TOP JOBS FOR APRIL

ESSENTIAL TASKS FOR YOUR VEG PATCH AND PROTECTED CROPS

- STEPHANIE HAFFERTY

 

 

A BUSY MONTH!

The weather in April is unpredictable, often moving from spring to summer and back to freezing temperatures in a day! But with increasing daylight, warmth and (hopefully!) sunshine, it is time to get frost resilient transplants out of the greenhouse and into the soil. To help reduce transplant stress, cover new plantings with horticultural fleece for a few weeks. This helps to keep the worst of the weather off until the plants have become established.

This is a busy month, with so much that can be sown, including direct sowings as the ground warms up. Keep an eye on your local weather forecasts and observe your ground. If it is still waterlogged after winter, best to leave direct sowings for a while. There's no rush. It is wonderful how quickly seedlings catch up once the weather warms up.

Get ahead by putting up bean frames and other structures. You'll be thankful during busy planting times to have them in place, and they provide an excellent perch for birds foraging aphids in your garden.

GROWING OCA STEP BY STEP

STEP 1: Oca, Oxalis tuberosa, is a delicious South American root vegetable, tasting like a lemony new potato. They come in beautiful colours, are easy to grow, almost pest free and unlike spuds do not get blight. A member of the oxalis family, the leaves are edible too and taste like sorrel.

STEP 2: Plant each tuber into 15cm (6in) pots of multipurpose compost and keep somewhere frost free and light (greenhouse or windowsill) until after your last frost date. They should have sprouted and produced pretty clover-shaped leaves. Plant in the garden 30cm (12in) apart; they are happy in most soils, or in a large container.