If you thought there were lots of green beans in July, there are always more in August.
The same applies to courgettes, which seem to grow more fruits each day.
Tomatoes are cropping well too, although it may be a couple more weeks before they are at a glorious maximum.
All fruit is cropping abundantly also, as plants seem to be in overdrive to produce as much as they can before autumn arrives.
This is a time to pick, pick, pick and don’t waste the wonderful harvest from the garden.
A word on water
It’s always hard to know what the West Cork weather will do from day to day.
We may have plenty of rain to keep soils damp or we may have a dry soil problem.
Most established plants have deep enough root systems to survive a week or two of dry weather, but small plants will suffer if they aren’t watered.
There is a hosepipe ban in place, which makes things a little more difficult.
Prioritise plants in containers or those grown under cover and, within that, water the smallest things first.
You can use a watering can and any washing water can be scooped up and reused around the garden.
A lot of soap or detergent in water isn’t the best, but larger shrubs and established plants will still be grateful for hydration.
Start to water vulnerable plants before soil dries too much – it’s hard to stop run-off if you pour water on a dry cracked soil.
It may seem like hard work, but it won’t be for long. Rain is usually on the way and the idea is to help plants survive until they get a downpour to revive them.
Buy small plants for winter crops
Basil
It’s been a hit and miss year for basil in my polytunnel. Some plants have grown really well and others failed altogether. Basil loves sun and doesn’t like to be overwatered. Maybe some plants got more water than others. It’s still important to keep picking leaves on healthy plants since this encourages more to
grow.
Tomatoes and basil are made for each other. The flavour of each enhances the taste of the other. Simple tomato and basil salads are a treat to be enjoyed through the summer, while my other favourite use for basil is to make pesto. Follow a simple recipe and freeze a few small jars full of pesto, and bring these out when you want to make pasta that tastes of
summer.
Are there fewer weeds?
Weed growth hits a maximum in July, but it does slow down a bit in August. Keep using a hoe to clear small weeds at speed. Hand-weed for deep rooted perennial weeds and use mulch if possible to slow down weed growth. There is less weeding to do each month from here on so you are definitely over the worst of it.
Time to sow
This is an important time to get out seed packets and work out what you want to grow through the autumn and winter. You may already have cabbages, kales, broccoli, cauliflowers and leeks growing well from spring sowings.
This is the time to sow some winter lettuce varieties, winter spinach, spring cabbage, Swiss chard, mustard leaves, purslane, rocket, mizuna, corn salad and parsley. You may also want to try sowing a hardy beetroot like Boltardy, or a few early carrots, in a greenhouse or polytunnel. Winter turnips do well if started now and Florence fennel can crop well under cover in a mild winter. You can sow a row of kale to use as cut-and-come-again salad leaves, if you don’t have larger plants in the
garden.
Look out for market stalls and garden centres selling small plants, as these will put you ahead by a few weeks and will help to extend the cropping season. There’s time to make more sowings for a few weeks yet.
Enjoy any pop-up flowers in the border.
Flower borders
There are always a few random annual plants that pop up in flower borders. These probably produced seed in the year before, but sometimes it can be longer than that since you last saw them growing. I always enjoy these pop up appearances and I enjoy the new genetic combinations that allow for different colours or markings. It’s worth saving seed if you like the new arrival, or you can leave it to chance and let seed fall where the plant is growing. If mulch is applied, or soil is forked over, you may just provide the perfect conditions for a flush of new arrivals next year.
Too many apples
Branches are weighed down with fruit this year and although lots have fallen, there are still too many. It’s worth picking (or shaking) small ones off, if they haven’t dropped naturally. Try to be ruthless, this gives remaining ones a better chance of swelling to full size.
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