Page 38 - Simply Veg Issue 3 2019

Waterlily Dahlia Taratahi Ruby
Dahlia Taratahi Ruby
can be raised in the greenhouse like the summer varieties. They can also be grown from sets which are readily available in shops and garden centres and this is how
I grow them. I plant them direct where
they are to grow but not on the onion bed. Because they will be in the ground till next spring I plant them on what will next year be the root crop bed because this is the only bed that doesn’t get manured in the winter.
You may also have plants ready for planting from earlier sowings such as cabbages, cauliflowers and lettuce. Strawberries can also be planted if you didn’t do so in June or July.
There is still some pruning in the fruit garden if not done before such as cordon and espalier apples, summer raspberries and blackcurrants.
I mentioned feeding plants last month and said that you should rake general fertiliser into the ground before anything is planted but plants that have been planted for a month or two
will benefit from further feeds. I have explained plant foods before but it is
worth repeating for beginners. There are three major plant foods, Nitrogen
( N ) mainly for leaf and stem growth, Phosphate ( P ), mainly for root growth and Potash ) K ) mainly for flowering and fruiting. Balanced, or general, fertilisers cantain all three of these foods but not always in the same proportions. The proportions should be on the box or bag when you buy them. All plants need all three foods at different stages of their growth but flowering plants like tomatoes and flowers such as dahlias and chrysanths .Leafy plants like cabbages need more nitrogen. Fertilisers can be either in solid or liquid form or crystals . At this time of year it is best to use liquids to be diluted or crystals to be dissolved in your watering can because they are quicker acting.
You still need to feed tomatoes every week . I use maxicrop tomato special . It
is a liquid which you dilute in your watering can . Phostrogen and Chempak No 4, which are crystals, are also suitable as they are all high in potash. Annual flowers don’t need extra feeding because it could result in a lot of leafy growth at the expense of flowers. Chrysanths and dahlias , though, will benefit from two or three feeds throughout the season.
You will still need to keep plants securely
Sweet pea Daphne
The first runner beans
staked and tied. The lateral shoots on chrysanths and dahlias which will carry
the flowers need checking that they are securely tied to the cane. The earlier ones may already be showing buds. There will be a central bud with other buds surrounding it. Except in the case of spray chrysanths, these surrounding buds should be removed when they are large enough to handle.
Also in the flower garden you need to keep deadheading annuals. The main aim of flowers is to produce seed to reproduce the species so if we prevent them from doing this by deadheading they need to produce more flowers.
38 simplyvegetables