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Showing 6721 - 6750 of 20161 comments

Shallots (also Eschalots) 29 Jun, Jean (Australia - temperate climate): I have just purchased some shallot bulbs which I want to plant in the garden beds. Just recent;y I smothered the garden beds in dried chicken manure hoping to fertilise the soil for spring planting. My instructions say "enrich soil with a low nitrogen fertiliser". Would this soil now be too rich in nitrogen? What would be a low nitrogen fertiliser that I could buy?
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Shallots (also Eschalots) 02 Jul, Mike L (Australia - temperate climate): Depends how rich the soil was before you put the chicken manure on. Either rake some of it away from where you are going to plant the bulbs, it not dug in already. Or dig the manure in a couple of times to spread it throughout the soil profile. I like to give my shallots a bit of a hit with fertiliser to make them strong (and produce good big bulbs for planting next year for the ones I keep).
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Cardoon 28 Jun, Margie (USA - Zone 5a climate): There used to be a clump of cardoons that would come up every year in front of a restaurant in this area. I just found 2 plants at a nursery and am wondering how I can protect them over the winter.
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Cardoon 14 Oct, Leslie Trail (USA - Zone 6b climate): You can cut them down to the ground and put some mulch on over them... if it warms up in the winter be sure to give it some water. You can also dig them up in the fall and pot them, then plant in the spring. I found a video on you tube that talked about saving seeds for Cardoons and Artichokes but it had lots of other great info like digging them up and potting.
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Cape Gooseberry (also Golden Berry, Inca Berry ) 28 Jun, Kate D (USA - Zone 9a climate): I acquired a couple of 18 in/46 cm Cape GB plants in small pots yesterday. I was hoping to plant them in the ground in my sunny flower bed off my back patio. After reading comments here I'm now considering planting one in a pot which I can move in the Winter months and the other in the ground which gets heavily mulched before the onset of frost, and maybe cover it with burlap during the dead of Winter. Most of my perennials seem to survive our Winters in this bed. This will be another one of my experiments. I also have some concerns about the size of this plant since I have never seen one...So I have planned to give it 20 in/50 cm all around. The ground doesn't get warm here until May, but our days are long in the Summer here at the 48 lat.
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Choko/Chayote (also Chayote squash, christophene, chouchou, mirliton) 28 Jun, Peter (Australia - temperate climate): We had an enormous Choko growing at the back of our chook shed when I was a kid. Mum pressure cooked small ones whole, slash in half, dab of butter, yum! We sold big ones off front verge 2 for a trey bit (threepenny coin). Found out later Choko was used a lot in apple pie, since it would bulk up the filling without imparting any flavours of its own. Saw an old one in Green Grocers, must revitalise the heritige!
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Yam/Oca (also Oka) 27 Jun, Melinda (Australia - temperate climate): Hi - just wondered when it is right or if it is right to plant and grow yams in Goulburn, NSW, esp in the middle of Winter (heavy frosts, freezing conditions). Thanks!
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Yam/Oca (also Oka) 29 Jun, Mike L (Australia - temperate climate): Melinda , Read the notes - it is all there. Try Temperate and Cool /Mountain climates. A BIG HINT - when to plant and when to harvest.
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Carrot 27 Jun, Nicole (South Africa - Summer rainfall climate): I have read somewhere that you can't use the soil from a previous carrot harvest again. Is this true and why?
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Ginger 26 Jun, Meisie Helm (South Africa - Semi-arid climate): Can I plant ginger in Bethlehem Freestate South Africa
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Horseradish 25 Jun, Ingwi Basher (New Zealand - temperate climate): Hi, I would love to find out where in the Hawkes Bay region I can buy a plant or cutting? Having grown up in Sweden / Europe with many traditional dishes containing the wonderfully hot root (grated and mixed in sauces, potato salads etc. .. the list is long) I truly miss the unique flavour ...
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Rosemary 24 Jun, ... (Australia - temperate climate): need to grow a herb outside in sydney winter - can I grow rosemary
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Rosemary 26 Jun, Mike L (Australia - temperate climate): Go to Rosemary and read up all about it.
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Rosemary 26 Jun, Mark (Australia - cool/mountain climate): Yes, rosemary will go well in Sydney. I have grown rosemary in every location I have lived. western Sydney, western NSW, S/E QLD and now in the snowy mountains.
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Yacon (also Sunroot) 24 Jun, Greg (Australia - cool/mountain climate): Firstly I’m not sure cool/mountain climate best describes my climate, Horsham Victoria (January average temperatures > 30 and cool winters with frosts. I planted Yacons in pots in August and garden bed in September. Plants still 2 - 3 feet high and green. When should/should have I dig them up? greg
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Yacon (also Sunroot) 28 Jun, Mike L (Australia - temperate climate): Read the comments here, it generally tells you these things. Plant time Oct -Nov. Harvest time 25 weeks.
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Potato 23 Jun, JAI (USA - Zone 7b climate): Can I have a 2nd planting of seed potatoes in very late/early July in containers?
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Yam/Oca (also Oka) 23 Jun, Amanda (Australia - temperate climate): Hi I live in Mildura vic Australia is it possible to grow yam here, as we have just moved here... Thank you
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Yam/Oca (also Oka) 25 May, Cheryl (Australia - temperate climate): .i'm wondering if Amanda tried growing yams and if so can l get some tubers or buy some yams .l live in mildura too .
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Yam/Oca (also Oka) 28 Jun, Mike L (Australia - temperate climate): It does say plant (P) Oct to Nov for Temperate climate.
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Sunflower 23 Jun, Susie (USA - Zone 8b climate): When is the last month I can successfully plant Mammoth Sunflower seeds in my zone 8b?
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Sunflower 25 Jun, (USA - Zone 8b climate): I asked that question in a FB garden group and they said to plant now
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French tarragon 23 Jun, Anne-Marie (Australia - temperate climate): My french tarragon that I have been growing for approx. 3 years now is growing more as a prostrate plant than an upright plant. The height is probably only about 7.5 cm but it has lots of long ground covering branches. Do you have any thoughts on why this would be so? Please use my e-mail address for your response. Much appreciated. Anne-Marie
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French tarragon 15 Jun, Ii (Australia - sub-tropical climate): I have exactly the same issue and find that the taste is overpowering and bitter, and the leaves are small. It’s not as sweet as the tarragon I know. Did you find a solution?
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French tarragon 31 Jul, kelvan (Australia - temperate climate): Cut plant to ground level in winter.Pull up and divide your plant/s early spring.
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French tarragon 28 Jun, Mike L (Australia - temperate climate): Try a new planting from different stock.
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French tarragon 28 Jun, Mike L (Australia - sub-tropical climate): Comments here are by the general public not Gardenate so no response by email. I don't know anything about French Tarragon.
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Tomato 23 Jun, Mike Ktori (Australia - sub-tropical climate): We have recently moved from the Derwent Valley in Tasmania to Sandstone Point in Queensland. We formally had to plant our tomatoes under glass and never succeeded in having fruit in time for Christmas.Now we have room for a few raised beds whereas we had acreage in the valley; I'm wondering if, in this warmer climate, I can have tomatoes year round.
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Tomato 28 Jun, Mike L (Australia - sub-tropical climate): You can grow all year round. Summer can become a but hot and very wet (as in inches of rain in hours) -use mulch around the plants. Best to grow a crop from late Feb for a winter picking crop and plant in mid August for crop into summer. Or even plant a succession crop each time also - 4-6 weeks between each planting. Only need 2-4 plants each time. .
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Cabbage 20 Jun, Steve from Kanahooka NSW (Australia - temperate climate): Hi Mike, Very interesting tips, I will try the worm castings in the shade cloth, sounds good. I also use brown gum leaves as a mulch around the plants, the garden worms love it, I also dig my browns into the soil after crops have finished as well, same as you. The reason I purchased a 2 compartment compost bin was to have varying compost NPK ratios. My compartment No.1 has 50% Browns to 50% Greens which is good for above ground growth and compartment No.2 will have approx. 80% Browns to 20% Greens for my below ground root vegies, I alter percentages all year round to suit the plants I am growing. In the winter I grow brassicas and I use 70% Greens to 30% Browns for more Nitrogen. I also pile my grass clippings on the gardens in the summer when I have excess clippings. BR...….Steve
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