I adore autumn! As we prepare for quieter winter days it is by no means time to forget the garden. Strawberries are one thing that as soon as ripe in Summer disappear from my garden so I line the paths with them to make sure there is enough for everyone to feast from. May might be a funny time to think about these sweet juicy gems but it is the time now to plant out runners and new plants. You can save a fortune doing it now and have a early ripening crop and while others are planting new plants in December you will be harvesting from settled crops.
Strawbs love lots of food and water.
I had huge red strawberries without a drop of fungicide or a sprinkle of
synthetic fertilizer (it is scary to learn what these easy to grow edibles are
sprayed with from commercially bought punnets in the shops or on the road side).
The trick to a generous crop is to plant where your garden is in full sun over
summer, give generous helpings of blood and bone at the time of planting and
handfuls of organic steralised sheep pellets.
Both sheep pellets and blood and bone are available at your local plant
store. To protect from wind and to
improve flavour plant a Lavender hedge along side. This hedge can be kept low and trim so as not to shade the strawberries but there
is something in the natural oils of Lavender that make your strawberries more
prolific and taste better. Another tried and true
companion is Borage. This attracts many
bees and improves flavor but be aware that if you have little ones helping
themselves to the harvest that your borage may be best planted away from the
plot to avoid a nasty sting from eager hands. Pinching out strawberry runners is easy. You can only pinch out from a previous year/s strawberry plant. The bit you are pinching off is effectively it’s baby, a small easy identifiable strawberry plant with a visible root system in place as well - First of all find the new plant that is growing from a stalk that is attached to last year/s plant and snip it off. Take this little baby plant and plant into your garden where you wish for it to grow. The soil is best prepared before hand with a handful per square meter of blood and bone and a handful per square meter of sheep pellets into soil mixed with 10cm layer of compost that has been dug into the garden space.
Activity Dates coming up for your garden
May 21st New moon
May 21 – 23 is time to dig in your soil but only if not too wet. In Auckland today we have the perfect day and after this I am running out the door with Gumboots and fork!
May 29 – 31 is the time to plant Strawberries, Spinach, Rocket, Cos Lettuce, Silverbeet
Happy Gardening everyone!
