MARCH in the garden

Courtesy of Kathy Finigan and My Productive Backyard

In The Vegetable Garden

PLANT: Seedlings of

• beetroot

• celery

• kale

• cabbage

• cauliflower

• broccoli

• Chinese cabbage

• leek

• hearting lettuce (iceberg and cos)

• silver beet

• spring onion

SOW directing in the ground:

• Snow peas

• Beetroot

• Carrot

• Radish

• English spinach

• broad beans

• peas

• Chinese cabbage

• Asian greens

• mesclun mix

• rocket

• coriander

Maintenance in the Vegetable garden

Tomato harvest should be in full swing so start turning them into sauces and pickles. If you have excess beans freeze them for use in winter soups and stews. Corn is another late summer crop that can be frozen easily.

Freeze those beans!

Pumpkins should be just about ready for harvesting. Give the pumpkin a little 'knock ‘if it sounds

hollow, it's a good indication that the pumpkin is ripe. If the fruit has developed a rich colour and is

becoming covered in 'warts,' the pumpkin is ready to harvest.

As you harvest summer crops clean up your beds and improve your soil with a blend of well-rotted

manure, compost and blood and bone.

In The Herb Garden

Many of the fleshier garden herbs such as Basil, Dill, Parsley, Sage, Chives, Mint and Tarragon are either cut back by frost or go into dormancy during winter so now is the time to make tarragon vinegar, harvest Basil and turn any excess into pesto. Dry excess parsley chives dill and sage.

In The Orchard

Pick up and destroy any fallen stone fruit to prevent fungal spores or pests overwintering in them

and infecting next year’s crop. Harvest any lemons that are ripe, use, process or give them away. Ripe

fruit left on trees gives fruit fly a place to overwinter.

Apple and Nashi pears harvest should be in full swing. If you are looking for ideas on how to use your Nashi pears check out this blog from Taste.com