Our faithful Gnome gives us his wise words for August
Well, what a wet winter and spring, and even early summer! MOLLUSCS is the dispirited cry on every gardener’s lips.
Anyway, its much warmer and drier now so the crops that didn’t get eaten are finally flourishing. On our plot two lots of newly planted out climbing beans were demolished, along with most of the squashes. The third attempt was a success. I’m hoping that my cunning strategy of using seaweed meal to confuse their sense of smell may have worked, but I have to say that it could have also been the drier and warmer weather making a difference. Strulch helps a bit too, but when it’s really rainy it doesn’t seem to be so much of a deterrent. I’ve also put a slug pub in the bed, so they can meet their chums, get drunk and die happy!
One of the great things about being part of a gardening group is knowing that others are having similar problems or triumphs!
Green manures
It’s a good time for sowing green manures on beds cleared of earlier crops. I’m using pinto beans; they were very successful a few years ago and will also give a crop of tasty French beans. A 500g bag from Infinity was enough for almost all the empty beds. Water the drill really well before sowing, cover the seed [I sow quite thickly] with dry soil and don’t water again until they come through; it was very fast germination. Other green manures are available.
Watering
The suggestion of watering well weekly holds good on all established crops, but recently planted out seedlings may need it more often in hot, sunny and breezy weather. Also pots need more frequent watering plus plants under trees. Feed flowers and fruiting crops weekly, especially those in pots.
Pruning
Prune fruit trees and bushes; weed, feed, and mulch [with cardboard and woodchip or weeds]. Apples and pears: Only done on restricted forms: cordons, fans, espaliers; or on dwarf rootstock. July/Aug; best in late Aug for apples. Cherries and plums etc, summer prune to deter infection from silver leaf in June-July to reduce overcrowded branches and pull up suckers from base; or can be pruned as they are picked.
Remove branches and twigs that are dead, damaged, diseased, crossing or crowded.
All flowering shrubs that have finished flowering by 21 June should be pruned now. All that flower later should be pruned winter or spring.
Top tips
POTATO BLIGHT will strike this month. DON’T PANIC! You can compost the affected haulms (stalks and stems) as the fungus is in the tubers.
- Water well once weekly
- Weeds will be growing strongly now: hoe, hoe, hoe!
- Sow green manures on beds where crops are cleared
- Apply seaweed meal and compost to moist beds
- Start summer pruning fruit trees, weed, water and mulch
- Apply organic chicken pellets to leafy crops and potassium to fruiting crops
- Prune shrubs that have finished flowering
- Liquid feed: home-made comfrey and nettle liquid or organic tomato feed. We can also foliar feed with liquid seaweed [not in scorching sunshine]
- Watch out for pests and diseases. Protect brassicas from butterflies and birds with netting
- Earth up spuds, harvest early spuds, follow on with leeks
- Garlic and onions, once leaves are dry, insert fork under bulb, loosen from ground and leave to dry in situ if no rain forecast; or bring into cover if rainy
- Pick beans [freeze], peas and courgettes often; if they are left on the plant it will become unproductive
- Beetroot, carrots etc can be pulled as needed
- Sow Chard, beetroot, salads
- Keep compost bins filled, drown seeding and perennial weed roots in bucket of water
Brighton and Hove Organic Gardening Group 