Growing Brassicas

 

Bursting with goodness, these hardy no fuss vegetables are brilliant crops to plant in the winter garden. All members of the cabbage family are brassicas. Many of the family are widely known and grown such as cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, kale and cavolo nero. Others such as bok choy, mizuna, mustard, misome, kohl rabi and tatsoi are a little more novel, however just as tasty and very easy to grow.

GET PLANTING OR SOWING SEEDS NOW:

If your aim is to harvest within the next few months, its best to plant seedlings, however if time isn’t an issue, seeds are super easy to grow and all types can be sown now.

Speedy Brassicas

A handful of Brassicas are exceptionally quick to grow, these are often referred to as Asian greens and include bok choy, mizuna, mibuna, misome and mustard.

Where to plant

Plant in full sun, in well dug fertile soil.  Space larger varieties at least 50cm – 70cm apart, to ensure the crops can fully mature and are not fighting for space, fertiliser and water. Some brassicas do thrive in pots and containers too. Choose the smaller varieties.

Bug and slug watch

Slugs and snails can be an issue - lay plenty of Tui Quash around young plants. Whitefly and white butterflies enjoy the young leaves too, use Tui Insect Control for Fruit & Veges to control whitefly and derris dust to deter white butterflies. Mulch with Tui Pea Straw Mulch to keep the soil warmer and weeds away.

Brassica harvest issues: the most common problem

Non heading of broccoli, cauliflower and romanesco – plants produce loads of leaves and no crop. This is generally an issue with too much nitrogen fertiliser, which can happen when animal manures are used solely to fertilise vegetable gardens. Crops like tomatoes, corn, and these brassicas need potassium and phosphorus to form the head, use Tui Vegetable Food.

THE BEST OF BRASSICAS:

• Broccoflower - a neat cross between broccoli and cauliflower, this tasty gem looks like cauliflower but tastes like broccoli.

• Broccoli - look for Green Dragon as the stalwart, for something a little different try Side Sprouter or purple sprouting broccoli.

• Cabbages - the small growing Little Cutie is perfect for pots, Savoy suits Asian inspired dishes, whereas Dutch Red has a neat, compact, super tight habit and holds its shape for months.

• Cauliflower - lovers will be drawn to White Cloud, with its pillow like florets it’s a winner selected by many. Violet is a neat one to try with its bold pink violet heads add to its appeal

• Cavalo Nero – the Pineapple Cabbage's upright habit takes up little space and what’s even better is you can harvest a few leaves at a time and more leaves re-grow. It produces a marathon of greens for up to six months of the year.

• Tatsoi - is a speedy winter green that should be given a spot this autumn. Being a non heading Chinese cabbage, leaves can be plucked individually for salads, or the whole plant can be harvested at once.

• Curly Kale - it's upright habit makes it a fabulous option to blend into flower beds as well as a mainstay in the veggie garden. Red, green and purple varieties are available.

• Kohlrabi (German turnip) - a useful crop as both the bulb and leaves can be eaten. 

• Mibuna - this Japanese green is a popular choice for those who enjoy a less demanding crop.

• Mizuna - probably the speediest crops you can ever grow, ready to harvest within a matter of weeks.

• Brussels sprouts - these brassicas are the exception to the rule, they need to be sown and planted in summer and autumn, as they have such a long growing time, it's too late to plant now to expect a decent harvest within the growing season.

Growing Garlic!

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Garlic is one of the easiest and least fuss vege crops you can grow. It takes up hardly any room (width wise above the soil) and once planted it requires little care other than moist soil. Traditionally garlic is planted on the shortest day and harvested on the longest day. It can be planted in the autumn and winter.

Garlic thrives if given basics - food, water and plenty of sun. It will grow in both garden beds and containers.

PREPARE

The better the soil, the better your plants will grow. If you are starting with an existing garden bed dig in organic matter like sheep pellets and Tui Compost to your soil. Then add a layer of Tui Vegetable Mix. Ideally leave the soil for a day or two, or until the next weekend before planting. This allows the compost and worms to harmonise and adjust before planting.

If planting in pots and containers use Tui Vegetable Mix.

PLANT

Garlic bulbs are readily available in garden centres in winter, buy a whole bulb like you would at the supermarket. Steer clear of planting garlic from supermarkets as often it has been treated to stop it sprouting away in the supermarket – particularly if it’s been imported from China.

Planting in garden beds:

• Break up each bulb into cloves, it is these cloves which you plant NOT the whole bulb.
• Bury each clove finger depth at least 5cm below the ground (twice as deep as the length of the clove). Shallow planting will cause big problems. When the plants grow the roots can’t support the weight of the heavy leaves and fall over, pulling the whole plant out of the ground. Hence always plant deep!
• Once planted, shoots will appear within a month or so.

Planting in pots and containers:

• Garlic is happy growing in pots and containers, in a pot the size of a kitchen bucket you can plant about six cloves of garlic.
• Choose a pot or container with good drainage and position in a spot that receives full sun.
• Break up each bulb into cloves, it is these cloves which you plant NOT the whole bulb.
• Fill with Tui Vegetable Mix.
• Bury each clove finger depth at least 5cm below the mix (twice as deep as the length of the clove).

NOURISH

Feed your plants and they will feed you. Plants use nutrients from the soil as they grow, so replenishing the nutrients ensures your plants grow to their full potential.

For garlic planted in garden beds feed every four weeks during key growth periods. Tui Vegetable Food is a rich formulation of fertilisers including dolomite, blood and bone and sheep manure dust designed to encourage healthy vegetable growth and microbial and earthworm activity in the soil. If planting in pots and containers use an all purpose variety, such as Tui NovaTec Premium fertiliser. 

Apply Seasol through the season to encourage larger cloves.

Garlic needs to be kept well watered to produce large bulbs, particularly as the bulbs are starting to form in November and December.

Well watered, well nourished plants will have a better chance of keeping insect pests and diseases at bay.

PROTECT

The weather, weeds, pest insects and diseases can all impact on the success of your garden.

Keep your garden weed free. Protect your garlic plants from the elements with layers of Tui Pea Straw Mulch to keep the soil moist and cool when the garlic is actively growing.

Be vigilant and stop unwanted insects and diseases from ruining your garlic plants. Garlic are relatively pest and disease free but the Tui Plant Protection range will help you put a stop to any problems that arise. If aphids are a problem treat with Tui Insect Control for Fruit & Veges.

HARVEST

Harvest in summer once the tops start to die back. Don’t be tempted to pull the bulbs out by the leaves, dig up with a fork and leave to dry on the top of the ground for a week or so, then plait and store somewhere dry and away from directly sunlight.

Keep a few good heads of your own garlic to use as the stock of next year’s crop. You can expect about 150 plants from a dozen heads of garlic.

Pasta Sauce! Mmmmmmmmm Yummy!

Winter Planting

Autumn Planting Guide

When you’re starting out in the garden it can be pretty demotivating when your carefully tended plants fail to flourish. We joined forces with Tui’s Facebook friends to provide some advice on succeeding in the garden this season so you can successfully 'grow your own'.

PLANNING

Key to success is planting plants suited to your environment:

• Where are the sunny, shady and windy spots? Some plants require more sun than others, and some more shade.
• What kind of soil do you have – rich dark brown, clay or sandy? Plants thrive in different kinds of soil, and by knowing what kind you have, you can add the right soil amendments to your garden before planting.
• What is growing well locally? Check out the neighbours to see what plants are thriving, that you like the look of.
• Head along to the garden centre and ask them what plants will suit your conditions.

PLANTING

To ensure your plants get off to the best start and grow successfully it is so important to make sure you are planting into nutrient rich soil. Add organic matter to your soil like sheep pellets or a layer of Tui Compost before planting, or plant into a planting mix designed for the type of plant – like Tui Vegetable Mix.

Plants that can thrive with less attention include:

• Veges & herbs: silverbeet, garlic, Miner’s lettuce, rocket, rhubarb, Jerusalem and globe artichokes, leeks, mint, rosemary, thyme, oregano, parsley.
• Fruit: raspberries and blackberries.
• Flowers: calendula, lavender, marigolds, sunflowers, salvia, yarrow, daylily, red hot poker.

For something different, succulents are a great option as they are easy to grow and low maintenance. They will thrive without water for weeks!

Tui’s Facebook friends had success with the following veges, with little effort: lettuce, peas, microgreens, silverbeet, radish, beetroot, basil and rhubarb.

FEED & WATER

Water is the lifeline of your garden and lack of water is a common cause for plants dying. Installing a watering system will help – you can easily create your own with a soak hose, or setting up sprinklers around your garden. Alternatively there are more sophisticated systems you can buy. A watering system will save you the time and effort of walking around the garden with the hose or watering can.

Layers of Tui Pea Straw Mulch around plants will conserve moisture, making your watering efforts last longer.

Like people, plants need food too, so make sure you feed your garden as required and give plants a dose of Seasol plant tonic every month or so to make them thrive.

Eco-Warrior Cooking

A huge thank you to Matt & Kylie for working with the Eco-warrior leaders this week to make some very yummy pizza bread and lemon muffins!

Eco-Warriors 2015

Please meet our wonderful Eco-Warrior team for 2015 (top) and our leaders who are in charge of the junior, middle and senior school recycling and food scraps.