Pastinaca sativa - Guernsey, a early 19th century French heirloom variety from Kings Seeds
Direct sow early spring (the cold helps revive the seed), through to late spring and early summer. Parsnip seed is apparently a bit finicky and must be fresh or it won't germinate - it also needs lots of moisture to germinate which takes around 14 to 20 days. The notes for this particular variety said 30 cm apart but most books seem to say 15 to 25 cm apart, and the closer they are the larger they are which seems a little odd! The parsnips just sit there, growing, growing, through summer and autumn and can be left in the ground all winter until required. A good frost will make them sweeter and more tender, however there's basically no chance of that in my garden. I did see that you can make parsnip wine and parsnip beer which sounds interesting!
I didn't sow any of these until summer so I imagine they definitely won't be ready until we hit winter - patience will be required. At least I'll know for next year. In a recent NZ Gardener email newsletter someone in the South Island had the same variety planted early and they are already ready.
If they have to sit in the ground that long, they might make interesting dividers for the garden?
23 February 2010
22 February 2010
Carrots
Scarlet Nantes, daucus carota var sativa
Carrots like well-worked, fine, crumbly, well-drained soil that has been composted six months or so earlier. Rocky soil is a no-no, as is heavy clay, as the roots will get distorted. Direct sow, germination takes around 12 to 14 days, thin initially to 5 to 7 cm apart then later to 10 to 15 cm apart (the tops can go into salad). Generally the younger and smaller the carrot the sweeter. A good companion crop is onions (prevents carrot fly). This particular variety apparently likes warmer temperatures, grows to 25 cm long, and takes around 70 days.
My first sowing was before Christmas so in theory they should be ready by the beginning of March - and that's next week! Second sowing should come through mid-March, I also did a sowing in a container around the same time (perhaps a little later, I really should have written it down), so seeing the results from my slightly-clay soil vs the container mix will be interesting. There was also a sowing last week that should be ready by the beginning of May.
Carrots like well-worked, fine, crumbly, well-drained soil that has been composted six months or so earlier. Rocky soil is a no-no, as is heavy clay, as the roots will get distorted. Direct sow, germination takes around 12 to 14 days, thin initially to 5 to 7 cm apart then later to 10 to 15 cm apart (the tops can go into salad). Generally the younger and smaller the carrot the sweeter. A good companion crop is onions (prevents carrot fly). This particular variety apparently likes warmer temperatures, grows to 25 cm long, and takes around 70 days.
My first sowing was before Christmas so in theory they should be ready by the beginning of March - and that's next week! Second sowing should come through mid-March, I also did a sowing in a container around the same time (perhaps a little later, I really should have written it down), so seeing the results from my slightly-clay soil vs the container mix will be interesting. There was also a sowing last week that should be ready by the beginning of May.
21 February 2010
End of harvest cleanup
It's nearly the end of February so things are starting to slow down a bit. Today I actually did a fair bit of weeding, pulled up a beetroot, removed half of the tomato plants, raked up all the fallen lemons, removed all the rocket that had started flowering, trimmed one of the sage plants (this looks like the catnip in that you can cut it right down to the ground and let it regrow again, there does appear to be new growth down the bottom of the stems), and started trimming down the strawberries. Phew!
I was also going to sow some of the new lettuce varieties that I bought this week but first I need to decide where I'm going to put the broccoli and cauliflower - once they germinate of course and for that to happen I have to sow them! I was also supposed to be making another bottle of tomato sauce, but don't think I have quite enough tomatoes, and make some lemon curd, except it was easier to sit around on the couch and watch tv all day. So after an energetic start to the day the harvest-related activities have petered out.
I was also going to sow some of the new lettuce varieties that I bought this week but first I need to decide where I'm going to put the broccoli and cauliflower - once they germinate of course and for that to happen I have to sow them! I was also supposed to be making another bottle of tomato sauce, but don't think I have quite enough tomatoes, and make some lemon curd, except it was easier to sit around on the couch and watch tv all day. So after an energetic start to the day the harvest-related activities have petered out.
20 February 2010
Microgreens
Earlier this week I put in another seed order to Kings. I did forgot to order more phacelia to use as a cover crop over winter in the new bed we've created by removing a large camellia bush, but now I have some new seeds of edible crops.
I've sown an indoor tray of mustard streaks and cress and these are already up and tall enough to be bending towards the light so I guess nibbling later on next week might not be out of the question? But tomorrow I have a big cleanup and seed sowing day planned - not to mention blogging about carrots and parsnips which I sowed some time ago but didn't research so have no idea how long they take!
I've sown an indoor tray of mustard streaks and cress and these are already up and tall enough to be bending towards the light so I guess nibbling later on next week might not be out of the question? But tomorrow I have a big cleanup and seed sowing day planned - not to mention blogging about carrots and parsnips which I sowed some time ago but didn't research so have no idea how long they take!
13 February 2010
Danyelle, Paris, Detroit and Guernsey
I'm hoping it will be third time lucky for the Danyelle lettuce (or maybe fourth time lucky?). Today I've sown a good sprinkling of seeds in a large container rather than in the garden bed in the hope that the seeds prefer the container mix to the soil!
I also sowed some more of the Paris cos lettuce and the peas. On the pea front I might be getting closer to having something to eat, the current plant is actually growing upward and attaching itself to the ladder of string supports I rigged up.
When going through my seeds to see what else I have that might warrant another sowing now (another round of beetroot, carrot, and parsnip for starters - I'm determined to have a steady supply of my winter crops), I see that half the seed collection has now reached its best-before date. I imagine these would probably still germinate just fine but I'm tempted to have a cleanout in advance of next spring.
And tomorrow I MUST mulch the rhubarb with compost! It's still growing, but the small round bed it's in seems to suddenly be low on soil, and turns to mud every time I water it.
I also sowed some more of the Paris cos lettuce and the peas. On the pea front I might be getting closer to having something to eat, the current plant is actually growing upward and attaching itself to the ladder of string supports I rigged up.
When going through my seeds to see what else I have that might warrant another sowing now (another round of beetroot, carrot, and parsnip for starters - I'm determined to have a steady supply of my winter crops), I see that half the seed collection has now reached its best-before date. I imagine these would probably still germinate just fine but I'm tempted to have a cleanout in advance of next spring.
And tomorrow I MUST mulch the rhubarb with compost! It's still growing, but the small round bed it's in seems to suddenly be low on soil, and turns to mud every time I water it.
Harvest time
Wow, doesn't time fly, it's been almost a month since my last post! Notes on this year's harvest:
Tomatoes - have ripened, been picked for the most part, and I even took out the first plant today. This year I didn't water enough and completely forgot to give them any fertiliser (hangs head in shame), so the harvest was pretty small. However I understand it hasn't been the best year for tomatoes Auckland-wide for whatever reason. The Tigerellas and Green Zebras were both delicious, and I've made one jar of tomato sauce from each variety. The Watermouths were smaller than last year but still tasty. I wasn't that keen on the Dali tomatoes, these didn't seem as interesting or as tasty as the others - possibly the colour put me off, they are a pinky shade rather than a rich red. Interestingly the birds didn't really go for the tomatoes this year. I think they were too full of strawberries!
Courgettes - one plant does seem like the right number if you don't want to get sick of them! They are still going strong, and got quite a long way into summer before the powdery mildew showed up.
Lettuce/mesclun - should have sown more. I think I should set up the Google calender now with sowing reminders for next spring and summer, better to have too much than too little!
Spring onion - still growing slowly, I definitely planted these too late, mustn't forget them next year.
Garlic - I have harvested these today, a good six weeks after the summer solstice. One was a good size, another three weren't too bad, and the remaining five were runts of the litter. Like the tomatoes, I don't think I treated these right this year - I didn't water much through December and January and never got around to mulching them.
Oooh, and I had these weeds popping up near the front door. Never got around to pulling them out, and just as well because the first one has flowered and it turns out they are self-seeded borage! I didn't recognise them from last year.
Tomatoes - have ripened, been picked for the most part, and I even took out the first plant today. This year I didn't water enough and completely forgot to give them any fertiliser (hangs head in shame), so the harvest was pretty small. However I understand it hasn't been the best year for tomatoes Auckland-wide for whatever reason. The Tigerellas and Green Zebras were both delicious, and I've made one jar of tomato sauce from each variety. The Watermouths were smaller than last year but still tasty. I wasn't that keen on the Dali tomatoes, these didn't seem as interesting or as tasty as the others - possibly the colour put me off, they are a pinky shade rather than a rich red. Interestingly the birds didn't really go for the tomatoes this year. I think they were too full of strawberries!
Courgettes - one plant does seem like the right number if you don't want to get sick of them! They are still going strong, and got quite a long way into summer before the powdery mildew showed up.
Lettuce/mesclun - should have sown more. I think I should set up the Google calender now with sowing reminders for next spring and summer, better to have too much than too little!
Spring onion - still growing slowly, I definitely planted these too late, mustn't forget them next year.
Garlic - I have harvested these today, a good six weeks after the summer solstice. One was a good size, another three weren't too bad, and the remaining five were runts of the litter. Like the tomatoes, I don't think I treated these right this year - I didn't water much through December and January and never got around to mulching them.
Oooh, and I had these weeds popping up near the front door. Never got around to pulling them out, and just as well because the first one has flowered and it turns out they are self-seeded borage! I didn't recognise them from last year.
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