August in the Kitchen Garden
“Spring stands at the gate with her finger on the latch”
I love this line by Patience Strong where she is perfectly describing this month where even though it is still winter, the promise of spring is in the air and popping up around us. She was of course writing in Northern Hemisphere so it was February she was writing for but the euivalent month for us down at the bottom of the world is August.
Even though it is still winter, there are signs that the miracle of spring is just around the corner. One of the miracles is that despite the ongoing cold weather, the occasional warm day will get the sap rising in the gardener as much as the plants! However you will need to resist the urge a little longer as it is a bit early to sow much outside just yet. Transfer that energy instead into preparing your garden beds and into getting your potting shed in order and prepared for sowing indoors which you can start to do this month. If you live in a warmer area, your spring is going to be earlier than where I am gardening in the south so adapt these notes to your conditions
Watch out too for signs of weed growth this month – this is a good sign that the soil is warming enough to germinate seed. Early peas, broad beans and onions can be sown direct this month. Even a row of early potatoes can go in the ground but continue to protect from frost. Others can be started off by chitting in a warm spot indoors. I would also sow extra peas and onions indoors as well just to keep all bases covered. Its easy to jump the gun a bit and sometimes it’s better to wait another month but I get that gardeners are ever optimistic.
If you haven’t done so yet, check your Crop Rotation Poster
and look under the Pre-season preparation in the cultivation notes around the outside and you will see what you need to do to prepare each bed for the family of crops you will plant. Legume beds (peas and beans) will appreciate lots of compost, wood-ash, blood and bone, lime and carbon from spring mulches dug in. Same for the next bed of green leafy vegetables.
Beds destined for root crops such as parsnips, beetroot and carrots will not like too much bulk or fresh manure so are happy to rely on the leftovers of the previous season. On the other hand, garlic, onions, celery and leeks that I grow in the same bed do love plenty of manure and compost so I usually divide that bed in half in terms of cultivation. They all appreciate deep well dug soil. The beds set aside for heat loving plants such as capsicums and tomatoes prefer more acidic soil so I don’t add lime to those beds but plenty of compost.
Those of you who have gown green crops over winter can chop and drop now and get that dug into the top 15 cm of the soil where all those lovely bugs can do their work of breaking it down. Whatever you do, never dig in wet ground though – wait until it is less sodden. Raised beds have the advantage here as the drainage is improved automatically and the soil can often be a few degrees warmer than ground based beds.
Seed potatoes are appearing in the shops. Potatoes can be chitted from now on or planted in a warm spot and protected from the frosts that will be expected for the next few months. Use old egg cartons, sit each potato on end and put on in a warm light space.
You may find you will need to water the garlic you planted in June and July to get them swelling and moving. It has been very dry here in Otago and we all need rain. Once the young shoots are up, liquid fertilise every couple of weeks. They will respond to plenty of feeding while growing and you will be rewarded with lovely big bulbs in summer.
Parsnips
I have come to the conclusion that I am a bit of a selfish gardener. I don’t tend to grow plants that I don’t really like to eat – and that includes parsnips. I am married to a proper southerm man though who does like them as well as those other cool climate root crops such as swedes and turnips so I am going to give them a go again this year. As for all of your root crop a deeply dug, well drained bed without any bulky bits in will produce the best results. The fertility from the previous year should be enough for parsnips and carrots but you can add a light dressing of lime and general purpose fertilizer if you wish. No fresh manure though – that is often a cause of forked roots and too much nitrogen leads to plenty of green leafy growth above and not much root growth. Parsnips need a long growing period so you can start sowing from late August onwards. Fresh seed is best and I have heard that pouring a kettle of boiling water over the seed row is helpful. Maybe that is something you can experiment with – try it on one row but not the other and see if it works.
August Cultivation
If it is still too early for outdoor sowing in your area you can start off in seed trays in a warm spot. Asian greens, Lettuce, cauli, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, silverbeet, peas, broad beans, Parslely, coriander, rocket. Later in the month: onions, beetroot, carrots, celery, leeks, parsnips (direct), turnips, parsley. Sow early peas and broad beans direct and in some trays indoors just to be on the safe side. Get your garlic in if you haven’t already.
Plant; Cabbage, Cauli, Lettuce, silverbeet, Rhubarb, Asparagus, Shallots, Onion, Garlic, Artichokes, Strawberries, potatoes (keep protected from frost) cabbages, silverbeet,lettuce, parsely, peas, broadbeans.