Pots Of Fun

Newcastle Herald

Wednesday February 15, 2006

writes Jenny Tarran

IT'S time to get out into the garden and get ready for a bumper autumn and winter crop.

Even if your thumb is more scorched earth than green, there are vegetables and herbs that can be easily grown, be it in a large garden bed, small plot, on a veranda or even on a window sill.

As more people move away from the quarter acre block and into apartments, plant producers have been quick to release smaller vegetable varieties ideal for unit dwellers.

There are mini cauliflowers, baby beets, baby spinach and the beautifully named mini cannonball cabbages which grow to about 20 centimetres.

The Herald's garden expert Judy Sharpe loves these new mini varieties, but says that their use isn't just confined to small gardens or patios.

"The mini vegetables are also good for families as how often do you put stuff back into the fridge and forget it and end up with unusable food," she said.

Add to the mini category with small cos lettuce and pak choi and some salad rocket and the menu is starting to look good for home-grown and cooked meals.

"All the minis can be planted now, along with the coloured silver beet and broccoli, particularly the green dragon which is the favourite variety," she said.

Even though many children would disagree, Ms Sharpe said that it was also time to get the brussels sprouts planted out, a must for any garden and diet.

Chillies could still be planted out, but it was too late for tomatoes unless you had a warm spot.

"Tomatoes could be grown near a fence where they get radiated heat," she said, adding that a warm, sun-filled veranda with radiated heat from walls and windows would work as well.

For apartment dwellers, Ms Sharpe said to keep in mind for next season the Tumbler tomatoes released last year.

"You plant them in hanging baskets, they are small tomatoes, but they look beautiful and are great to hand up on apartment balconies," she said.

Leeks should also be on the planting list, along with snow peas, but it's now too cold for corn and Ms Sharpe said that some beans didn't like the cold either.

But before you start sticking in the seeds or seedlings, you have to put a bit of effort into preparing the soil.

"You have to prepare the garden beds, use poultry manure for the brassicaceae, such as brocolli, cabbage and cauliflower, and leave for a week before planting," Ms Sharpe said.

If you are planting a garden up high on a veranda or balcony, Ms Sharpe said that it was important to use water crystals in the pots and use a good potting mix.

As these types of gardens are often exposed to more wind than a ground-level garden, along with radiated heat from windows and brick work, Ms Sharpe said it was also important to keep an eye on the soil, making sure it didn't dry out too quickly.

It was also important to make sure that the plants were located in an area that did receive some sun, that wasn't completely in shadow throughout the day.

Most herbs grew strongly throughout the year, both in pots and out in the garden, but when it came to the more aggressive varieties, such as Vietnamese mint, these should be restrained in pots.

"Basil goes off, French tarragon is good, but remember, if you are planting them on the kitchen window, they need fresh air, so many people stick their potted herbs on a window sill, but forget about opening up the window," Ms Sharpe said.

The window sill is a great place to propagate seeds, or Ms Sharpe's favourite, the sweet potato.

"You cut off a section of sweet potato and suspend it [with toothpicks] over a bottle of water and you get to watch the sweet potato grow down to the water," she said.

© 2006 Newcastle Herald

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