IN THE GARDEN: MARCH - JUNE
COOL TEMPERATE
Words by Fabian Capomolla
What to sow:
• March: Brussels sprouts (seedling tray), broad beans, beetroot, broccoli (seedling tray), cabbage (seedling tray), carrot, chives, coriander, daikon, endive, fennel, kale, kohlrabi, leeks, lettuce, mizuna, mustard greens, pak choy/bok choy, radish, rocket, shallots (plant bulbs), silverbeet, turnips.
• April: Brussels sprouts, broad beans, beetroot, broccoli, cabbage, carrot, cauliflower, chives, endive, fennel, garlic (plant cloves), kale, kohlrabi, lettuce, mizuna, mustard greens, onions, pak choy/bok choy, parsley, peas, radish, rocket, shallots (plant bulbs), silverbeet, spinach, turnip.
• May: Broad beans, beetroot, carrot, chives, fennel, garlic, kale, kohlrabi, lettuce, mizuna, mustard greens, onions, parsley, peas, radish, shallots (plant bulb), silverbeet, spinach, turnip.
• June: Broad beans, garlic (plant cloves), mustard greens, onions, peas, radish.
What to do:
• Look to make the most of your summer crop bounty by preserving and pickling. March is a great time to make sugo (pasta sauce).• Feed the soil in March by removing spent crops and adding good quality compost into the garden beds. Remove mulch to cool soil for the incoming winter crops.• Chillies will be ripe on• Fruit, such as any remaining tomatoes, will take longer to ripen on the vine, therefore remove them and ripen inside. Autumn fruits such as figs and persimmons will start to appear. Net these trees to keep the birds at bay. Pears and apples should be in abundance, so now is the prime time to make homemade cider.• Feed the soil with nitrogen by planting winter crops of broad beans and peas. Save seeds from last season’s crops and store these in a dry, dark spot in preparation for sowing later in the year. Harvest and dry any summer herbs.• Companion-plant your brassica crops with white flowering plants to confuse the cabbage white moth. Net young seedlings with superfine mesh to inhibit moths from laying eggs on the underside of the foliage. Cut back on watering and remove mulch from around plants if the garden is starting to get waterlogged.
