Amateur Gardening – 13 July 2019

18 AMATEUR GARDENING 13 JULY 2019

with Lucy Chamberlain, AG’s fruit and veg expert

Fo cu s o n...Holiday planning

I

T’S nudging into late July, and

those of us with children might well

want to escape familiar climes for

somewhere more exotic. But what

happens to the plot when you’re away?

Follow this guide, and you won’t have

to worry about anything disastrous.

Some fruit and veg will be perfectly

happy left alone for a week or fortnight,

merrily growing away until your return.

Fruit trees and bushes in the ground are

prime examples – the only thing that

might greet you is perished berries

or currants, but the plants themselves

won’t be harmed. Why not arrange

for neighbours to glean any pickings?

You never know when you might need

a favour from them! Winter squashes

and pumpkins, maincrop potatoes,

winter brassicas, leeks, onions, carrots,

parsnips, celery, celeriac and sweetcorn

will all be happy left to their own devices

for a week or so.

How to deal with divas

Crops that mature quickly could cause

disappointments. Summer radishes,

baby turnips, hearting lettuces and rocket

are prime examples – you may come

home to find that all you’re left with is

spoilt crops fit for the compost heap.

Courgettes and summer squashes

may bear gargantuan fruits, but once

these are removed, normal cropping will

follow. Tomatoes may have rotted on the

plant (although younger fruits would still

be fine) or bear sideshoots the size of

trees, while an attack of late blight could

quickly result in total crop loss. Finally,

potted crops will certainly need watering

(see my checklist above). Still, provided

you put plans into place, you won’t come

home to post-holiday blues...

All photography TI Media, unless otherwise credited

Ask family or neighbours to water

your fruit and veg while you’re away.

Let them harvest any produce that

ripens as a token of your gratitude!

Install an automatic watering

system, attaching it to individual

nozzles for pots, and seep hoses

when irrigating beds.

Complete a last-minute pest walk,

armed with an organic spray to blast

away critters before populations get

free rein to build.

Stand potted crops together so

that they shade each other’s roots.

Shallow trays of water can be

useful reservoirs for short breaks.

Strip developing pods off all beans

and peas – it will encourage them

to form more, ready for your return.

Lay an old tarpaulin over any bare

earth. It might not look pretty, but it will

stop weeds growing while you’re away.

Lucy’s tips

Three garden projects for a happy staycation

1

Make a scarecrow: Stop pigeons

ravaging your brassicas by asking

the children to make a scarecrow;

just set them off with the framework

plus stuffing materials. Use it as an

excuse to get rid of your spouse’s

less fashionable clothes – result!

2

Grow a cress head: Have dippy

eggs for breakfast, then wash them

out and get your kids to draw faces on

the shells; stick-on googly eyes will make

them come alive. Pack inside with damp

cotton wool, get them to sow a pinch of

cress seeds as hair, then watch it grow.

3

Make fruit ice lollies: Give little

fingers a bowl, and teach kids

how to pick raspberries, strawberries

and blueberries from the plot. Blitz

everything in a food processor, freeze

into lolly moulds and enjoy the results

on those hot, sunny days in the garden.

Grouping pots together,

and standing smaller

ones in trays, can help

to keep them moist for

short periods

Use seep hoses to

irrigate vegetable beds

Don’t

forget!

Alamy

Carrots will happily

be left to their own

devices while

you’re away

Ask your family or

neighbours to pick

any crops, such as

lettuce, before they

run to seed

How to keep the garden working!

Get the garden ready for your summer break, says Lucy