container gardening | eatmysilverbeet

REFRESHED AFTER THE RAIN make the most of a rain event which naturally refreshes the soil to plant the garden after the summer heat. The recent rains that accompanied the Super Blue Moon broke the spell of the dry summer and made it possible to grow greens again. Now is the time to plant silverbeet and lettuce.

I want to eat super tasty, fresh plucked organic greens from the garden each day.

Our backyard is set to be rejigged soon, and the raised garden bed will be moved, so for now the growing area will be on the ground along the south fence, a very sunny position.

PREPARE THE GARDEN, I have shovelled some of the soil from the raised veggie garden onto the ground to make a new garden, added compost and watered all. This garden includes container planting – 5 black recycled tubs – and not a lot of planning, it will be interesting to see where the veggies flourish.

PLANT SILVERBEET. For a spend of $35 on seedlings (silverbeet is currently $4 per bunch at the shops), and a bale of organic sugar cane mulch, I now have a potential crop of 10 silverbeet plants, 8 Cos Lettuce, 4 Rocket plants and one Tommy Tomato, oh and not to forget the several clumps of Chives. More garden space is available for a succession crop.

With regular water – it will be essential to water twice a day for a week until the seedlings establish, and in a couple of weeks we will be eating from the garden again.

So, just like that, after the full moon rain, the veggie garden is growing again. Silverbeet and lettuces will be ready to eat soon!

Rain refreshed, it’s time to plant!

Today I planted the Sugarbaby watermelon seedlings in a tub underneath sturdy trees that they can climb up – they do not naturally climb, so will require encouragement – and avoid spreading around the garden. The trees will shelter the plants from the rain, as I have a feeling that too much water will bloat the fruit and make it taste less.

The tub was layered with alternate layers of soil and compost to enrich the soil to grow tasty healthy fruit. Two seedlings, grown in the same pot, were planted together. To disentangle the roots of the two plants may weaken both, and it is better to see which plant grows strong, and then cut the other off at the stem with secateurs.

At the moment too much rain is not the issue, Brisbane has not received any significant rain for months. The 3,000 litre water tank in the garden hit empty today and I will start to siphon water from the kids’ bath to the garden to stay sustainable. The lack of rain means that mulching the garden properly is important.

Jobs – buy a bale of sugar cane mulch and spread on garden, and organise the siphoning.

For details on how to grow watermelon, and especially for reasons not to grow watermelons, see…..

http://www.tropicalpermaculture.com/growing-watermelons.html

eatmysilverbeet

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Tag Archives: container gardening

Rain refreshed, it’s time to plant

I wish for Summer Watermelons!