Posts Tagged ‘soil’
Tuesday, August 11th, 2009
Summer cabbage…. With its peak harvest in August and September this vegetable provides an excellent source of Vitamin C leading up and through autumn. All health benefits aside summer cabbage has had its image tarnished by the soggy mush that’s served up by school and work canteens. In this guide I hope banish the soggy cabbage blues as I show you how to cook cabbage correctly, but first let’s look at how to grow summer cabbage at home. Topsoil is an important factor.
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Tags: acid, acidity, alkaline, alkalinity, April, August, autumn, ball-headed, Bird protection, birds, boil, boiled bacon, Bolting, boron, Boron deficiency, braising, Brassica oleracea capitata, brassicas, broom handle, bubble and squeak, butter, butterflies laying, cabbage, cabbage root fly, caraway seeds, caterpillar, Chafer grubs, chop, chopped cabbage, cloches, Clubroot, cold ham, cold water, coleslaw, coloured green, compact, conical, cook cabbage, copper, cream, crinkly, cutting, Cutworms, D handle, damp, damp sacking, dark, Derby Day, Diamond-back moth, dibber, dig, digging, Downy mildew, drill, early winter, English dish, farmyard animal manure, fast growing, fast growth, Fine netting, fish blood and bone, flat, Flea beetle, fleece, frames, frost, frugal, fungal disease, Gall weevil, garden centres, garden fork, Golden Acre, good cropper, grass, grass clippings, Greyhound, ground lime, growing area, Growmore, hand fork, harvesting, hay, Head cabbage, Heading cabbage, health benefits, Heartless cabbage, herbicide-free, Hispi, home, homemade compost, iron, June, Leaf Spot, leaves, leggy, Magnesium deficiency, malformed, manganese, Manganese deficiency, March, mashed potatoes, May, Mealy aphid, meats, melted butter, Minicole, moisture, morning, mulch, netting, neutral, nitrogen, nutrients, October, Oil, organic, outer leaves, oval heads, pan, paper, peak harvest, pests are controlled, pH, phosphorus, planting, plastic bags, pointed heads, poor crops, potassium, potatoes, Primo, purple, Quick maturing, rain, raked, refrigerator, ring spot, round, running to seed, salad crisper, sautéed, scents, school, secondary crop, seed, seed germination, September, shade, shallow fried, sharp knife, short-term storage, slatted boxes, slug, small plots, smooth, snails, soggy, soil, soil test, soils ph, solid hearts, soluble, Southern Europe, sowing, spade shaft, spades depth, Split hearts, Splitting, steam, stem the heads of cabbage, stir-fry, Stonehead, stones, straw, strips, strong flavours, stunting, successional sowings, suitable to grow in Ireland, sulphate of iron, summer cabbage, sunny, Swede Midge, swollen, taste, tender, thinned, thinning, transplantation, transplanting, trench, trowel, true leaves, veg, vegetable, vegetable peelings, vegetable soup, vinegar dressing, vitamin C, water, watering, waterlogged, weed free, well-balanced fertilizer, well-rotted, wet newspaper, wet rot, wheelbarrow, White blister, White rust, Whitefly, wilting leaves, wind rock, Winnigstadt, Wire stem, work, yellow leaves, Yellows virus, young, zinc
Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments »
Monday, August 10th, 2009
Spring cabbage…. A hardy vegetable that’s an excellent source of Vitamin C and glutamine, an amino acid which has anti-inflammatory properties. Health benefits aside, the image of spring cabbage has been tarnished by the soggy mush served up in school and work canteens. In this guide I hope to banish the soggy cabbage blues as I show you how to cook cabbage correctly, but first let’s look at how to grow it at home.
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Tags: acid, acidity, alkaline, alkalinity, amino acid, anti-inflammatory, August, autumn, bacon, ball-headed, Bird protection, birds, Black Rot, boil, Bolting, boron, Boron deficiency, Bowkail, braising, Brassica oleracea capitata, broom handle, bubble and squeak, butter, butterflies, cabbage heads, cabbage plants, cabbage root fly, caraway seeds, caterpillar, Chafer grubs, chop, Clubroot, cold ham, cold water, coleslaw, conical, cook cabbage, cooking, copper, cream, crinkly, crop, cutting, Cutworms, damp sacking, dark, Diamond-back moth, dibber, digging, Diseases, Downy mildew, dressing, drill, Durham early, Early cabbage, early winter, eggs, English dish, equipment, farmyard animal manure, February, feeding, Fine netting, fish blood and bone, flat, flavour, Flea beetle, freeze, frost, frugal, fungal disease, Gall weevil, garden centres, garden fork, germination, glutamine, grass, grass clippings, green, ground lime, Growmore, hand fork, hand tool, handle, hardy vegetable, harvesting, hay, Head cabbage, Heading cabbage, health benefits, heart, Heartless cabbage, herbicide, home, home soil test, homemade compost, iron, July, June, Leaf Spot, leaves, life expectancy, limited space, Magnesium deficiency, manganese, Manganese deficiency, Mealy aphid, meats, melted butter, metal, Mid September, morning, mulch, netting, nitrogen, October, Offenham 3, Offenham-Flower of Spring, Oil, organic option, pan, paper, pests, pH, phosphorus, pigeons, Pixie, planting, plastic bags, potassium, potatoes, protective clothing, purple, Rake, refrigerator, ring spot, roots, running to seed, salad crisper, sautéed, scents, school, secondary crop, seed, seedbed, seedling, shallow fried, sharp knife, shelter, slatted boxes, slug attack, small plots, smooth, snail, soggy mush, soil, soil nutrients, soils ph, Southern Europe, sowing, spade shaft, spades depth, Split hearts, Spring cabbage, spring greens, Spring Hero, stem, stems, stir-fry, stones, storage, straw, stunting, sulphate of iron, Summer, sunny spot, Swede Midge, sweet tasting, texture, thinning, tolerate shade, transplant, transplantation, trench, trowel, true leaves, vegetable peelings, vegetable soup, vinegar, vitamin C, water, waterlogged, weed free, weeding, well-balanced fertilizer, well-rotted, wet newspaper, wet rot, wheelbarrow, White blister, White rust, Whitefly, wilting, wind-rocked, winter, Wintergreen, Wire stem, wooden, work canteens, yellow leaves, Yellows virus, zinc
Posted in Growing guides., Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Saturday, August 1st, 2009
Kohlrabi…. high in vitamin C and K, potassium, fibre as well as the antioxidant carotenoids b-carotene and lutein. Kohlrabis flavour varies between nutty (uncooked) and broccoli with a hint of radish (cooked). If you seek unusual tastes and looks then this give this member of the cabbage family a second glance.
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Tags: acidity, amendments, antioxidant carotenoids, autumn, b-carotene, Boiled, Bolting, boron, Brassica caulorapa, Broccoli, butterflies, cabbage family, cabbage root, caterpillar, clipped, Clubroot, coleslaw, compost, cooked, copper, cream, crispy, Cutworms, Downy mildew, dressing, drill, early winter, easy, eggs, farmyard animal, fibre, Fine netting, fish blood and bone, flavour, freeze, garden, German Turnip, germination, grass, grass clippings, grate, grating, green, green kohl rabi, ground lime, growing area, Growmore, ham, hay, herbicide, home soil test, homemade compost, iron, July, Kohlrabi, Kolibri, label, Lanro, late season harvest, leaves, life expectancy, lightly raked, Logo, lutein, manganese, Manure, March, meats, melted butter, Monj, mulch, netting, neutral, nitrogen, Northern Europe, nutty, Oil, organic option, peat moss, pH, phosphorus, pigeons, planting, plastic bags, potassium, potatoes, protective clothing, purple, Purple Danube, radish, Rake, refrigerator, roots, rosette, salad crisper, salads, seed, seedlings, shelter, slightly acid, soil, soil moisture, soils ph, sowing, spades depth, steamed, steamed greens, Stem turnip, stirfry, stones, straw, successional sowings, sulphate of iron, sunny spot, sweet, swollen stem, tasty, thinning, trench, trowel, true leaves, Turnip, Turnip cabbage, Turnip-rooted cabbage, uncooked, veg, vegetable peelings, vinegar, vitamen K, vitamin C, water, waterlogged, weed free, weeding, well-balanced fertilizer, wheelbarrow, white, yields, zinc
Posted in Growing guides., Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Thursday, July 23rd, 2009
Beetroots…round, cylindrical or tapered swollen roots that are way more versatile than many give them credit for. Fairly pest free, they are also a good crop for the organic gardener. Find out for yourself as we detail amongst other things the varieties suitable to grow in Ireland, and how to plant or sow them.
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Tags: acid soil, Albina Vereduna, alkaline soils, autumn, beet, Beetroots, best varieties, Beta vulgaris, Black bean aphid, Black Leg, bleed, boil, bolt-resistant, Boltardy, Bolting, boron, Boron deficiency, Burpee’s Golden, chutney, cloches, cooking, copper, Crimson beetroot, cut, Cylindra, cylindrical, Detroit, disease resistance, dries, drill, dry peat, early March, early winter, easy, end of July, Fanging, farmyard animal manure, feeding, fertiliser, fertilizer, fish blood and bone, flavour, fortnight, frames, freeze, garden centres, germination, golf ball, Greens, ground lime, Grow beetroot, Growmore, harvesting, hasten germination, hay, Heart Rot, home soil test, how to, Ireland, iron, label, Leaf Miner, Leaf Spot, leaf yellowing, leaves, life expectancy, manganese, Mangold Fly, Mediterranean, metre, Mid-March, neutral, nitrogen, orange skin, organic gardener, origin, paper, pest free, Pests and Diseases, pH, phosphorus, plant, plant ills, plastic bag, potassium, preservation, raked, red, refrigerator, roots, rosettes, salads, scorching, seedlings, shelter, slatted boxes, slices, smooth skin, Snowhite, soil, soil conditions, soil nutrients, soups, Southern Europe, sow, sow seeds, spades depth, Speckled Yellows, spinach, sprout, stones, storage, successional harvesting, suitable to grow in Ireland, sunny spot, supermarket, swollen, tapered, tennis ball, thinnings, tips, tolerate shade, trench, trowel, vegetable, vegetables, vigour, waterlogs, weed free, wheelbarrow, When to grow, Where to grow, white, White beet, yellow, Yellow beet, zinc
Posted in Growing guides. | No Comments »
Tuesday, July 21st, 2009
Have you heard of the movie “The bucket list”? It details the trip taken by two men who work their way through a list of things they wish to experience before they die. The “bucket list” in the title was a roster of things to do before the movies main character “kicks the bucket”.
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Tags: apple trees, bucket list, buckets, compost, drains, dry sand, flowers, forks, Fruit tree, fungal infections, garage, garden, Garden buckets, garden shed, gardener, gardening helpers, gooseberries, Hand trowels, handy tips, hanging basket, hedge clippers, hole, hose, irrigation, leaves, liquid feed, mildews, movie, Oil, oil change, oiled, oily rag, plantings, plants, potting stand, rim, roots, rust, rust-free, sand filled buckets, sand paper, scorching, shrub, soil, spades, splashes, strawberry, ten-litre bucket, The bucket list, tomato, tool, tool preserver, trickle irrigator, veg beds, water, watered, watering can, weed, winter, wire brush
Posted in Fruit garden tips and advice., Uncategorized, Vegetable garden tips and advice. | No Comments »
Friday, April 10th, 2009
As a child, Easter meant one thing to me… Easter eggs.
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Tags: acidic soil, agricultural lime, air dry, ammendment, annuals, beans, blossom end rot, boil, boiled eggs, brassica, brassica-family, butterflies, cabbage, cabbage butterfly, cabbage-white butterflies, cabbages, calcium, calcium carbonate, caterpillars, cauliflowers, chicken eggs, child, compost, compost heap, crop, Crushed shells, cutworm, dehydrate, dust, Easter, Easter Bunny, Easter eggs, Easter Sunday, eggs, eggshells, garden, garden birds, gardening, gardens, leaf, liquid feed, long grass, membrane, minerals, morning, nitrogen, perennials, pH, plastic bag, raw eggs, rolling pin, salt, slug, snail, soil, tomatoes, tool, underbellies, United Kingdom, vegetables, warm water
Posted in Vegetable garden tips and advice. | 5 Comments »
Sunday, April 5th, 2009
In a previous post I wrote about preparing your window box for vegetable growing, the layering of composts and the use of bubble wrap to help reduce your need to water in summer.
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Tags: air, bed, Bubble wrap, composts, container, crop, droughts, feeder roots, fertility, finger, fish blood and bone, flowering, fruiting, fungal, garden centres, garden fork, gardener, gardening, homemade compost, hose, instructions, irrigate, John Innes seed compost, lettuce, Miracle Gro, morning, nettle tea, nights, nitrogen, nutrients, Pea, phosphorus, plant food, plant nutrients, potassium, preparing, rain, root, season, seed, seed pack, seed sowing, seed sowing tips, seedlings, seeds, soil, sow, sowing depth, spacing, sprinkling, stems, sticks, stones, Summer, sun, supplement, thinning, veg, vegetable growing, veggies, water, water-soluble fertilisers, watering, watering can, weeds, wind, window box, wood
Posted in Vegetable garden tips and advice. | 2 Comments »
Monday, March 30th, 2009
Last week I wrote about a solution to lack of space for growing salad vegetables faced by balcony and patio gardeners.
That was the window box vegetable garden.
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Tags: 6 inches, Avonresister, Balconi red, balcony, base, beetroot, Bubble wrap, bulbs, cabbage, carrot, cherry tomatoes, compact, compost, drainage, dwarf, garden, garden centres, gardeners, globular, granules, gravel, grit, growing, Half pint, Hestia, holes, John Innes, John Innes No. 3, John Innes seed compost, Kundulus, lettuce, miniature, moisture, nutrients, Parmex, Parsnip, patio, Pea, plants, plastic, polystyrene, Pronto speedy, pumpkins, radish, recycle, roots, runner bean, salad, Salad bowl, Scarlet globe, seed, six-inch, soil, soil-based, sowing, space, Spring onion, Summer, Swellgel, terracotta, Tiny Tim, tomato, traditional, Tumbling Tom, veg, vegetable, vegetable seeds, vegetables, veggie, water, water-holding gel, watering, White Lisbon, window box, window box lip, windowsill, wooden
Posted in Vegetable garden tips and advice. | 4 Comments »
Sunday, March 22nd, 2009
Living in the countryside with roughly a half an acre site for my planting experiments, I sometimes tend to forget there are many gardeners who are less space “fortunate”.
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Tags: apartment, balcony, bowl, carrot root fly, carrots, cat, cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, compact, compost, container, countryside, eggs, estates, feet, fertile, fertiliser, frost-free, Fruit, gardeners, gardens, gravel, ground, growing, half an acre, houses, indoor, maggots, maintain, miniature, moisture, north, nutrients, outdoor, paving, pest damage, pests, planting, plants, prepare, protected, rainfall, root, salad, salt, seed, site, Slugs, soil, Strawberries, sunlight, Trailing, veg, veg patch, vegetables, water, weeds, wheelchair, window boxes, windows, windowsill, winter
Posted in Uncategorized, Vegetable garden tips and advice. | 3 Comments »
Saturday, March 7th, 2009
Whenever apple trees are mentioned or wrote about, the main focus always seems to be on their thirst quenching fruit.
The flower of the tree or apple blossom gets forgotten about for the most part, as we once again concentrate on our belly and what goes into it.
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Tags: acidic, apple, apple juice, apple tart, Armagh, blossom, Bramley’s seedling, cherry blossoms, compost, container grown, containerised, cooking, culinary, drum, estate houses, farmyard manure, fertilisers, flower, Fork, fresh, Fruit, garden centre, growing, hole, Loughgall, nursery, orchard, oven, peat, pink, planting, planting pit, root-ball, roots, soil, soil mark, spring, stake, sugar, taste, tie, tours, trees, water, wind, winter
Posted in Fruit garden tips and advice. | No Comments »