Spring Preparation of the Organic Garden
We are well into spring here in Perth and the organic garden is warming up and the soil is just right for preparation for summer crops.
Seeds are in the trays and germinating so the next step is to prepare the ground.
Step 1. Complete the Harvest of Winter Crops
I have picked the last of the turnips and onions and also found a few beetroot.
The organic Garlic are going well but no where near ready for harvest yet.
Step 2. Weed the Beds
With the extra rain this winter and spring I have actually had quite a lot of clover growing in the beds.
This has not been a problem since it fixes nitrogen in the soil and makes good compost too!
So I have weeded these all out and turned the soil over.
After all that the compost heap is looking huge.
Step 3. Add compost and Blood and Bone
Next is the addition of blood and bone and compost to revive the tired soils that have produced wonderful winter food like cauliflower and turnips.
I also add some germs – this are granulated bacteria that kick off the soil activity when you add them with the organic materials.
Step 4. Mulch the Beds
This year I am trying something new – cane sugar mulch!
Garden straw has become very expensive over the last few years so I have tried to find alternatives but most are just as expensive. I spotted this sugar cane mulch last week and though I would try it this summer. It comes in a compressed bale in a plastic bag so the bag covers 7 square meters at the depth I need. Very convenient and easy to handle.
We will see how this goes and I will report back next year.
I give it all a good watering – completely soaked and ready for the plants.
Step 5. Plant out the Seedlings
I have bought a few seedlings as well as grown my own to get things moving and to space out the plantings.
Today I have put in cucumber, yellow zucchini, egg plant (3 varieties), coriander (in tomato bed for pest control).
So there we go the crops are in and the only thing to do now is to keep an eye on the pests and keep the ground moist.
Now Keep that Dog Out
Now blood and bone has a nice smell if you are a dog and so if I don’t take precautions the red menace will be into the garden in a flash. This is why you can see the galvanised fence around each bed.
Here he is chewing his raw bone looking very happy. I can tell you he would also be thinking how that freshly dug garden bed will be a great place to bury this bone later today!
The black pipe is the recycled tyre material that I bury below the soil as an underground water system. The pipe weeps and effectively maintains good moisture levels with little evaporation.
Protect Seedlings From Heat
In Perth we can get some real scorchers even in spring so I prepare for the odd day by placing my beach umbrellas in each bed.
I have placed steel stakes deep in the bed and then tie the umbrella base to them. Top of the umbrella can be removed in very windy weather but usually I can just leave them down and tied.
This one is in the broccoli bed and last year enabled me to grow and pick the vegetable for almost the whole of summer!
Here it is in it’s full glory doing a great job protecting my dinner!
I actually have two stakes in some beds one for early summer and one for late summer. This can compensate for the changing tilt of the earth as the season moves on.
That’s it then all ready – now I just keep an eye out for bugs and deal with them as the weeks progress.
Have a great week and may you have success in your garden as well!
