Keep your crops growing

Over the growing season it's a good idea to care for your existing plants to keep them happy and healthy.  This will ensure they keep rewarding you with fresh homegrown food. 

Follow our handy guide below and learn how to enjoy your crops for longer!

Observation

Now more than ever there is more enjoyment to be had from a quiet wander around the garden. The feeling of grass between your toes, a new flower in bloom or fruiting coming along on trees and edibles – it’s amazing what you can spot from one day to the next and how much you can enjoy just by looking. 

Doing this regularly allows you to observe the plants you have growing in the garden, and if you spot something that needs attention it can be tended to quickly so it doesn’t become as much of a problem or task. This includes spotting pests and diseases on plants, flowers that need deadheading, weeds, and plants looking hungry or unhappy.

If frosts are forecast, remember to cover any tender seedlings with a grow tunnel, frost cloth, glass or a homemade cloche (you can get creative with coverings!) The idea is to create a warm, sheltered environment for your plants that allows light in.

Feeding

Plants need to be fed to stay happy! They use nutrients from the soil as they grow so replenishing nutrients during the growing season keeps plants healthy and maximises production.

• Add organic matter like sheep pellets and compost back to your soil, and feed your plants with a general garden fertiliser or one specially blended for your plant or crop.
• Use our fertiliser selection tool to pick the perfect fertiliser for your plants.
• Apply Tui Organic Seaweed Plant Tonic at least once a month between feedings to help keep your garden healthy and strengthen against insects and disease. Water-in newly planted seedlings with seaweed plant tonic to give them the best start possible.
• Utilise homemade options including compost and worm tea from your worm farm! Dilute your worm tea at a ratio of 1 part worm tea to 10 parts water and feed your whole garden with your homemade fertiliser.

Harvest leafy greens regularly to encourage new growth.

Weeding

Keep on top of weeding as weeds can harbour overwintering insects and eggs as well as fungal spores. Weeds also use nutrients from the soil that your plants could be using.

Watering

Keep your garden well watered. Regular deep soakings are better than shallow watering. Water early in the day or later in the evening, taking care to water the soil not the foliage where possible, to limit encouraging disease.

Collect rainwater in buckets or barrels to help save on water!

Mulching

Mulching your garden suppresses weed growth and helps keep soil moist. If you don’t have any mulch on hand you can make your own using fallen leaves, composted grass clippings from the lawn, pine needles and straw you might already have. 

Spread the mulch around your veges and plants, this also adds valuable organic matter to the soil, which is important if there are summer water restrictions.

Pest and disease control

If you spot any bugs on your plants try blasting them off with a hose or by using digital control – squishing bugs with your fingers. There may be times where you are not be able to get to the garden centre to find a suitable control. Here are some homemade remedies that may help keep pests and diseases at bay, until you can. 

• Spray aphid infested stems, leaves, and buds with very diluted soapy water. Use 1 tablespoon of liquid soap to 1 litre of water, completely spray top and underside of leaves to dripping. Repeat as required.
• Mites and other insects: Mix two tablespoons of hot chilli pepper or cayenne pepper with a few drops of liquid soap into 500ml of water. Let it stand overnight and then spray, make sure the underside of the leaf is sprayed.
• Leaf curl starts appearing in early spring on stone fruit trees. Spray a mixture of apple cider vinegar and water in winter and early spring when buds appear, then every couple of weeks. This will help with brown rot, black spot and leaf curl, to name a few. Use at a rate of 1 – 2 cups of apple cider vinegar to 5 litres of water, or, 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar to 1 litre of water. Remove infected plant material.
• Later in the season when powdery mildew appears mix 1 teaspoon of baking soda in 1 litre of warm water with a dash of liquid soap. Spray to run-off and repeat when necessary, remove infected plant material.
• With plenty of leafy greens and brassicas going in the ground now, it is a good idea to cover these crops with a layer of fine netting to stop white cabbage butterfly laying their eggs on your plants. Planting early in the season will get a head start on the white cabbage butterfly, place a cloche over crops to for extra protection.
• Spring is a busy time for slugs and snails. If you don’t have any Tui Quash on hand, try cracked egg shells around seedlings or beer traps! If you can give up a small amount of your favourite ale – leave a wide jar or dish in the garden to attract slugs that will crawl in and drown.

The best soap to use for garden remedies is pure liquid soap. Dishwash liquid is okay to use but check it has no bleach agents before using.

Spray early in the morning or late in the afternoon so that the water has time to dry on the foliage. Always do a test patch on a small area first to make sure your home made remedies are compatible with your plants.

Remove diseased plant material and burn or bin rather than compost to avoid spreading disease.

Deadheading

Deadheading flowers that are spent makes room for fresh new blooms. Remove flower heads from spring flowering bulbs and roses that have finished for the season. New seasons flowers will soon be bursting into life.