GARDENING
by Jack Hardy
Winter is coming to an end and we must forget about sowing certain vegetables, such as lettuce and spinach. Those vegetables we do sow should be from tropical stock. There are tropical varieties of cauliflower, broccoli and tomato available. Cabbages, cucumbers, pumpkins, eggplants and sweet peppers should do well from a March planting.
Don't be in too much of a hurry to pull up some of your vegetables. Cabbages give a second (smaller) harvest if cut high, as do some lettuces and Chinese cabbage. Broccoli plants often put out sprouts after the main head has been cut. Pick these every three days and you should be able to keep them in for a month or two. Some indeterminate tomatoes send new shoots up from the base that grow quickly because they are fed by a mature root system.
None of the 'bonus' crops ever reaches the standard of the original crop and by keeping the plants in the ground for too long you may be inviting nematodes. Weigh your options.
March is a good time to plant bulbs of all sorts. Many will give a summer show while others will wait until the new year. Once planted, your bulbs will need little care. You will not have to dig them up and winter store them. Although bulbs may seem expensive when first purchased, they are an excellent investment.
Your citrus and other fruit trees need the first of their three seasonal fertilizer feeds soon (spring, summer and autumn). Don't forget to include a chelated iron drench and a minor nutrient spray.
Copyright © 1998,Out Island Internet