The constant gardener

Sow and swap

ctober means one thing to New Zealand’s edible gardeners – tomatoes. Their seeds may be sown under cover now. For variety, and to extend production, why not get together with like-minded friends, each sowing a different variety of tomato, or particular crop, and exchanging them as seedlings? So often one packet has the potential for far more plants than most gardeners want, and seed viability is usually reduced no matter how carefully the seed is saved for the next season. The same can be done with flowers. Or rather than exchanging the seedlings, pot them up prettily