Plant in pots near kitchen
Get some basil seed to plant with these – great for pizza nights this summer
Quick and easy – great taste for salads
Don’t plant these 2 together!
Mom’s quick pickles for these!
Use these for the carrot mousse recipe – the kids love it!
Whether August is cold and windy or warm with a sense of spring, tasks in the veggie garden remain the same: prepare, prepare, prepare. This is the month to lay the foundations for the new season. Be thorough and you will be rewarded with healthy plants and satisfying harvests.
Regenerate the soil
Most garden soil becomes acidic over time as a result of fertilisers and rainfall leaching out nutrients, especially calcium, magnesium and potassium. Acidic soil inhibits the ability of plants to take up essential nutrients like nitrogen, and is low in calcium, which strengthens the cell walls, helping plants to be more disease resistant. No matter how much fertiliser is applied, it will not have the desired effect.
Lime in the form of agricultural lime or dolomitic lime makes soil more alkaline. Garden lime tends to act faster than dolomitic lime. When preparing a bed, dig in a handful of lime per square metre. Adding bonemeal and well-rotted manure or rich homemade compost will add to the soil’s fertility. Do this a month before planting, which is why August is the month to do it.
Compact, heavy soil that doesn’t allow water and oxygen to the roots should be aerated. Mix in large amounts of organic material, which will also have the effect of raising the level of the bed by 30cm. Drainage is improved, and the roots can spread easily. Another way to make soil more friable is to add gypsum, which is often used in agriculture. However, its effect is not long lasting and the soil reverts to its former state after a while.
Plan your planting, if you haven’t already done so
Esta historia es de la edición August 2019 de The Gardener.
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Esta historia es de la edición August 2019 de The Gardener.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
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FIRE AND Feathers!
On a dreary winter's day, a screen of fiery and feathery leaves puts up a fight against dullness!
GET THE ladies in!
At this time of year, early-flowering shrubs vie with each other to get the most attention. We say: Trust those with female names for frills and butterflies. They go the extra mile to flower their hearts out.
Vegetable Soups and dumplings
Vegetables make the most delicious soups and classic combinations are always a winner.
Yummy sweet potatoes for your good health
Boiled, baked or braaied, sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas) are a delicious and healthy winter comfort food. Just a dollop of butter, a little seasoning and you are good to go.
Pretty and functional
If cooking is your main thing, you would probably be more interested in the culinary value of the three herbs and some of their varieties we are describing.
Dried Seedheads & Pods
Autumn and winter are the best times to see what flowers produce the best seedheads that can be left on the plants to feed the birds and bugs and for harvesting for dried arrangements.
SO MANY FACES and so many choices...
Whoever associated a Cotyledon orbiculata (pig's ear) with the ear of a pig obviously did not know about all the varieties and cultivars this species in the genus Cotyledon has.
COLOURFUL Cold Weather WINNERS!
If it comes to a vote, these dependable shrubs will be the top candidates for prime performance in winter and in other seasons...
What makes a garden sustainable?
It is interesting to note that the United Nations defines sustainable development as: “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.
Nurturing NATURE-The Story of Kraal Garden's Transformation
Nestled within Prince Albert's rustic embrace lies a gem that is a testament to the transformative power of human vision and nature's bounty.