Surrey Homes | SH30 | April 2017 |Gardens supplement inside

WT Garden Supplement
diseases and all in all
can put you off growing
your own completely. If you
are not able to check on your plot
every day, then you’ll need to grow
reliable, hardy and pest resistant crops
that won’t mind if you miss a few days
of tending. Root crops like beetroot
and potatoes are good, chard seems to
be indestructible and I find leeks and
kale to be resistant to the worst of the
weather, and not especially attacked by
pests (if kale is prone to whitefly and
caterpillars, sow later in the summer).
These hardy crops will sit out there
in the soil, patiently waiting to be
harvested all through the winter.
Herbs
Herbs can be grown in the smallest
of spaces and will even thrive in
containers or on a sunny windowsill.
They do need a sunny spot and
free draining conditions, as most of
them are native to the sun-baked
Mediterranean. Depending on what
you grow, a little will go a long way,
so you should only need one rosemary
bush (it may need to be kept pruned)
and a few chive, thyme and oregano
(or marjoram) plants. Watch out for
mint plants; you may find these are
best grown in a pot, as they spread
about rampantly if left unchecked. If
you have a bigger space available, then
a designated herb garden in a sunny
place, preferably near to the house,
will be as pretty as it is productive.
Back door bounty
If your vegetable patch is at the very
bottom of the garden, or if you don’t
Grow some ingredients
have room for a dedicated space in
which to grow vegetables, then some
containers by the back door will easily
keep you supplied with salads and herbs
through the season. The big advantage
here is that you can just lean out of
the door and pick herbs for cooking
and fresh salad ingredients, without
having to put on your coat and wellies
and go trudging out to your patch.
Slow but sure
The seeds of some root crops – potatoes,
parsnips and large carrots take quite
a long time from sowing to harvest.
Onions and leeks need to be sown
early in the season because they take so
long to bulk up. Once they’re planted
out (grow them in a pot first, because
the seedlings are like tiny blades of
grass) you can forget about them until
the winter. If you want long white
shanks on leeks, either dig them up
and replant them into a deeper hole, or
earth up around the base of the plants.
Harvests and holidays
It’s worth looking on the back of the
Leeks - great to grow in the winter and versatile: use
in soups, casseroles, risotto and quiche.
Courgettes - a prolific summer crop, easy to incorporate
into lots of dishes: fritters, in Ratatouille, or even cake.
tomatoes - home grown have more flavour. Grow big, beefsteak ones
to stuff and make sauce, smaller varieties for snacking, salads and tarts.
At the end of the season the less ripe make wonderful chutney.
Garlic and herbs - easy to grow and use in small quantities, herbs will
also benefit from regular cutting to keep them tidy and fresh looking.
seed packets (there are also useful
charts online) to find out what the
approximate sowing to harvest times
are for certain crops; this will give you
an idea of what to expect, and help you
to plan when, and how much, to sow.
Annoyingly the harvest may fall while
you’re on holiday, and hopefully it’s
not too late this year to do something
about it (or you will just be encouraging
friends and family to enjoy the bounty
while you’re away…), so make a note
to sow crops like beans, lettuce and
courgettes, which need regular picking,
either late or early, so that you stand
a chance of catching the harvest.
The plot to plate journey should
be uncomplicated, and, if possible,
easier and cheaper than going to the
supermarket. If you are short of time,
or limited in terms of space, choose
carefully. I have a few stalwarts that
I tend to grow each year and then
other crops come and go, depending
on the time and space available. It
makes sense to get the best from the
vegetables we grow, so keep the mantra
of quality and versatility in your mind
as you peruse the catalogues and racks
of seeds at the garden centre. It is
time to get sowing now, so let’s open
those packets and get out there.
Jo Arnell will be running a new
gardening course in her garden. Gain
some practical skills and a year of
gardening inspiration. Book now on
hornbrookmanor.co.uk 01233 861149
Credit: FreeImages.com/Mohamed Aly, Cory Lievers
9 wealdentimes.co.uk