Tim Prater

Sandgate Community Garden Team Diary Entry for 4th May: Pears, gooseberries, carrots, parsnips, calendular and borage.

The rain mentioned in the last newsletter seems to be in the dim and distant past.  Since then the temperatures have soared so that it feels more like summer already rather than spring.  Consequently it has meant extra watering and keeping a close eye on the smaller plants and pot plants.  The rainfall for April was a sad 30.6 mm – the days of ‘April showers’ seem to have gone.

We had held off from sowing the carrots and parsnips directly into the ground because of the dry weather, however there comes a time when you need to take the plunge and get on with it or the window for sowing will be missed.  It just means being mindful to water regularly or else the seeds may sprout then dry out and die.  So we decided to go for it and the deed was done.  We still have more carrots to sow in a raised bed, and it will be interesting to compare the two different sowing sites to see how they fare with carrot root fly.  In theory the raised bed should do better, however time will tell.

As usual, watering took priority as a task and other jobs got pushed back.  The weeds are making themselves known and of course will compete with the crops if we do not remove them, leaving little time to carry out the other jobs for the week. 

On Saturday afternoon, after our gardening session we took ourselves off to Pent Farm for a picnic and a chance to see how things are growing there.  We were joined by the farmer and his partner, which was very special, to be able to hear about the history of the farm and how the season is going.  We are looking forward to seeing the cows out in the field next door very soon.

What’s next?

• Lettuce fleece needs removing
• Cut back the growth around the pond
• Finish sowing the carrots in the raised bed
• Take out the finished chard

This weeks update from the Sandgate Community Garden Diary.

Sandgate Community Garden Team Diary Entry for 27th April: The bees are now very busy in the garden making the most of the flowers.

Well it is true we wished for rain then lo and behold it decides to turn up exactly on the morning of the next gardening session!  There are certainly no complaints about the amount of rain and duration, enough to make a difference and enough not to have to water all the week.  So it was that the Wednesday morning session was cancelled but by Saturday morning it was certainly warm and sunny which meant we could catch up with a few jobs although again, not all of them got done.

The squashes and cucumbers did get sown, the leeks were divided into four bunches and potted on into larger pots.  They need to get to the size of pencils before they can be planted out and have a long way to go yet.   The netting which was flat over the calabrese plants was raised up over hoops and netted again – just in the nick of time it seems as the first cabbage white butterflies have been spotted and they could have easily laid their eggs on the brassicas if they were being touched by the net. However, the borage seedlings did not get removed or the carrots sown – but luckily we still have plenty of time.  Some lettuce seedlings got pricked out into larger pots to grow on further and a tray of spring onions were planted next to a row of peas.  

The bees are now very busy in the garden making the most of the many different flowers on show, the pulminaria by the pond has been on show for several weeks now and continues to be alive with the buzzing of bees. 

The radishes, having grown to the size of golf balls which would make you believe they are tough and inedible.  Luckily they are nothing of the sort and so it was a case of trying to find a use for them.  It was good to know that they can be roasted, which sweetens them.  Having shared an interesting recipe, it seems they may be tried cooked for the first time by many of the gardeners – and I know they were amazing roasted and added to a vegetable curry – Delicious!

What’s Next?

• Sow the carrots
• Remove the excessive borage
• Raise up the fleece from the lettuces
• Cut back the growth around the pot plant area

This weeks update from the Sandgate Community Garden Diary.

Sandgate Community Garden Team Diary Entry for 20th April: Everything seemed to be that much fresher and greener.

Hooray!  Early in the week we had a good steady downpour so that by the time we went to the next gardening session on Wednesday, plants had started to perk up and look so much happier for it.  Already the broad beans had grown by a good foot and everything seemed to be that much fresher and greener.  The radishes were taken by surprise when it rained, and started to swell so much and so fast that they burst open to produce some strange shapes. 

It looks as though there may be some more rain to come this week which is still needed and so we will cross all our fingers in the hope that it will.  At Pent farm we have already had to use many litres of the precious saved rainwater and hope that ‘April showers’ is still a thing if we are ever able to collect more rainwater before the summer arrives.

The courgettes did get sown, along with two trays of sweet corn, but not the squashes which will be a job for this week.  The peas for pea pods and the peas for pea shoots got planted out, then the wigwam for the sweet peas was put up and the sweet peas planted around it.  Coriander and lettuce plants were also made space for in some of the plots as did a few left over seed potatoes.  The tomatoes, only sown last week sprung into life so quickly that they were pricked out this week to grow on in the greenhouse at the farm, as did the cosmos, French and English marigolds. 

Of course the splash of rain was enjoyed by the weeds and so we took some time to hoe out as many of the unwanted ones as we could.  The claytonia winter lettuce is now flowering which has meant that it can still be eaten however it is clear that if left to do so it will happily sprout up again when the cooler weather appears which it did last year and has literally popped up all over the place.

What’s Next? 

• Sow the squashes and the cucumbers
• Sow some carrots
• Raise up the netting over the calabrese
• Take out invading borage seedlings

This weeks update from the Sandgate Community Garden Diary.

Sandgate Community Garden Team Diary Entry for 13th April: Plenty of spinach, the asparagus is delicious, and the radish good and crunchy.

The fact there has been no rain for so many weeks is really starting to cause problems.  The broad beans look great but are so short – they certainly should be much taller by now.  We have put off sowing the carrots and parsnips because they need to be sown directly into the ground, however the ground is now so dry that at Enbrook Park any water just runs off the surface and does not soak in.  The newly planted seedlings are struggling although we have been watering them outside of our usual gardening hours.  Again, we get the promise of rain in the future from the weather apps, but sadly it comes to nothing as the days go by and the temperatures rise.  Our fingers are crossed that a chance of rain next week does arrive.   (As if by magic, in-between writing this newsletter and sending it out – we had some rain!)

This week we sowed the tomatoes, nine different varieties, from cherry through to yellow plum, black, beefsteak and a tomato with few seeds just right for pasta sauce.  We sowed yet more English and French marigolds as well as lots of cosmos and more lettuces.  The lemon verbena had shown signs of life and got a good pruning along with the butterfly bush behind the tool box.   Many tasks have been pushed forward into next week as it takes so long to water and we run out of time and sometimes energy!

Last week it was noticed that the black fly had made an appearance in great numbers on the fast growing elder hedging.  This week it was noticed that the ladybirds had arrived in the area and had also seen the feast awaiting.  With any luck more of their friends will arrive and demolish the lot before they consider taking to the broad beans.  As regards that other well-known pest in the garden, the slug, the lack of rain has actually helped to keep them at bay for now.

We are still picking plenty of spinach, the asparagus is delicious, the radish good and crunchy and the spring onions coming to an end from the autumn plantings.

What’s next?

• Sow all the courgettes and squashes
• Plant out the peas
• Plant out the sweet peas and make a wigwam
• Take time to weed

This weeks update from the Sandgate Community Garden Diary.