Gardening and growing great plants.

When to pick an artichoke.

Artichoke plants have a little bit of mystique with me. It was many years ago that I was on a nursery tour in California. We came to a little town seemingly in the middle of nowhere. There was a shop there, with a giant artichoke. Yes, much like we have the big pineapple here in Australia, the USA has the big artichoke. I had some deep fried artichoke hearts and either I was very hungry, or they were pretty darn tasty - it was just too long ago to remember really.

Ever since then, I have enjoyed eating artichoke pieces out of the jar, and on gourmet pizzas, but last year started to actually grow some. I think I planted a young seedling in early spring, and it didn't bear fruit until early spring this year, a full 12 months later. The first artichoke was a real thrill for me, so much so that I am sure now that I harvested it too early, while the artichoke was to tight, and hadn't formed a heart. I cut what I could from out of the centre of it and cooked it in boiling water for a bit and then stir fried it in a pan with some garlic - it was fairly forgettable. 

Ok, so I was pretty disappointed in my first home grown artichoke and thought maybe that was it for the season. But no, apparently some plants can have up to 30 fruit per season. Yep, soon up popped 2 larger ones up the top and then wow, 2 baby ones a bit lower down. All was looking good.

Then came a big storm. When I got to the plant, it was on its side. I was mortified. Have since harvested the 2 big ones and staked the plant, which thinking now, maybe I didn't plant quite deep enough. Anyway, it is still alive. Now I am searching for recipes, and will continue my quest, to cook something decent, with a home grown artichoke.

Someone told me about a recipe where you lay out a piece of prosciutto, layer it with buffalo mozzarella, a basil leaf, and half a baby artichoke heart. Roll it up, toothpick it and cook it for 5 to 10 minutes in the oven at 180C. Maybe I will try that one.

So to sum it up, artichoke plants are in actual fact a thistle - yes, a bloody weed. Let them flower and they look not to dissimilar to a scotch thistle. I do however love their big jagged leaves. The key is to harvest it before it becomes a flower but not while the big bud that it is, is too tight. Then once you have successfully grown one of these, you just have to work out, how to cook with it. That is the real challenge !

........OR, it does look pretty good in a vase with some roses......and maybe I just eat the broccoli instead !

 

A Melbourne Garden in August

We got some new bulbs in last week. These varieties are summer flowering and include the uncool gladioli. I say uncool, because of course Dame Edna Everidge used to grow them in Moonee Ponds – how uncool ! Smiles come to mind remembering her cuddling a big bunch like it was a baby. My wife actually grew some last year in a terracotta bowl and did they stand proud with lipstick red flowers. We found them quite easy to grow, and most rewarding.  

Other available bulbs and tubers include Canna lilies, alstromeria, bearded iris, asiatic lilies and peonies. There are also Jerusalem artichokes which are nothing like globe artichokes. They have a sunflower like flower and form a tuber, which can be harvested and cooked. They are selling well since Billy on Masterchef had to cook with them during the New York week. He had to slice them into little chips, deep fry and then poke them into the top of soup.  

If you haven’t got strawberries in, now is the time. If you plant them later, you don’t get as much foliage growth which means less fruit. GardenWorld is pleased to announce that we have secured an exclusive variety from Sunnyridge Strawberry Farm in Red Hill. These will be the tastiest strawberries you have ever grown. Plant in pots or garden beds, and when they finish fruiting, next winter cut them back and they will go again for another season. 

If you only do the vegie patch for the spring season, start weeding now. Dig the beds over to get oxygen into the soil, and fertilise with chicken manure. We recommend Attunga’s Organic Life, as it also contains fish meal and seaweed. Attunga are a local company based in Dandenong that also supply us the famous Humus Plus, a secret formula that will give every garden bed a lift. 

Pruning fruit trees is a slow process. Don’t rush it because you can’t sticky tape the branch back on ! Go for a classic wine glass shape, cutting out any weak internal branches so as to open the middle of the plant up a bit. I also like to control height, because when harvesting, the ladder only goes so high.  Even little blueberry bushes could do with a culling of the weak internal branches. 

Of course this is the month to watch and enjoy the magnolia flowers literally open befrore your eyes. Towards the end of the flowering period, fertilise big trees with a bucket of Organic Life or Dynamic Lifter and this will ensure nice dark green leaves and vigorous growth. A prune after flowering will make them bushy, but you might like to leave yours tall and lanky. Thats the other beaut thing about these trees - all, the different shapes and sizes.

Camellia Dr Clifford Parks and Magnolia denudata

a close-up of the same Magnolia denudata

Also feed azaleas, camellias, daphne and trim back evergreens lightly, including box hedges, so as to ensure the new growth takes off from nice bushy plants. Sow spring seeds of petunias, marigolds, capsicums and tomatoes. GET READY, as the frenetic spring season is almost upon us. 

Bulbs to plant this month: Dahlia, Gladioli, Canna lilies, Alstromeria, Asiatic Lilies and herbaceous Peonies. 

Foodcrops: Asparagus, Beetroot, Broad beans, Broccoli, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Coriander, Lettuce, Leek, Parsnip, Onions, Potatoes, Rhubarb, Radish, Strawberry runners, Shallots, Snowpeas

Magnolia soulangeana

Googling a few peas turns up Gregor Mendel.

As I was on google today, I noticed their logo had been turned into some pea pods. Closer investigation shows it is a man called Gregor Mendel's 189th birthday. A bit more googling, and I realised what a significant man he was.

Mendel, this Czech-German guy did some amazing experiments on peas and then bees - what a nerd! He even created some hybridised bees that were so viscious they had to be destroyed. Later he cut down on the research to concentrate on priesthood and other religious duties.  You don't see many CVs like this one.

Although he is referred to as the "father of modern genetics" while he was alive, no-one really agreed with or accepted his work. They were in fact the underlying principles in hereditry.

Peas would have been good to experiment because they grow very quickly and have both male and female reproductive organs and can either self pollinate themselves or cross pollinate with another plant. However, from 1856 he grew 29000 pea plants in 7 years! - And no believed what he found out until the 1930s, 36 years after his death in 1884. Its like being a famous artist.

He cross pollinated peas and came up with 7 traits:

1.	flower color is purple or white	5.	seed color is yellow or green
2.	flower position is axil or terminal	6.	pod shape is inflated or constricted
3.	stem length is long or short	7.	pod color is yellow or green
4.	seed shape is round or wrinkled

Flower colours were nothing in between - only purple or white and not a blend.  But do not let me try to explain it. If you are really interested, there is an excelent website with some great diagrams at :

Excellent info about Mendel's pea experiments.

Also wikipedia has some good general info about the man at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregor_Mendel

 

Hydroponics Made Easy - the Autopot System.

New Book Release: Hydroponics Made Easy, by Jim Fah. 

By James Wall.

Jim Fah is a legend here at Gardenworld. He is the inventor of a very special system called Autopot. This system has a smart valve that ensures singular plants in their individual containers dictate when they get their supply of water according to their needs.

Jim has spent well over 20 years developing and improving his system. The system is being used commercially around the world, including Malaysia where they grow these bright yellow melons (Kuning Jati) in no growing media at all. Each crop takes 65 days and they are producing 2.5 tonnes of fruit a week.

Another project included a wall of plants along the Flemington Racecourse horse track. At one stage more than 1000 Purple Craze petunias were being watered from one pump. My experiences with planting our spreading petunias around here at Gardenworld has been a maintenance free system that ensures months of spectacular blooms. It is something we are famous for over summer, and because the flowers don't get wet by this system, they last for many months longer than an overhead watering system.

Jim has also had to contend with copy cats, including a trusted former distributor who has even copied the Autopot name. Sure there are patents and potential legal avenues, but this can come at a great cost. Jim is focussing on developing the technology further, so the copy cats will never be up with the latest design.

It is with pleasure that I have just received a copy of Jim's latest book. It is called Hydroponics Made Easy. It is actually the 3rd edition of his original book, but the 2nd edition came out over ten years ago, and a lot a developments have been made since then. As well as providing plenty of information about the Autopot System, you will also learn a lot about Hydroponics in general. There is also an interesting chapter on starting plants from seeds and cuttings.

The colourful book is 111 pages and is on sale for just $15 at both the nursery and the Hydroponics shop here at Gardenworld. It is also available online from gardenshop.com.au with a $6.95 freight charge Australia wide.

What I like about this book is that you get an honest appraisal from the author of his own system as well as a wealth of information of tried and true fertiliser requirements of various crops. Following the instructions of this book, both backyard growers and commercial producers should have bumper crops of quality fruit and vegetables.

 

Why use Certified Seed Potatoes?

Certified seed potatoes have been in hot demand since we got them in the nursery last week. Being the start of winter, it is still early to be planting, but some people just can't wait to get them in. In most areas you would go from August to February, but in sandy frost free areas they can also be sown during June and July. In cool areas you need to plant 1 month before the expected last frost - sometimes a tricky question.

This year, potato growers are being especially urged to use only certified seed potatoes to help stop the spread of the disease Potato Virus Y. This virus has already cost the potato industry many thousands of dollars in lower yields and reduced quality. Althugh this virus has been around for many years, new strains that are more aggressive are appearing. It is becoming a global problem.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Although the virus can be transmitted by aphids and possiblt thrips, the smart way to control the disease is to not only control these insects, but definately  not to use infected plants for future planting stock. Infected plants can have mottling and yellowy chlorosis of foliage and the potatoes themselves can show major cracking, circular wounds or marks. It can quickly transmit through a growing district and could even affect home gardens.

Certified seed potatoes are now available at Gardenworld. They can be delivered in Melbourne for $20. For details go to our online shop.

 

 

Giant Pumpkin in Rowville.

This article in yesterdays Herald Sun show a ripper pumpkin grown by a family in Rowville. In what has been a mild summer in Melbourne, this has been a great effort. My guess is that this variety is the Atlantic Giant. We will try and get some seeds down at Gardenworld before the next growing season this coming spring. Meanwhile anyone with a few pumpkins on the shelf will be looking forward to winter warming pumpkin soup.

 

Another great season for hydroponic tomatoes - and okra !

Well, its been a tough season for growing tomatoes. A major problem has been the constant heavy rains. We like to tell you to keep the leaves dry, but how can you ? Well actually you can, but you have needed to grow them in a greenhouse like Jimmy has in the Autopot hydroponics store here at Gardenworld.

While the rest of us have had to put up with bacterial spots and verticillium wilt. Jim has been growing trusses of rich red tomatoes. While the rest of us have green tomatoes that are about a month behind schedule, Jim has been eating fully ripe toms for most of the year!

My sweet chilli Jalapeno sauce

I finally harvested the chillies off my potted Jalapeno plant on the weekend. I got about 40 of them, mostly bright red, but some green. There are about 20 left on the bush. What was I going to do with a pile of Jalapenos - make some sweet chilli sauce of course !

Now most people would suggest you make sweet chilli sauce with mild chillies.

A little bit of inspiration.

By James Wall

A few years ago in another life, I had some spare garlic bulbs and had given them to Southmoor Primary School, a little school situated in Moorabbin. This school has been at the forefront of kitchen gardening and the headmaster had managed to chase me up to see if we had a few spare vegie seedlings. This morning I dropped them off.

To see what had been achieved over those few years was nothing less than inspirational.

February 2010 gardenworld happenings.

 Growing your own fresh produce is a trend that has grown immensely and is sure to be even bigger in 2010. Whether it is just a few herbs around the back door or a full blown vegie patch or orchard, there is nothing sweeter than picking your own food and using it to its maximum potential. There are many seasonal cookery books coming out that show you how to better use your harvest and minimise wastage.  A lot of schools are now educating our younger members of the community on food gardens and hence it is often families who are coming into the nursery together to learn about what crops they could grow and use. And of course there are many nationalities that we can learn from who have been food garden experts since they migrated here to Australia, whether it be Italians growing tomatoes or Vietnamese growing lemon grass, everyone can delight in their flavours with a little bit of knowledge.