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Showing 1111 - 1140 of 1601 comments
Carrot 09 Jun, John (Australia - temperate climate)
Short of sterilising the soil (not recommended) you have a number of options. Crop rotation is you first option; by doing this you will be breaking the cycle of these pests. Plant nematode-resistant varieties; this is not so easy as seed will probably only be available from commercial seed companies. Plant marigolds in the season before your carrots: the pungent smelling marigold roots give off a substance that will deter nematodes. In some South-East Asian countries villagers do this to protect their vegetables, linking the gold flower to Buddha who is said to be protecting their crops. Trust this helps/
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Carrot 09 Oct, Leigh (New Zealand - sub-tropical climate)
My aunty swore by growing carrots in sand, I tried it by pouring sand into the hole at planting time, I didn't have any problems( it could have been beginers luck, am trying again this year in a different spot in the garden). That said I don't know if this was to deter nematodes or carrot rustfly/ or eelworms. Good luck
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Leeks 08 Jun, Shane Cave (New Zealand - temperate climate)
I live on a sand dune but with raised vegetable beds with added topsoil and lots of home made compost - made from kitchen and varied garden waste - but my leeks wont thicken. How can I get better leeks?
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Leeks 09 Jun, John (Australia - temperate climate)
Leeks prefer a moist clay type soil. I suggest you keep building your soil up with heavier soil, if you can get it, and plant your leeks closer together, making the most of smaller leeks in the meantime. Maybe leaving them in the ground a bit longer will help them to thicken.
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Brussels sprouts 31 May, Sarah Johnson (New Zealand - cool/mountain climate)
Hi what is the best fertiliser for my brussel sprouts in pots some say Tui Vegetable food but I am reading to avoid too much nitrogen as they are 30cm tall now. some say Tui Novatec premimum or blood and bone???? so confusing thanks very much kind regards Sarah
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Strawberries (from seeds) 26 May, Maurice (New Zealand - temperate climate)
Where can I purchase strawberry seeds and peppermint geranium seeds or plants from Thank you
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Strawberries (from seeds) 29 May, John (Australia - temperate climate)
Yates have a small runnerless Alpine strawberry available. You may find some on the internet under 'heritage seeds'. Most people buy runners because they be bought in quantity, are virus free and yield within the first season.
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Sweet Potato (also Kumara) 23 May, Annie Davis (New Zealand - temperate climate)
I am also trying to find out if there is such a thing as kumara "seeds" and where they can be found?
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Sweet Potato (also Kumara) 24 Jun, Richard Clough (New Zealand - temperate climate)
Annie...We simply bought a small kumara from a local supermarket, suspended it with toothpicks in a cut off coke bottle of water. When the shoots, or "slips" began to sprout (2-3wks) we then placed them in a small jam jar of water until roots began to develop, then planted out in fish bins of potting mix. We were late- late Dec & Jan, have just harvested. A lot were long & skinny, but perfect for the hot air cooker & crockpot. Some were like the shop sizes! We ended up with about 3-4 kg from a single 300g kumara (it's still growing sprouts on the laundry windowsill)! Hope this helps someone out there. Best wishes...
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Sweet Potato (also Kumara) 28 May, toya (New Zealand - temperate climate)
If your lucky you can find some at local garden places for tipu which you can grow out of the kumara tubers by place half of it into water.. they should grow stems/vines which you can snap off & placing those into water to help roots grow... or just cut sections of the tuber off..... but when planting them... they need that late spring early summer heat. Then harvest around now or when frosty etc...... just my 5 cents here lol
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Sweet Potato (also Kumara) 24 May, John (Australia - temperate climate)
Australian Seeds in Western Australia list a native sweet potato - Ipomoea costata but I don't know of any suppliers of seeds of the popular varieties. They are grown from cuttings as they establish quickly and will yield in their first season. Seedlings would probably take another year.
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Celery 19 May, David (New Zealand - temperate climate)
My celery is growing quite well in Auckland but is getting this brown fungal problem (I think) - the leaves wither and the stems go brown . Is there any safe spray,etc to use? Thanks David
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Celery 22 May, John (Australia - temperate climate)
It sounds like a fungal disease. Celery prefers foll sun and good drainage with good air circulation. Fungal problems are exacerbated in wet soils, high humidity and poor airflow. The fungal spores are soil-born so I suggest you try a new bed with good drainage. A lot of rain and high humidity will make this problem worse. Trust this helps.
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Silverbeet (also Swiss Chard or Mangold) 15 May, Heather (New Zealand - temperate climate)
I live in the centre of north island and have shifted to a sloping veg garden. All sorts of beans grow but not much else. Silverbeet does no thrive cucumbers tomatoes all a bit sad. We have planted some mustard seeds whic are thriving, with the idea of digging in. My section is very wet during winter. Hope you can help as I love a veg garden
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Silverbeet (also Swiss Chard or Mangold) 15 May, Jack (Australia - temperate climate)
I suggest you increase organic matter in the soil by growing green manure crops or old manure and digging it in. Adding washed sand will also help. Not many plants like to sit in soggy soil so anything you can do to open the soil up and help it drain will help.You could also add a good dressing of garden lime as wet soils are often acidic. Now is a good time to do that. Only use garden lime and give the beds a good covering. We'll look forward to hearing how you go in the coming spring.
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Parsnip 14 May, liz (New Zealand - cool/mountain climate)
hello - i also need some help with parsnips - i have a raised bed and put in plenty of compost most years - this last year i managed to get a whole row of parsnips to grow but - they are so tiny no bigger than my fingers and wrinkly like norah batties stockings but taste so darn good - my question is - how do i get them to grow into proper big parsnips - have i got something missing from the soil of my garden that they need to grow long and big??? thanks
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Parsnip 15 May, John (Australia - temperate climate)
Parsnips like deep friable soil to get long roots. Too much manure will give you twisted and forked roots. Planting them after a crop like lettuces, cabbages, beans, tomatoes, pumpkins, etc is good as the soil will be loosened up and there will be less nitrogen in the soil. An excess of nitrogen will cause big bushy tops and small roots.
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Garlic 14 May, liz (New Zealand - cool/mountain climate)
how deep do i plant the garlic bulb - do i start it off first trying to get some roots developing or do i just plant a clove at whatever depth they require - thanks
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Garlic 15 May, Ken (Australia - temperate climate)
I normally plant mine point end up about 25-30 mm below the surface. They can take a while to come up just like other bulbs such as daffodils.
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Garlic 17 May, Tony Robinson (New Zealand - cool/mountain climate)
I live just out of Dunedin where we get frosts and occasional snow storms, our winters could be classed as severe. Garlic is similar to shallots in that it was regarded years ago to plant both shallots and garlic on the shortest day (June 21st.) and harvest on the longest day (December 21st) How-ever I now plant my garlic at intervals from early May through to mid August with great results. I always plant my clove straight into the ground with the top about half an inch below the surface. Space your cloves about six inches apart, the best of luck with your future plantings. Tony
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Coriander (also Cilantro, Chinese parsley) 11 May, Jos (New Zealand - temperate climate)
Coriander seed sold to be used in cookingoften doesn't give very good results. Not worth the hassle
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Coriander (also Cilantro, Chinese parsley) 12 May, Jack (Australia - temperate climate)
There's a fair change that the seed has lost its viability but still okay for cooking.
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Sweet Potato (also Kumara) 11 May, Jody Waaka (New Zealand - temperate climate)
Kia ora.Im thinking of starting a kumara garden soon.Where do you buy the seed from
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Sweet Potato (also Kumara) 13 May, Leslie Viljoen (New Zealand - temperate climate)
I'm not an expert but if you cut a Kumara into pieces, it will grow vines from the "eyes". We have one growing like crazy - but since it's cold now I think it's going to die.
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Sweet Potato (also Kumara) 15 May, Daniel (Australia - temperate climate)
With Kumeras, they will grow if you plant a whole kumara but they wont produce tubers. The shoots that do grow from that can be used as cuttings, and as these new cuttings grow, you will get the Kumera tubers growing from those new plants. Needs a long warm summer to grow bigger tubers! Hope that helps
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Beans - climbing (also Pole beans, Runner beans, Scarlet Runners) 09 May, ali (New Zealand - temperate climate)
Hi, I am looking into growing fardenlosa shiny beans commercially and have found a lot of useful info. However I can't seem to find info and how long these plants will produce a good crop and when to re sow?
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Beans - climbing (also Pole beans, Runner beans, Scarlet Runners) 10 May, John (Australia - temperate climate)
Shiny Fardelosa beans take 11-13 weeks to harvest and will bear for 2-3 months. If you are growing them undercover they can be planted all year otherwise plant them in spring up until later in the year.
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Beans - climbing (also Pole beans, Runner beans, Scarlet Runners) 24 Sep, Mel (New Zealand - cool/mountain climate)
Hi John, I am growing Fardenlosa in pots in a glasshouse (1500)... are bumblebees the best option to pollinate? cheers
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Beans - climbing (also Pole beans, Runner beans, Scarlet Runners) 08 May, Mary Holland (New Zealand - temperate climate)
Will runner beans give beans for more than 1 year, if left in the soil.?
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Beans - climbing (also Pole beans, Runner beans, Scarlet Runners) 08 May, Liz (New Zealand - temperate climate)
Yes, they will keep going unless you get frosts.
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Showing 1111 - 1140 of 1601 comments
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This planting guide is a general reference intended for home gardeners. We recommend that you take into account your local conditions in making planting decisions. GardenGrow is not a farming or commercial advisory service. For specific advice, please contact your local plant suppliers, gardening groups, or agricultural department. The information on this site is presented in good faith, but we take no responsibility as to the accuracy of the information provided.
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