Grow your own veggies
There is nothing more rewarding than eating fresh veggies you have grown yourself. It offers a unique learning curve for first-time gardeners and is a great way to teach kids the wonders of the natural world and where food comes from.
Plant corn seedlings in a group of around 6 – 12, rather than a row, as they are wind pollinated and need to be in close proximity to each other. Create a trellis for vining plants such as melons, cucumbers, squash, passionfruit, gherkins and pumpkins, or climbing veggies such as peas and beans.
Potatoes can still be planted now, plant them into rows and pile up the dirt around the sprouts as they grow until they are 30cm tall, and harvest after flowering.
Plant and stake tomatoes, chillies and capsicum in full sun. Early tomatoes will be ready to harvest by Christmas and can continue until late autumn. Chillies and capsicum are autumn harvests.
A leafy green garden bed is a must! Plant out lettuce, spinach, kale, silverbeet and bok choy, water well in the morning before it gets too hot.
Stores will still have strawberries in stock, but you’ll only have a few more weeks to get them planted for a bountiful summer harvest. Plant in a large pot, a garden bed, or even a hanging basket with around 6-10 plants. Mulch with straw and cover with bird netting.
For smaller gardens, try planting summer salad ingredients. Plant leafy greens that grow quickly such as fancy lettuce, spinach (perpetual and NZ) and kale. You can even plant tomatoes, capsicum and cucumbers in pots or containers if you have limited space. You can stagger your plants, planting some now, and others in around three weeks’ time, meaning you will have an ongoing seasonal harvest, not a huge harvest all at once.
