Alan's Garden Blog

The compost I was waiting for finally got to the stage where I was happy with it on the first of March. I planted 34 purple garlic and 4 elephant. The following Wednesday I put in another 31 purple and 11 elephant. That’s when Jaye gave the order to cease planting. A bit late but I am confident that the quality of the composted soil and associated worms and micro-organisms will feed the hungry garlic right through winter and give me a bumper crop. We are still eating the garlic from our last harvest.

Their is a ton of science behind quick composting but I am not one to be out there with a thermometer in the middle of the night. I have been a bit slack and just cranked up my volume of compost for the big garlic planting in a couple of weeks. If the compost is not ready it will take nitrogen away from the garlic in the early stages which is not a good thing.

I already had about 1/4 of a metre of half done compost:

I have some surplus colours that you can have for the price of zinc. One small (1200mm x 600mm) in Cottage Green and Wilderness and one large in Classic Cream.

There are still plenty of veges to grow in now: cabbage, carrots, lettuce, chinese veges, onions, peas, shallots and silverbeet to name a few. I’m sticking with what works for me, spring onions (they grow quicker and have a better yield than schollots), chinese cabbage, carrots, chinese veges (still a fast grower), snow peas and silverbeet. I have already planted some ‘green manure’ in about one third of my garden area which will be ready to dig in for planting August/September. I will be taking out my sixty odd garlic then as well and plan to plant a heap of spuds and ginger. Fresh ginger from your own garden is just the best.