Tag: Gardening

The month of ghosts and ghouls! The weather is turning and Autumn is in the air. Your garden will be changing a lot this month as the leaves begin to fall, but don’t despair! Summer may be over but now we can all look forward to chunky knitwear, bonfires and warm spiced rum (at least that’s what we’re into at our house!). (more…)

The month of plenty. You can literally wander around your garden at this time of year filling baskets, buckets and bags with all the goodies you’ve been growing. It’s okay to be a little smug – if you’ve worked hard you’ll have loads to show for it – but remember pride comes before a fall – sneaky pests and simply having too much veg to know what to do with can easily catch you with your pants down.

Reap your rewards!

Too. Much. To. Carry. Forget the gym this month your arms will be straining under the weight of all your produce. The list of what will be ready is endless so keep an eye on everything. Courgettes will literally double in size while your back is turned. Lifting a few leaves will unveil massive cucumbers that weren’t there yesterday. If you’ve been reading up on what you’ve been growing you’ll have an idea of the optimum time to harvest but use your eyes and your instincts to decide when something is ready for plucking – be confident – you got them this far.

There is nothing worse when growing your own food than discovering something has begun to rot in the kitchen because you haven’t had time to use it or didn’t know how. So with so much food finding it’s way into your kitchen this month you better find a way to use it all up…

Pickles, preserves and soups – oh my!

Don’t waste a thing. If you’ve got some food in front of you that you’re not sure you’re going to eat almost immediately, Google ways to preserve it now! There are many ways to preserve your home-grown produce – in most cases these techniques actually elevate your crops into delicious delights.

Pickling – If you have childhood memories of sharp, unpleasant pickled vegetables banish those thoughts now. Vinegar has been used for generations and with the right combination of spices can make your produce a pleasure. Slice up a cucumber chuck it in a jar with some white wine vinegar, grated ginger and some stem ginger and you’ve got the most delicious zingy accompaniment to burgers and salads. Yum!

Blanching – Basically flash boiling your veg. The idea is to kill any bacteria that causes the veg to rot, without actually cooking it. Different foods have different boiling times so just look it up. Once done plunge into cold water to stop the cooking process and freeze. Simple.

Soups – My favourite way of dealing with excess veg. The only limit to the soups you make is your imagination. Experiment with spices, flavours, textures and have a ball. Then once you’ve created the perfect soup, freeze it in portions and Bob’s your uncle.

Jam’s, jellies and chutneys – The possibilities are endless…

Let the overwintering begin!

Overwintering is the practice of planting seeds now in order to produce crops after the winter has passed. Many vegetables have varieties that can be ‘overwintered’. Do some research and get planting. By doing this you can be harvesting crops as early as next March!

So as September begins you should be drowning in home-grown food and home made products. It’s been a busy month so perhaps it’s time for a holiday. Now the school holidays are over it’s just the right time to snap up some great deals – just make sure you’ve got someone lined up to look after the garden!

Summer’s here! So let’s enjoy an afternoon cider in a pub garden, BBQ’s on the beach, bronzed buff bodies, slow-mo beach volleyball, studs in Speedos, sun-kissed lifeguards – oh, who cares what’s happening the garden!!

Sorry – not sure what happened there. The summer is well and truly here and you’ll be harvesting your crops on a daily basis – if you’ve been successful with your endeavours you’ll be eating the loveliest, freshest food on the planet.

So (safely) work on your tan and your garden at the same time with these handy hints:

Fill that hole – Any of your early crops that you’ve finished harvesting can now be taken out to make room for oncoming plants. Space is usually the biggest issue for the home gardener so empty gaps are your enemy at this stage in the year. If you want to take your home garden to the next level look into ‘crop rotation’ plans. There is loads of advice out there on planting things in sequence to give you the best results everytime.

Spread ‘em – Watering is your top priority – watering isn’t just about making your plants flourish – regular watering can also keep them from bolting. Hot, dry weather can be a real problem at this time of year – you should be using water from your rain water collection but this can quickly deplete in a dry spell. By spreading mulch around your plants you can help keep the soil from drying out and discourages weeds. It also looks pretty for when you’re smugly showing your friends around your kitchen garden with a glass of chilled pinot.

Time is ticking – After all the waiting to sow at the beginning of the year we’re already approaching the last chance to sow some crops. At this time of year get your fast growing salads leaves in the ground and you should be feasting on them in no time. The time you have to get things in the ground varies depending on your location in the country so be aware of your climate – if you want a longer growing season you could always look into investing in a tunnel…

Tunnel vision – If you’ve got a polytunnel you’re growing period is going to be extended to give you extra time to sow and harvest. You will be able to start your planting earlier in the year and finish later, so if you find yourself getting green fingers it really should be a consideration. The great thing about polytunnels is that you can over winter things like salad crops so they effectively hibernate in the winter and stay fresh until you come in to harvest them. You can also have parties in the rain if you have a polytunnel – bonus.

Don’t forget – the war against pests will be raging on, weeding is ongoing and watering is your most important task.

So if you can tear yourself away from the beach and all the treats the summer brings, you’ll be rewarded in the garden with an abundance of food – or get the best of both worlds and hire a hunky gardener, then all you have to do is sit on your sun lounger and drink Diet Coke. Happy summer!

Up until now we’ve been patient, we’ve been ever watchful of pests and frosts and now spring is over and summer is here! We’re halfway through the year and this is when I usually start to panic! There’s always loads I haven’t done, things I haven’t sown and the weeds are growing faster than everything else in the garden. This is the month to stay focused and let the effort you’ve put in over the previous months pay off.

In short – life in your garden is going to be ‘Crazy’ – so you better WERK! (when I’m not in the garden, RuPaul’s Drag Race is taking up too much of my life right now. Sorry)

Weeds and Hoes – Everything is growing quickly – and I mean EVERYTHING. Weeding should be part of your daily to-do list now. Depending on the size of area you’ve got to look after, a little bit everyday should be enough to keep things in order. Weeds fight your plants for nutrition, light and water – so pull those suckers out and take satisfaction in what you’re doing. Hoe regularly to keep the weeds at bay – hoeing also helps stop slug attacks, as they don’t like to slime their way across disturbed soil.

Last chance saloon – Suddenly from waiting for the weather to improve – we’re now in a race against time to make sure we don’t miss our sowing window. The soil should be warm enough everywhere now, except in the darkest, dampest corners of the garden. There are lots of seeds that can go straight in the ground this month including courgettes, runner beans and peas. You can now also plant out everything you’ve been bringing on in pots. Don’t forget to leave enough space for each plant to flourish – they always get bigger than you expect!

Harvest – If you’ve been working on the garden since the beginning of the year there should be loads of treasures for you to harvest now. There are too many to list here but you could be enjoying new potatoes, asparagus, onions and spinach. Don’t be afraid to harvest hard, a lot of plants will keep yielding the more they’re picked – just Google what you’ve got and read up about it. For example harvesting spinach regularly and keeping it well watered will help stop them from bolting and give you more tasty leaves for longer.

Start your own gardening calendar – This is the best piece of advice I have ever received. At this time of year I’m stressing about things I haven’t planted and mistakes I’ve made. Write everything down – every thought, every idea, every notion, because when the chaos of the summer months is over you can regroup in the winter, read about your thoughts and get planning for next year. I can’t count the amount of times I’ve missed the sowing window for crops I want to grow – if I’ve noted that disappointment I’ll be extra prepared next year. Gardening and planting is a continuing process. It’s so important not to get bogged down in defeat, every year you’ll get better, wiser and more confident. The rewards for perseverance are immeasurable. Today we’re having a spicy cucumber salad (not a euphemism) for lunch with every single ingredient grown by us and that’s a feeling you can’t buy.

So go for it! June is one of the funnest months to be a home grower and will really connect you to the joys of seasonal food. Work hard and you’ll be serving up some home-grown produce REALNESS – (again blame RuPaul) in no time.

It’s the cusp of summer so now’s the time to go for it! May is a great month, warm breezes herald the coming summer and you’ve probably had your first BBQ by now (albeit wrapped up warm and heading inside as soon as it gets too cold!) Your garden loves this time of year and any early crops you’ve sown may even be ready for your first harvest. Yum

Don’t sow in one go– Now’s the time to plant in earnest, as always keep an eye on temperatures and uses clouches if necessary. The main thing to remember here is: don’t sow everything at once. Stagger your planting of the same crop, especially if you’re going to be eating it all yourself. Plant a few of each thing you want to grow and then a few more two or three weeks later. This helps to avoid gluts and means you can be eating an interesting and varied diet for the rest of the year.

Water, water, water – If young plants dry out they can easily die. May can be a deceptively dry month, cloudy and misty days can make you forget to water the plants. The best way I’ve found is to have a watering schedule – I water twice a day, in the morning and evening. Even if there have been showers during the day – just in case. You can usually tell by looking and feeling if the soil is damp enough. Just keep on top of it and everything will be fine.

Keep on top of your weeding – Weeds grow just as fast as your crops *shakes fist at sky* so make sure you keep getting rid as soon they appear. As with watering get yourself a weeding schedule. Try and get out there as often as you can as the weeds are always competing with your plants for the nutrients in the soil.

Thinning – Everything you’ve been starting off indoors may now need thinning out. It’s tempting to keep as many sprouts as possible but bear in mind how large the plants can become. If they end up competing for space that will only end up being detrimental to the yield you end up with.

Sowing seeds outdoors – There are so many great crops that can now go in the ground including – spinach, peas, kale, spring onions, lettuces, carrots, cauliflowers, rocket and runner beans.

Sowing seeds indoors – Your early batches of indoor sown seeds should mostly be outside now, so clean up those trays and get a new batch on the go. It’s time to get those summery foods in the windowsill. Summer cabbages, chillies, peppers and runner beans will all be ready to go!

It’s full steam ahead now. This is the time to start marking pages in your recipe books and Googling “things to do with runner beans” because the garden explosion is about to happen and you won’t want to waste a thing.

Here we go! The days are longer and warmer now and you can actually get outside without dressing like an Eskimo.

This is where the fun begins – but a word of warning: keep an eye on the weather. The month of the April Fool can play all sorts of tricks – be mindful of your particular surroundings because if you go gung-ho with your planting a late frost could undo all your hard work in a minute.

Herbs – If you’ve limited space, even if you just have a balcony or window boxes then grow herbs. The best way to pep up your cooking is with incredibly fresh and flavoursome herbs – rosemary with lamb, basil on your pasta dishes, parsley with fresh fish – I could go on forever but it really is true. At this time of year almost all herbs can be planted outside now. Make sure the soil’s warm enough and get your kitchen garden in the ground. Your meals will never be the same again!

Prepare you seed beds – Everyone loves a freshly made bed and your plants are just the same. If you’ve done this before you should have added your homemade compost to the bed last autumn to give it time to thoroughly rot down, but fear not some decent compost or manure that’s well rotted can be added now to get your planting off to a great start. Soil varies from place to place but any hard material like stones and sticks should be removed where possible – get the rake out and aim for the finest soil you can get – you can even sieve it if you want to go the extra mile (and are slightly crazy).

Harden off your indoor grown young plants – Just like us your plants need a bit of training now and again. Anything you’ve been growing indoors at this point needs to be taken outside on warm days and then brought back in at night. Acclimatising plants like this gives them a better chance of flourishing in the unpredictable British weather.

Don’t forget colour. – Growing crops is ultimately rewarding in the garden, but don’t forget to make it pretty too. Once you’ve got all your food and you’re enjoying the feast outside you should have somewhere lovely and bright to sit and enjoy it. I know psychologically for me sitting amongst flower-pots bursting with colour makes me feel very happy indeed. To pretty things up pots and hanging baskets are great as they can be moved and adapted to create different spaces and moods – and don’t be tempted to spend a fortune on them – old buckets and watering cans make great planters, just make sure you drill some holes in the bottom so the flowers don’t drown!

So there we go, that’s April. Now’s the time to get ready to start reaping the rewards of your hard work – next month you could be harvesting your first crops and feeling very pleased with yourselves indeed.

We’ve made it through the dark times! For me March is the month of possibilities and potential. The days are getting visibly longer and life is starting to show signs of reappearing outside.

Shoots are shooting and if you’ve been planting indoors all your early efforts are becoming vibrant bursts of green. So this is where the fun really begins.

Weeds – The new shoots of spring are the first sign of new life, but if the shoots are weeds they’ve got to go. Spend time now really looking after your beds. Take the time to remove every trace of weeds that have started to germinate under the March sun. In my experience trying to do this quickly will only lead to more trouble later on. View each bed as something to be thoroughly cleaned and tidied and don’t stop until you’re happy it’s perfect.

Go Hardy or go Home – The reason your beds should be carefully prepared is that it’s time for outside planting! Although it’s starting to feel like spring do keep an eye on the weather and make sure you’re aware of forthcoming frosts – if in doubt wait a few weeks or protect your new crops under cloches. Not everything can be planted now, select hardy crops such as leeks, lettuces, parsnips and onions. Some herbs can be sown towards the end of the month too. Parsley, fennel and coriander will all be fine – again protect if frosty.

Pest Control – As life begins again, hungry animals are keeping as close an eye on your gardening efforts as you are. If the temperature is mild, slugs and snails may have begun to appear around the place. Depending on your style they will need dealing with. We try to avoid chemicals where possible and by heading out at dusk with a torch we’re always amazed at the amount of slimy guys we find. We usually feed our collection to the ducks – we like to think of it as the circle of life!

The Wet Stuff – Water is a precious commodity for your garden – with so many of us now on water meters and the unpredictable British Weather it’s always worth thinking about sorting some water storage for your garden. Water butts under existing drainpipes are a great way to start. Also think about putting guttering on your sheds and any other outside structures. If you do this now you’ll be well prepared when the hosepipe bans kick in (I know, I’ve jinxed it now – wet summer here we come!)

So from here on out it’s going to be full steam ahead. Savour this moment of anticipation – we all know it’s the best bit. ∎

Valentine’s day has come and gone so now it’s worth investing a bit of love outside this month for a long-term relationship with your garden.

Fill the house – Windowsills are a great place to get things going. Seeds are unlikely to germinate outside at the moment so use your light filled indoor spaces to get your ‘grow on.’ You could start now with almost anything you want some of my favourites would be broad beans, peas, spinach, tomatoes and lettuces. Whilst sowing imagine the first barbeque of the year and plant what you’ll need to compliment your smoky meats and chilled beers.

Get Chitting – If you want to grow potatoes this year then it’s time to get started. Choose your favourite variety and buy some seed potatoes. Chitting is the process of putting your seed potatoes in a cool light place and allowing them to start sprouting shoots known as ‘chits’. Spread the potatoes out in seeds trays to allow them the space to start. Potatoes are a great crop and are versatile – however, if space to grow crops is an issue perhaps grow things that are slightly more expensive to buy in the shops instead.

Tunnel of Love – If you are lucky enough to have a polytunnel then the increasing daylight hours are going to be creating an atmosphere in the tunnel that will support the planting of seeds. Beware, plummeting temperatures will have an effect on what’s going on in the tunnel. To be on the safe side keep an eye on the forthcoming weather forecasts. To avoid getting caught out you could even create a mini tunnel inside your polytunnel with some clear plastic.

Winter Pruning – If you have any fruit trees now is your last chance to prune. If you leave it until spring they may have come out of dormancy and bleed sap when pruned.

Always use protection – If you’ve got any crops that you’ve been harvesting over the winter, now’s the time to protect them from hungry birds. Use nets on things like cabbages. If you want to help the wildlife then set up some bird feeders – making sure they’re away from your crops and out of reach of watchful pussy-cats.

So whether you’re shot with cupid’s arrow or not in February – there’s plenty to love about your garden this month. Have a good one!

Celebrations are over, the commute is back and the weather is making you want to stay under the duvet indefinitely.

But what about your gardens, smallholdings and allotments? Now’s the time to wrap up warm, pull on those boots and begin preparations to make this the most fruitful year you’ve had so far.

January jobs

Check everything over – The winter weather can be hard on your outdoor equipment and structures so cast an eye over your sheds, greenhouses and hosepipes. Repair any obvious breakages and protect anything that looks like it might struggle over the next couple of months.

Spread the s**t – Use well rotted compost or manure on your empty vegetable beds. You want the soil to be in tip-top condition when you come to plant things out. Dig the beds over to aerate the soil – but be careful, if the soil is frozen or waterlogged leave it alone until the weather improves.

Clean Up – When the planting season begins you won’t have time to do much else so make sure your pots, trays and tools are clean and organised ready for the busy times. You’ll feel so much better when your potting bench is dirt free and ready for action – even if it only stays that way for a short time!

Make a plan – With a cup of tea (it’s dry January remember) sit down with a good gardening book and get organised. Decide what you want to grow this year – learning from previous successes and mistakes – or if you’re totally new to the growing world then pick whatever you want, even if it just looks pretty! Order seeds and draw diagrams and I can guarantee it will set you up for a great year ahead.

Sow Indoors – Get a head start by sowing some seeds indoors. Try broad beans, salad leaves, spinach, leeks and onions for the healthy new you in 2014. Nothing tastes better than home-grown organic fruits and veg!

Something New – Try something new this year. If you like the idea of growing something unusual or for the first time, have a go. The gardening world is full of hints and tips on what to do – but going off piste can be the most rewarding part of growing your own produce.

So who said January is always miserable? Get on it now and reap the rewards throughout 2014! Good luck.

If you would like to share your gardening pictures this year then do forward to Newsdesk@TheGayUK.com and we’ll publish the best ones each month. Our favourite pic of the year will win a TGUK goody-bag!

Happy Snapping!