed and eaten fresh from fertile soil. However if I had let the weeds go unchecked, I may not have seen these new season radishes.

While I will not panic if I see a few weeds, I am geared up to keep the kitchen garden manageable and as tidy as it needs to be. I have between now and the 10th June 2010 to put my words into practice and I invite you to come then and see if I have succeeded or not.

ON THURSDAY 10th JUNE AT 7pm, THE GROW IT YOURSELF NAUL GROUP AND SOME GIY-ers FROM SWORDS AND DUBLIN  ALONG WITH NEIGHBOURS ARE DROPPING IN TO SEE THE GARDEN. I’LL BE TAKING BETS ON THE NUMBER OF VISITORS WHO SAY ‘IT IS SMALLER THAN IT LOOKS ON THE U-TUBE VIDEO CLIPS’! IF I HAVE ENOUGH CUPS YOU ARE WELCOME TO A CUP OF ‘REAL TEA’ (AS PEOPLE SAY) OR SAMPLE AN AROMATIC BREW MADE FROM FRESH PEPPERMINT WHICH IS GROWING PROFUSELY  UNDER THE APPLE TREE BETTER THAN ANY WEED I KNOW RIGHT NOW!  CALL THE CONSTITUENCY OFFICE IN SWORDS ON (01) 89 00 360 FOR MORE DETAILS AND DIRECTIONS.

17 May

TIME TO PLANT UP WINDOW BOX AND POTS, THUS CLEARING GREENHOUSE OF SEEDTRAYS TO GIVE TOMATOES SPACE TO GROW – THIRD WEEK IN MAY 2010

Posted by Trevor Sargent in General, Seed sowing. Tagged: .

The growing season is moving up a gear, temperatures are rising, daylight hours are stretching and growing rates are accelerating. The seedtrays have done their job. Now is the time to plant out those seedlings in their potting compost modules. This means the least possible disturbance of the young root balls.

The seedlings have been hardened off. Pots and windowbox are lined up filled with good soil. Watering can, trowel and small fork are at hand.  I am planting the salad rocket plants side by side with the not so edible flowering plants. The likes of Nicotiana (Affinis), Night-Scented Stock, Calendula, Nasturtium and Gypsophilia will add pleasant aromas, a splash of colour  and welcome food for the pollinating insects, including the honey bees I have been minding up the road in a friend’s orchard.

Some of these plants also have interesting backgrounds. Nicotiana, for example, was named after Jean Nicot, a French consul in Portugal, who introduced the tobacco plant to Portugal and France in the 16th century. Although related to the big tobacco leaf plant, the variety ‘Affinis’ looks more like a rockery plant but I’ll see how it grows in the weeks ahead.

11 May

DRY COLD WEATHER REQUIRES WATERING CANS AT DAWN PLUS PROTECTING SEEDTRAYS AT NIGHT – SECOND WEEK IN MAY 2010

Posted by Trevor Sargent in General, Watering. Tagged: .

Arthur the cat keeping an eye on the seedlings

With more legumes and brassicas planted and the alliums looking a bit dry, there is a need for a watering schedule. With below normal rainfall, I’m watering before breakfast each morning this week. I find a ‘scuaine’ of six watering cans lined up under a garden bench works in my 20′ by 40′ garden. No hose pipe means I waste less water hopefully. I fill the water cans before going to bed. This allows the chlorine to evaporate overnight. Before watering at dawn, I add comfrey tea as a liquid feed to each container. Just a dollop makes for a very diluted solution. Two litres between six watering cans is the rate which works for me.

In the morning I also take out the 12 seedtrays from greenhouse and lay outdoors on path to harden off ready for planting out as each plant is big enough to withstand slug attacks hopefully. When the more seasonally warm temperatures return, I’ll leave hardy seedling in trays outside apart from the more cold sensitive plants like basil, coriander and tomatoes which will fill out in the greenhouse over the summer.

5 May

LIFT REMAINING LEEKS TO CLEAR SPACE FOR YOUNG PEA PLANTS – FIRST WEEK IN MAY 2010

Posted by Trevor Sargent in Leek, Peas. Tagged: .

Had a visit from Síle and the TG4 ‘criú’ to record an item for the new series of ‘Garraí Glas’. The garden was like a moulting bird with some summer plumage but a lot of older feathers still showing. The remaining 2009 leeks, 2009 cabbage etc. were still visible but some  2010 young pretenders will now be needing their spaces as the seeds have grown into healthy young mange tout,  sugar snap and sweet pea plants.

So the job this week is to lift the remaining leeks before they go to seed and clear the patch to make space for the 2010 legume family. I was surprised how many leeks were left when gathered together in a bucket (see picture of former allium patch now legume patch plus bucket of leeks). Too many leeks for a meal so they must be stored somehow.

Having cleared the ground, dug in some well rotted garden compost and erected the supports so peas can indulge their penchant to climb up in search of the best light, it is time to plant out the seedlings  from the confines of their seed trays. You may recall the peas and bean seeds are planted in empty toilet rolls filled with damp seed compost. This allows 24 plants per seedtray. The depth of each roll has enough space for a good root system to develop. I use an old scissors to cut and peel off the cardboard sleeve and the cylindrical root ‘ball’ is planted intact so roots are hardly disturbed in the Continue reading

28 Apr

THE BACK OF A DRAWER IS NOT THE PLACE TO STORE SEED – FOURTH WEEK IN APRIL 2010

Posted by Trevor Sargent in Seed storing. Tagged: , .

I hear people say from time to time that once seed packets are opened and some seeds sown, they put the re-sealed packet away in a kitchen drawer. I used to do this until I discovered the seeds got  forgotten about and did not keep well. So I resolved to get  myself a better organised storage system.

While Minister for Food and Horticulture, I got to see how seed and fresh produce was stored. The conditions were generally a chilled environment and produce was well labelled for traceability reasons.  The principle for the kitchen gardener is no different.

Organised seed storage

Last year, I kept seed packets in clean dry sealed jam jars in the fridge. However the accumulation of ‘seed jars’ was getting ridiculous. My seed storage was getting in the way of food storage. So this year after last week’s BIG SOW, the system changed and now takes up less space and seed packets are easier to find.

Instead of a jar per seed packet or two, I now group the seed packets in vegetable families. Using ‘fast food’ plastic trays with sealable lids, I put all the brassica seeds (kale, broccolli, Brussel sprout packets etc) in one sealed container and in another I have chard, beetroot and leaf beet, while another has the flower seeds such as sunflower, marigolds and nasturtiums.

The top shelf of the fridge now has the seed containers each labelled with post-its all standing on their sides like a shelf of books. To sow another batch of any seed is now hassle free. I just sowed more beetroot this week for example. Seed packets are now easy to find and easy to put back. Being sealed and in the fridge I hope will prolong their vitality as seeds.

I have kept the radish and cress seeds in separate jars also in the fridge for easy access. These are seeds I sow in succession atleast once a week for a continuous crop up to the end of October. Meanwhile good luck with your own seed storage as well as your seed sowing.

22 Apr

THE GREATEST ACT OF FAITH IN THE FUTURE, THE SOWING OF SEEDS – THIRD WEEK IN APRIL 2010

Posted by Trevor Sargent in General, Seed sowing, planning. Tagged: .

A few seeds every week get sown, mainly radish outdoors each Sunday in a window box to ensure a few are available for harvest each week  from April to November. Every couple of days, I would lay a few mung bean seeds in a ‘sprouter’ on the kitchen windowsill so I always have some fresh bean sprouts at the ready for the sandwiches and salad. Some lettuce seeds went in in February and other sowings will be made from time to time up to September, again to extend  availability and avoid gluts.

However each spring the kitchen garden requires what could be called the ‘BIG SOW’. This is when the bulk of annual flowers, veg and herb seeds are sown under glass and as they fill out in the seedtrays, out they go to grow on outdoors. Last year, the ‘BIG SOW’ was done on the 21st March, but with the shocking cold winter and late spring (not to mention other distractions in my life!), the ‘BIG SOW’ this year took place last Sunday evening 18th April. However Mother Nature can be kind hearted (volcanoes aside!) and seedlings have a way of putting on a spurt of growth as temperatures rise so all in all no need to panic if you still have to sow seeds this spring. Just read the instructions on the seed packets and get sowing.

Every gardener develops a system which suits the local situation. For what it is worth this is my system. My lean-to greenhouse (the one which looks like a phone box!) has five removeable shelves. Each shelf fits two seedtrays. Each seedtray fits 24 cubes of organic potting compost. Each cube is a growing module for a seedling to develop. I hope to grow 2 types of seed variety in each seedtray – so 12 seedlings of each variety is my optimum yield. Therefore, with 10 seedtrays on 5 shelves, I have just enough space to sow 20 different varieties of flowers, veg and herbs. So here goes……

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