May in the Kitchen Garden
What’s happening in your garden this month? Its always handy to get out there and make a note of what is fruiting, flowering, growing, dying, being harvested – anything that is happening in your garden this week or month. Having a garden journal is really helpful – especially when you are learning and you are getting to know what your own particular patch of paradise is looking like. So let me encourage you to get out at least once a week and make a note – or even take some pictures for future reference.
As all of you who are following the Crop Rotation method outlined in the poster (see below if you don’t know what I’m talking about!) this is a month by month guide to your growing year – and then setting you up for the following one. Here in the Southern Hemisphere we are in late Auttumn and for me at just about exactly on the 45Degrees South latitude (halfway between the equator and the South Pole) in a temperate climate, that means the frosts have started and most of this season’s crops are coming to an end.
There are still plenty of crabapples on the trees, hawthorn berries in the hedges, fruit on the ground and vegetables to be gathered. I went through and did my own list. At the moment there is still some sweet corn, tomatoes, capsicums and chillies (the last ones). Carrots, onions, lettuce, celery, silverbeet, potatoes, parsley, sage, rosemary, fennel, – and then there will be more lettuce and all the brassicas that are still getting a bit of growing time before winter truly sets in.
Today I popped out and did a quick video of the bed that I have been growing Group 3 plants in – the ones that like warmth such as tomatoes, capscicums, courgettes, corn and pumpkin. Most of the tender subtropical plants have been well and truly frosted so time to give this bed a good cleanout and then get it ready for the next cycle in the Crop Rotation Plan. My garden New Year is in June with the official planting out of the new seasons Garlic. So work this month revolves around clearing out the old and prepping the beds for the new.
So I’ll start with Group 3 Bed and then do some more about the others in another post. You can find the video on mentioned above on the facebook group – see the link below.
I’ll also put up a recipe for Mint Jelly that I made using all those beautiful crabapples and the last of the mint.
I know I cover a few topics of interest to the professional countrywoman out there but some of you are here for the KitchenVegetable Garden notes. So for those who are following the Crop Rotation Poster and want more info and details on that then feel free to join the Crop Rotation Poster and Garden Calendar facebook group which you can find here. I’ll post the video mentioned above there as well as on the PCW facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/353726023718424
https://www.facebook.com/groups/353726023718424/permalink/457695423321483 for the video post.