Innehållsförteckning för May 2020 från Kitchen Garden

This is a super month in the fruit and veg garden (and not just because my birthday falls in May). For most of us spring has well and truly sprung and there are vibrant green shoots all around. The garden always seems to be bursting with pent-up energy; drop a seed into the soil and you feel it’s bound to grow! When I think of spring I think of the wonderful fresh salads that improving conditions allow us to grow with relative ease now and in this issue KG regular Ben Vanheems brings you bags of advice to help you grow your own plentiful supplies. This is also a time when our thoughts turn to tender crops and although it may still be a little early for some, gardeners in…

STEP 1: Buy a pot of fresh basil from the vegetable section of the supermarket. Plants may be crowded and tall, so look for the shortest and strongest ones that you can. Empty the plant from the pot and divide up the rootball into eight parts. Each section should have three or four stems. STEP 2: Put each section into a 12cm (5in) pot filled with damp compost. Grow on at 15-20C (59-68F) don’t go hotter until plants are established. If you want more plants, then repeat with another pot of fresh herbs. Some plants grow stronger than others, but most grow better in clumps than as singletons. STEP 3: When plants have established and are growing well in the pots then they can be planted out. Wait until the…

■ Sow tender vegetables such as courgette and sweetcorn in cell trays in the greenhouse to produce strong plants for the garden. ■ Thin rows of seedlings such as carrots and beetroot when the seedlings are large enough to handle. ■ Earth up rows of potatoes little and often to encourage more tubers to develop in the ridges. ■ To have a continuous supply of lettuce and salad crops all summer long, sow little and often. ■ Keep young cucumber plants warm at all times because if subjected to cold or wet conditions they soon start to rot off at soil level.…

GARDENING AND WELL-BEING I know the benefits of gardening for mental well-being are well documented, but I just wanted to thank Kitchen Garden for its part in keeping me motivated to garden for my health. I have a diagnosis of bipolar disorder and also get seasonal affective disorder (SAD) in the winter. Reading Kitchen Garden and planning the season ahead gives me something to look forward to. I don't think it is understating it to say gardening is a lifesaver for me. Alison Brumfitt, Bedford TONY SAYS: And thank you to you too, Alison. Good to know that gardening is having such a positive impact on your life. WHY BOTHER? No, these are not my seed potatoes, but the remains of a bag of ‘Maris Piper’ bought one week ago…

It is a good time of year to apply these controls as the temperature of the air and soil is increasing. There are several on the market controlling a variety of pests and they are basically a concentrated dose of naturally occurring nematode predators. They are safe to use as these little pest attackers occur in the environment already but not in such large numbers. Nemaslug, featured here, controls slugs and it is simple to apply to the soil once it is warm enough (about 5C/40F; so end of March/April time). One application of Nemaslug will provide about 300,000 nematodes for every square metre of soil and gives at least six weeks’ control. I found Nemaslug to be really effective on my slug-infested plot. Last year, after an application in…

Our Star Question winner will receive vouchers worth £25; the writers of all other questions printed will receive a £10 voucher. They can be redeemed against any products in the latest Mr Fothergill’s catalogue, which will be sent out with the vouchers so you can choose from the massive range of quality products, including seeds and garden equipment. To receive a free catalogue, call 08453 710518 or visit www.mr-fothergills.co.uk Email questions to tflanagan@mortons.co.uk or post to Question Time, Kitchen Garden, Mortons Media Group, Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6JR. Please include your full address on letters and emails. We do not publish full addresses.…

I have fond memories of my grandad always having several rows of runner beans in his garden; in fact it used to be a standing joke that he grew enough for the entire street during the height of the summer! Those memories and the fact that I love the taste mean I grow runner beans every year without fail. Runner beans (Phaseolus coccineus) are part of the legume family, which also includes broad beans and French beans. Originating in the highlands of Mexico in Central America, they are actually a perennial vining plant which is not frost hardy, hence why we grow them as a half-hardy annual in the UK. That said, the tuberous roots (which are a little like a weird radish) can be potted up and kept frost…

RED ORACHE:  Red orache leaves are outrageously good for you! Pick the leaves while they are still quite young for a vibrant addition to your salads. BEETROOT: You can eat any beetroot leaves in much the same way you might Swiss chard. For salads, try a beautiful crimson variety such as ‘Bull’s Blood’. Harvest young for baby leaves. LAMB’S LETTUCE: This mild leaf has an almost waxy texture to it. Lamb’s lettuce is one of the hardiest salad leaves you can grow and will happily sit outside through the winter chill. MIZUNA:  An excellent choice for adding a little texture. Its intricately feathered leaves are mild but nevertheless retain the slightest hint of mustard. Their crunchy stems add a welcome bite. SORREL:  Add a punch of lemon with broad- or…

Emma is sowing limnanthes (poached egg plant) seeds. These will grow into pretty flowers that are a magnet for pollinators. A great flower to grow on the vegetable patch. The flowers have a yellow centre and white petals. Bees love limnanthes, as do hoverflies. The latter are great as they will devour aphids, thereby controlling a persistent pest. Emma uses stones to create a circle so that you can mark out where you’ve sown the seeds, and in this way will also produce a natural looking clump. Go to www.youtube.com/kitchengardenmagazine and search ‘Poached Egg’ or ‘Limnanthes’.…

1 To grow climbers up a string, make a hole with a trowel to the depth of the pot. 2 Place the end of the string in the hole. Tie a knot to keep the string in place. 3 Pop the tomato plant into the hole, ensuring that the string remains underneath the rootball. 4 Refill the hole with compost and firm down. Wind the string carefully around the plant and tie on the tunnel crop bars. The string needs to be taut but don’t pull too tightly otherwise the string shoots out from under the plant and you have to do the whole thing again! As the plant grows, carefully wind it around the cord.…

As with its very close cousins chicory and radicchio, you may not want to eat a big plate of endive alone, but it is a great crop to add some welcome piquancy to a green or mixed salad. The often attractive deeply cut leaves are eye-catching on the plate, too. Endive and radicchio are often added to supermarket pillow packs to give the mixture an added peppery flavour. SOWING More popular on the continent than here, endive (pronounced ‘on-deev’) deserves to be more widely grown and is just as easy as lettuce. Sow your seeds from March to September either direct into a well-prepared seed bed or in pots or trays using any good peat-free sowing or multi-purpose compost. I like to sow mine in cell trays, two seeds per…

We are regularly encouraging our young children to contribute in our kitchen garden because we’d like them to know where their food comes from and be part of the team. Children can climb trees, build dens, splash in paddling pools and essentially play in the garden, but they can contribute and pull their weight too, especially if there are games, rewards and adventures built into every task. If you’re encouraging your children, or grandchildren, to get gloriously green-fingered, then here are some handy ideas, tips and hacks. DIG FOR TREASURE Engage children through vocabulary – you’re not digging for mere spuds, you’re digging for treasure! Who can fill their treasure chest (bucket) to the very top? Grandad, or little Ben? The glint of a potato in the soil is a…

If you visit any African food store you’ll be confronted with a pile of fresh yams, and you may have seen them growing in the tropics, but few people know there is a hardy yam which can be grown here. If you look at inner-city allotments from a summer train trip, you may be puzzled to see greenhouses with what looks like fleece-wrapped chimneys poking from their roofs. These are usually on plots owned by Caribbean growers, who aim to get the best possible yields from their yams by protecting the leaves and prolonging the growing season to produce roots in the shortest time. AIR POTATO Cinnamon vine, or air potato, Dioscorea batatas, is late to start into growth, sometimes not emerging until late May in the open, so needs…

■ Buy canes that are slightly longer than you need so you can trim any split or thick ends. Try to choose canes that aren’t too thin or dramatically tapered. ■ Measure the thickest part of the thickest cane so you know what size drill to use. Canes should pass freely through the holes. ■ Four hands are easier than two when it comes to putting a frame up for the first time. Ask a friend to help and you will soon master the technique. ■ Position the upright canes at the sides so they lean in a little rather than leaning out – the slight ‘spring’ this creates when the top is put on helps to hold everything together. ■ You can make a frame the right size to…

TOOLS TO TREASURE Win this fantastic Kent & Stowe gardening starter kit, which contains everything you need to get out there this spring. Kent & Stowe tools – ‘built on tradition and crafted for life’ – all come with a 15-year guarantee, so will give you a great season year after year. Two lucky readers will win this bumper set of 14 items: a Stainless Steel Digging Spade, Digging Fork and Edging Iron (each RRP £29.99), a Stainless Steel Hand Trowel, Hand Fork, Hand Cultivator, Dibber and Hand Weeding Knife (each £9.99), a Stainless Steel Hand Corkscrew Weeder (£12.99), Professional Bypass Secateurs and Professional Anvil Secateurs (each £19.99), a 4.5-litre Metal Watering Can (£19.99), Ladies’ or Men’s Luxury Leather Gloves (£14.99) and Ladies’ or Men’s Clogs in their choice of…

HERBED NEW POTATOES There are many pleasures to be taken from growing one’s own veg, but nothing quite beats digging up the season’s first new potatoes. Served simply with fresh herbs, they are a delight! SERVES 4 Preparation time: 10 minutes Cooking time: 15 minutes ■ 1kg/2.2lb new potatoes, scrubbed, skins left on ■ A small bunch of mint, chopped ■ A small bunch of parsley, chopped ■ A drizzle of olive oil ■ Salt to taste 1. Place the new potatoes in a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes. 2. Meanwhile, prepare the herbs. 3. Check to see if the potatoes are cooked by inserting a sharp knife. Once cooked through, drain them in a colander then return them…

10 MINUTE JOBS TAKE A WALK AROUND A daily garden tour will help you spot problems before they really get started. Add a support or replace ties where needed; nip off discoloured leaves; watch out for pest damage; and enjoy the beauty of the May garden while you are wandering. MAKE SUCCESSIONAL SOWINGS Sow rows of salad leaves and lettuce every three or four weeks until the end of September. This will ensure there’s a continuous supply of tasty fresh leaves. Remove large, bitter plants in the knowledge that more rows of young ones are ready to replace them. THIN OUT CROWDED SEEDLINGS Carrot, parsnip and beetroot seedlings will be a few centimetres tall at this stage and they are probably crowded in the rows. Pull weaker seedlings to leave…

■ EARTH UP POTATOES Pile plenty of soil around the stems of maincrop varieties – potatoes turn green if exposed to light. You can get away with not earthing up early and salad varieties if tubers are used small and before they poke through the soil. ■ SOW RUNNER BEANS You can get earliest harvests by sowing seed in pots in April and planting out as soon as last frosts are passed. For later crops sow seed directly in the soil around a support frame in May. ■ HARVEST ASPARAGUS Cut spears at ground level when they are around 20cm (8in) tall and before the tips open. Use a knife to make a clean cut. ■ PLANT BRUSSELS SPROUTS Seed sown in February or early March will have produced plants…

■ To keep your greenhouse or polytunnel well stocked with a mixture of your favourite vegetables through the growing season, it’s a good idea to start a selection of young plants off in small pots. As soon as you clear one crop, you can pop these plants in to fill any gaps and maximise your growing space. ■ Although we want warm weather to help plants grow, under glass or polythene it can get hot on sunny days, so make sure you ventilate to prevent plants from overheating. ■ Check fruit and veg plants on a regular basis for pests and diseases, such as aphids, slugs and snails and fungal diseases that can soon appear at this time of the year. As soon as spotted, take action to prevent them…

HOW LATE CAN I SOW TOMATOES? VIVIENZ: I have just found two packets of tomato seeds that I forgot to sow when I did most of them. Is it too late to be worthwhile sowing any of these (May)? TIGERBURNIE: I would think it’s a bit late now, lack of light and warmth later on in the year could be a problem for ripening. If you like green tomato chutney, then fire ahead. GEOFF: Unless they are very expensive seed and you have space, why not? If they grow fast enough stop them at three trusses and hope for a good autumn. OLD HERBACEOUS: Another one of those topics where some of us have different thoughts but that’s why gardening still excites me.... TO HAVE YOUR SAY ON THE FORUM…

WHERE TO BUY Nemaslug can be bought from many mail order companies such as www.greengardener.co.uk or www.gardening-naturally.comThey will also sell Nemasys Natural Fruit and Veg Protection, which is a product containing a mixture of different nematodes to treat a wider range of pests in one application. The pests this controls include carrot root fly, cabbage root fly, cut worms, onion fly, sciarid fly, caterpillars, gooseberry sawfly, thrips and codling moth.…

This month we take a close look at a common pest affecting carrots and related plants, including parsnip, parsley and celery SYMPTOMS Dark tunnels running through the roots of your carrots are a sure sign of carrot fly larvae. The maggots are creamy-yellow and about 1cm (½in) in length. Early on in the season, carrot leaves may develop a red tinge and a check in growth. WHAT IS IT? Carrot flies have small black bodies and emerge from overwintering larvae in May/June with also a second generation in August/September, laying their eggs in the soil where carrots are growing. They take about a week to hatch, after which the larvae feed off the carrots for four weeks or so before pupating. The pupae are a yellow brown colour and can…

EVANGELINE HAGGARTY FROM WEST BERKSHIRE Evangeline has been growing veg for more than 30 years, since she was small. She has an allotment and has help from her husband. “He helps more now since we have found out we’ve a baby on the way,” she said. She also likes to recycle materials on the plot. “We use pallets to build compost bins and use other people’s old pots and seed trays instead of buying new. We even took down someone’s greenhouse in the snow and carried it for 20 minutes to our allotment.” Going forward Evangeline is planning on trying a different technique. “I’m going no dig,” she said. “After trialling a couple of beds last year I found it so much easier to keep on top of the weeds.”…

SPRING ONION Guarantee a little heat and bite with some spring onions. Sow thinly into drills spaced about 15cm (6in) apart then thin as necessary so each plant has space to swell. They can also be sown into modules from late winter, a pinch of five to eight seeds producing a cluster of seedlings to plant out as they are, about 10-12cm (4-5in) apart in both directions. Keep the area around the delicate seedlings weed free, weeding by hand rather than hoe to avoid collateral damage. Sowings made in midsummer using a hardy variety such as ‘White Lisbon’ will give plants that stand through the winter ready to lift the following spring. RADISH Sow and crop quick-growing radishes all season long. I like to sow them in between slower-to-establish staples…

Florence fennel is a popular annual vegetable grown for its white bulb with a strong taste of aniseed. The stems and feathery green leaves and seeds are also edible, making this an essential decorative and ‘eat all plant’ in the garden. Trials were recently carried out at Wisley Gardens in Surrey – home of the Royal Horticultural Society – to discover the very best varieties to grow. There were 10 varieties in the trial, the first since 2005. Just two Award of Garden Merit (AGM) winners from that trial, ‘Orion F1’ and ‘Fino’, were entered in the 2019 trial and of those only ‘Orion F1’ retained its AGM. However, although widely available in the USA, it has been deleted from sale in the UK. ‘Fino’ is still available as an…

I stand perfectly still, not daring to move a muscle. All around me I can hear the frantic buzzing of hundreds of bees darting through the air. Through the mesh hood protecting me I can see the swarm of bees diving at the foreign object that is invading their habitat. Me. “It’s okay, they will leave you alone in a minute,” says Ben Cole, the beekeeper I am here to meet. “They like some people more than others. They seem to like you.” I beg to differ. Ben Cole and his wife Penelope are beginner beekeepers from Hemingbrough, North Yorkshire, who started their first hive around a year ago. “Today we are treating the bees for a mite which can attack them in winter. We are learning new things every…

There are the summer varieties which tend to be the frilly-leaved types and also broader-leaved and hardier varieties which can be sown from August onwards and grown under cover for cutting from autumn to early spring. WATCH OUT FOR Slugs and snails will nibble seedlings and plants. Take precautions, applying your favoured form of slug control regularly to keep them at bay. Greenfly will attack from spring and can cause stunting and distortion. Wash them off with a jet of water or cover crops with fine crop protection netting after planting out. VARIETIES ‘PANCALIERI’: Produces large heads of deeply frilled leaves and a white centre. Good for blanching and later maturing than some. (Kings Seeds, Seeds of Italy) ‘CUOR D’ORO’: Similar to the above, but earlier to mature. (Seeds of…

For many, a large part of the attraction of growing fruit is not only the delicious produce, but the sense of history that comes with it. Plant a ‘Court Pendu Plat’ apple and you can enjoy biting into the very same fruit as the Romans who introduced it into the UK some 2000 years ago. Every ‘Bramley’s Seedling’ apple is a direct descendant of a single tree grown from a pip by Mary Ann Brailsford in her garden in Nottinghamshire in 1809. The ‘Conference’ pear, even today a mainstay on the supermarket shelves, was so named as it won first prize at the National British Pear Conference in 1885. There is always the temptation of the latest product of extensive breeding programmes, promising record-breaking yields and disease-free growth – but…

With so many tomato varieties on offer in the seed catalogues these days, the world of tomato growing has never been better. So, always keen to try something new, last spring I tried ‘Shimmer F1’. With its grainy green markings on bronze red skin and its almond shape, it definitely caught my eye. This is an indeterminate (cordon) variety so it needs to be grown up a cane or similar support. It can be grown outdoors in a sheltered spot that captures the sun or undercover. I grew mine in a polytunnel. You can sow as early as February if you have a heated propagator with grow lights but I started mine off in mid-March in an unheated propagator indoors. They will need a temperature of around 18-21C (65-70F) to…

HARROD HORTICULTURAL This company has been producing top quality garden products for 60 years and is innovative in bringing new designs on to the market. It offers an excellent mail order service and, as well as being renowned for its sturdy fruit and vegetable cages, arches and structures, it also sells a huge range of other gardening sundries. Tel. 0845 402 5300 www.harrodhorticultural.com HOZELOCK Hozelock has been making garden equipment for 60 years and 75% of its products are made in Britain. The company has a comprehensive range that covers garden watering, garden spraying, plant protection and pond solutions. Tel. 0121 313 1122 www.hozelock.com TOWN & COUNTRY For more than 30 years Town & Country has been bringing innovation to the gardening sector with a range of gloves and footwear…

ALL SET TO POT The Potting Table and Tidy Set from Two Wests and Elliott is perfect for your potting shed or greenhouse, creating a bespoke area for sowing, pricking out and potting on. Supplied for self-assembly, the Potting Table is made from rust and rot-proof aluminium. It is 102cm (40in) long by 51cm (20in) deep by 76cm (30in) high. ‘Wings’ on either side provide space for your tools. The central section holds the Potting Tidy, which has deep sides to neatly contain compost. Made from durable plastic, it is easy to clean after use. Price: £51.40 plus £4.99 p&p www.twowests.co.ukTel: 01246 451077 CATERPILLAR CELEBRATION The RHS has partnered with The World of Eric Carle to mark the 50th anniversary of much-loved children’s book The Very Hungry Caterpillar with a…

It was during the dark war years that rationing was introduced into Britain. Before the war 70% of all British food was imported and the German U-boat blockade was threatening to stop our merchant shipping, thus threatening the home front with starvation. In October 1939 the hugely successful Dig for Victory campaign was launched by the British government, calling for every man and woman in Britain to keep an allotment. Lawns and flower beds were turned into vegetable plots and this even included golf courses, parks and the moat around the Tower of London! It wasn’t until 1954 that rationing stopped, but most still continued to grow their own vegetables in their back gardens. Like most families, my father would grow all his own vegetables – enough to keep our…

TEND TO PEAS Early sowings of mangetout varieties are in full flower and it’s only a couple of weeks between flowers and pods. Keep an eye on things and harvest the pods while they are small and crisp – they are tasty and stringless at this stage. There will be lots more pods over the next month or so, and if you keep picking then more pods will grow. Keep the roots watered in dry weather if you want the best crops. Sow more mangetout in May for a late summer harvest – you can sow later, but plants are often less productive in the autumn. SOW SUMMER RADISHES Radishes are easy to grow and they don’t take up much space, but they are only worth trying if you like…

MELONCHOLIA With the purchase of a greenhouse a few years ago I have been growing tomatoes and cucumbers successfully, but have encountered continual issues with melons. I have been growing Mr Fothergill’s ‘Emir F1’ and have grown two plants from seed in 15in clay pots each year. I didn’t manage to produce a single melon the first year, in the second managed one melon per plant, but last year was again a failure with no fruit. Can you tell me where I am going wrong? Paul Manning, Kent Steve Ott, editor Kitchen Garden magazine STEVE SAYS: Pollination is probably the key here. The difficulty with melons is often managing to get the plants to produce male and female flowers at the same time so that there is viable pollen. If…

GROW YOURSELF HEALTHY BY BETH MARSHALL QUARTO PUBLISHING GROUP – Frances Lincoln AVAILABLE March 17, 2020 ISBN: 978-0-7112-5071-0 PRICE: £18.99 Join professional horticulturist Beth Marshall as she explores the science behind growing ‘supercharged’ gardens. Discover the nutritional benefits of more than 35 different plant varieties, with crop-by-crop advice – from seasonal savoury staples to the sweetest home-grown pie fillers. Whether you’re diversifying your gardens with the best prebiotic-infused plants or on the search for more than just ‘an apple a day’ to keep the doctor away, follow Marshall for the ultimate healthy harvest. Embrace the physical and mental fruits of your labour and make the most of your yield as you optimise your garden with your gut in mind. Go against the grain as you experiment with unfamiliar flavours, colours…

Insipid salads are an unfortunate mainstay of far too many British pubs, cafes and restaurants. The situation is getting better – slowly – but the vast majority of salads still involve the same old sorry suspects: watery iceberg lettuce, a flavourless tomato (you know the type – pale, hard and chewy) and, if you’re lucky, a slice of cucumber. No wonder the salad bar is viewed with such contempt by so many! If you want to create sensational salads, bursting with taste and in a rainbow of colours, there’s only one solution: grow them yourself. A garden-grown salad bar can be a thing of great beauty. Consider this glorious combo: creamy butterhead and red ‘Salad Bowl’ lettuce, cut with feathery mizuna and brought to life with blood-veined sorrel and shavings…

TOMATO:  Cherry tomatoes are quick growing. For sweetness sow ‘Sungold’. Alternatively grow a meaty beef tomato; cut into thick steaks and serve with sliced red onion and sea salt. COURGETTE:  Choose a heavily ribbed variety such as ‘Romanesco’. Pick the fruits young and slice them thinly into pretty cogwheels. Or go for a yellow courgette like ‘Soleil’. FRENCH BEANS:  Their smooth, sleek pods are perfect additions to a salad, especially a homegrown salad Niçoise. ‘Purple Teepee’ has pretty purple pods. BABY CORN: Unlike traditional sweetcorn, varieties harvested for baby cobs do not need to be pollinated, which means you can squeeze them in wherever they will fit – even pots and tubs. SUNFLOWER: Sunflowers lend sunshine cheer and growing them is a great project for children. Let them set their…

BEE FRIENDLY New data reveals which countries are performing well and which are not in the race to save our honeybees. Bee colonies are known to be rapidly decreasing, with a worrying 13 bee species going extinct in the UK since 1900, and a further 35 being added to the threatened species list. This threat became so large that in 2015 US President Barack Obama launched the first ever national strategy to improve the health of honeybees and other key pollinators… Find out more and what you can do to attract and support bees in your garden at www.kitchengarden.co.uk – search ‘Bee Friendly’ EASY TO GROW TOP 10! Here is Thompson & Morgan’s top 10 easy to grow veg. Top of the list is salad leaves, followed by radishes. And…

■ The BBKA Guide to Beekeeping by Ivor Davis and Roger Cullum-Kenyon – produced by the British Beekeepers Association, this book gives you a taste of the more detailed training taught on beekeepers association courses. A good book to read before or alongside a training course to support your learning. ■ Beekeeping for Dummies by David Wiscombe – from the popular ‘For Dummies’ book series, this light-hearted guide gives you a whistle-stop tour of beekeeping. A good first read to give you a taster of what is involved with beekeeping. ■ Bees at the bottom of the garden by Alan Campion – this guide aims to provide support through the first two years of beekeeping with tips and knowledge from lifelong beekeeper Alan Campion. With useful illustrations, this is an…

If you’re like me, “growing your own” has sparked a passion for seasonal food. Fuelled by the changing seasons and some effort on my part, I’m able to experience one of the real pleasures of life — harvesting seasonal fruit and vegetables at their ripest and most nutritionally dense and being able to say “I grew that!” I’m the grower and the consumer – it’s a simple system that’s fully traceable from plot to plate. But what about the food that we don’t grow ourselves? Where does our food come from and how well has the land that provided it been cared for? THE COST OF CHEAP PRODUCE As a nation, we are obsessed with cheap food. Decades of government policy aimed at making food cheaper has simply fuelled health…