February/March Garden Guide
Harvesting
First kumara can be harvested if planted in October, have a little dig to check the size, they will double in size between now and the end of march, but there is more risk of damage from rats and wire worms. Set those rat traps and check DAILY.
Your gardens will be still providing a cornucopia of goodness, but many plants may be well past their best and if you have limited space, it may be time to pull them out and prep beds for winter crops. If your tomato plants look very sad but still have loads of green tomatoes, they can be pulled out and hung upside down- the green tomatoes will still ripen up over time.
Water deeply at least 2-3 times a week, preferably in the evening so plants and soil have a chance to soak it up over the cool night. Lettuces appreciate daily watering.
Seed saving season is upon us! Take a look around your garden, and notice any plants that are going to seed (or that you would like to collect seeds from!) Here are some plants that are seeding now: sugar snap peas, beans, sweet peas, orange cosmos, zinnias, parsleys, coriander, dill, lettuce, silverbeet, carrots, tomatoes etc. Check out the full article here:
Sow now:
All your greens: lettuce, endive, escarole, spinach, fennel, silverbeet, kale, broccoli, cauliflower, pak choy, cabbage etc. Keep a close eye on them for caterpillar damage as there are lots of moths and white butterflies around.
Leeks: these divine members of the onion family take their time to fatten up, so get started with them - the earlier the better. Prep beds with plenty of organic matter or rotted down manure/compost.
Herbs: parsley (although parsley sown now is likely to bolt in spring), marjoram, dill, lovage, bronze fennel. Probably too late for basil esp if you are growing it outside.
Direct Sow
Coriander : always soak seed for 24 hrs before sowing, use fresh seed AND KEEP WELL WATERED TO STOP THEM GOING TO SEED. DO NOT plant out coriander seedlings - they are taprooted, pots are too small, root hits the bottom and when planted will go to seed very fast. Direct sow coriander every two weeks to keep a good supply.
Rocket: broadcast seed, but protect against caterpillars. Rocket loves the cooler season so plenty of opportunity later in the year if too hot/dry now.
Dwarf/Bush Beans (plant into damp soil and water just once then cover for a few days til they start to pop up, then resume watering with care- beans will rot if over-watered). These also do great in 13 litre pots 4 plants per pot. These can be grown in a green house right though to June. Fin de Bagnol is a great variety for this.
Carrots (soak seed for 24 hrs before sowing, use fresh seed, keep well watered for up to 3 weeks til they emerge, guard against birds, slugs and snails)
Beetroot: guard against birds, slugs and snails. Not much time left to get beetroot off to a good start, they really like warm soil to do well. Best before end of March if you can.
Turnips, swedes and radish: these are all in the cabbage family so will need to be protected against caterpillars as well as snails and slugs
Broadbeans and peas: these can be sown through to end of April
Zucchinis (last chance late Feb/early march) grow well if direct sown now, with good sun hours (minimum 8 per day),as their fast growing, long tap roots get down deep. Plant about 4 cm deep into damp soil and water well. Guard against rats - cut a plastic drink bottle in half, take the lid off the top half and place as a mini greenhouse over your zuc seed. Remove once leaves appear.
Plant a few seed potatoes now for an autumn harvest
Seedlings to Plant now:
All of the above!!
Propagation
Strawberry plants that fruited over summer will be running now and these runners may be rooting into the strawberry bed. When you can see the plantlets sending out root shoots pot them up ready for strawberry planting time in MAY!! (Article coming up.)
Take cuttings of perennial herbs, shrubs and flowers while the weather is warm, roots will strike more quickly
Harvesting
Harvest rockmelons when the skin develops an orange flush and the characteristic aroma develops. Most rockmelons will slip form the vine when ready, meaning when ready to eat, they simply release from the vine when tugged. Be careful - rats know when melons are ripe from the scent too, and will eat holes into the fruit simply to get to the seeds, so have your eyes peeled and your nose tuned in! Check them before nightfall.
Watermelons are ripe when the spot where they lie on the soil turns deep yellow, and the tendril closest to the fruit withers and dies.
Pumpkins, butternuts, cupolas and buttercups are all getting close to harvest time. Be careful not to harvest too early as the flavour will be insipid, the skin won;t have toughened up and they will not store. The stalk leading to the fruit should be very hard and dry. Butternuts should have a warm orange/brown skin, with little green streaking. Cupolas should be completely orange/tan. They will hold on the plant for ages, plus new fruit will keep ripening right into April in a sunny spot. Buttercups and pumpkins should mostly develop an orange patch where the skin is in contact with the ground. PROTECT FROM RATS.
Watch out for:
caterpillars they are abundant at this time of the year. Cover beds with insect mesh, plant companion plants to attract insects that will control caterpillars such as parasitic and predatory wasps. Spray plants as soon as you spot the damage with Bt (a bacterial spore).
aphids (plant alyssum, let your coriander flower!)
White fly
birds after your seedlings (use nets)
Green Veg Bugs on beans, tomatoes and peppers: add some neem granules to holes around the plants, do morning hunts for the adult and juvenile GVB’s on plants which offer enclosed protection, such as broccoli, hollyhocks, silverbeet and pak choy - the GVB’s hide in the middle of the plants/leave and come out to sunbathe on the edges of the leaves.
Tomato fruit worm- a caterpillar that eats its way and out of tomatoes, even unripe green ones. You will recognise it by entry holes eaten into fruit, often accompanied by a larger exit hole with messy frass (insect poo). Pick damaged fruit and destroy the caterpillar inside if it’s still there. Also eats into corn cobs, caterpillars crawl up the corn silks into the top of the cob. Spray plants with Bt.
Powdery mildew on zucchini, cuc, melon and pumpkin plants- this usually comes after dewy cold nights. Remove affected leaves, spray plants thoroughly with a 20% milk solution - this does actually work!
Monitor for rats in the kumara patch and around capsicums, melons and pumpkins/squash.
In the Orchard
Feed citrus with sheep pellets or chook manure followed by a layer of woody mulch over the top.
Summer prune your stonefruit (plums, peaches, apricots) after fruiting. Here is an awesome guide from Kath Irvine of Edible Backyard https://www.ediblebackyard.co.nz/prune-stonefruit/
Harvest pears and apples- colour should be warm and seeds should be black.
