Why gardening makes you HAPPIER!

Why gardening makes you HAPPIER: It can ward off depression, improve your mood and make you feel life is more worthwhile | Mail Online:
- Gardeners are less likely to display signs of depression
- Poll found 80 per cent of gardeners feel satisfied with their lives
- Only 67 per cent of non-gardeners feel the same way
Gardening falls into this category - it is good for both mental and physical health, and all social and age groups benefit. It provides a dose of nature.
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Огород. Пик сезона.

1. На огороде появляемся ранним утром или на закате. Днем +30!

I sowed today

- Pea Douce Provence is a compact growing variety that only reaches a height of 45cm.
Seeds germinate 7-10 days.

- Chicory, Radicchio “Palla Rossa 2” -“Red ball”
It’s a perennial, so you once you establish your plants, you can harvest your radicchio for many more years.
Days to germination: 6 to 10 days
Days to harvest: 60 to 80 days
There are three different types of chicory 'forcing' chicory, red chicory or radicchio and 'non-forcing' chicory. 'Palla Rossa', or sometimes called 'Palla rossa Zorzi Precoce', is a radicchio with a delicate, tangy flavour. It is best planted later in the year as it colours better in cooler weather.
It’s a leafy salad green, and not related the radish even though the names are similar. Radicchio is also sometimes called Italian chicory to further complicate things, though it is closely related.
For a second fall crop, you can start another batch of seeds about 8 to 10 weeks before you expect to get the first frosts of winter
Don’t flood the plants.
Once they go to seed (bolt), the leaves will almost immediately get too bitter to eat..
- Cucumbers - Cucumis sativus.
Time between sowing and harvesting 12-14 weeks.

Radish

Rat Tailed, Rat's Tail, Edible Podded Radish
Harvesting: 45 - 50 days to harvest.
Suggested Varieties:

'Rat's Tail' is the star of edible podded radishes. You may find seed that is simply labeled ‛Edible Podded' radish and it may have been some type of hybrid, but it should be very similar. ‛Munchen Bier' radish produces pungent pods as well as its long, white root.
Growing Tips:

Soil: Radishes like a faily neutral soil pH of around 6.0 to 7.0. Edible podded radishes are a bit more forgiving of soil because they are not forming underground bulbs.

Planting:There is little to be gained by starting 'Rat's Tail' radish seeds indoors. Wait until the ground has warmed, generally late spring, and direct seed about 1" deep. Thin plants to 18" apart.

Maintenance:

These are sprawling plants with long, spindly stems. They will start to flop when the flowers open and really need some type of support to lean against. Unless your soil is very poor, you should not need any supplemental fertilizer. More important is regular water, at least 1 inch per week, especially while the pods are forming. Once the pods start forming. Keep them picked. Larger pods will get tough and unpalatable. If you keep harvesting, plants should continue to produce for 4-8 weeks. However to insure a long harvest, succession plant every 2-3 weeks.
If you plan to save seeds, do not let 'Rat's Tail' cross pollinate with conventional radish varieties.

Pests & Problems:

'Rat's Tail' is a quick grower and few pests attack the pods. Aphids can be a problem, but can be hosed off or controlled with insecticidal soap.

Подумать о завтра.

На грядках пора сеять черную, маргеланскую редьки, репу, дайкон и кольраби. Желательно успеть до 15, а дайкон, особенно не крупноплодный может и до 25 потерпеть. Для осеннего и ранневесеннего потребления посеять лук батун, а еще лучше гибрид батуна с репчатым – зелени больше и перо нежнее. Обязательно посеять укроп, кервель и кинзу!

Каждый клочок земли, который высвобождается от овощных и зеленных культур – сразу же накрывать мульчей или засевать. Нет нужды в повторных посевах – сейте сидераты.
Отсюда!

Цитаты о саде-огороде.

"У отросших на 90-100 см молодых побегов малины прищипнуть макушки, удалить лишние побеги, оставляя на куст от 3 до 7 самых сильных. Вырезать отплодоносившие побеги на уровне почвы, удалить все побеги с признаками повреждения галлами." - Малину обрезают после сбора урожая, а макушки прищипывают при достижении молодых побегов 90 см высоты.

"Судя по погоде, придется после сбора урожая опрыскать настоем свежего навоза или сенной трухи."
Как их приготовить?
Сенную труху примерно 700-800 г заливают 10 л горячей воды и настивают 10-12 часов.
Свежий коровяк складывают в ведро на треть, заливают водой и настаивают 3-4 дня.
Дажее для опрыскивания берут 1 л настоя на 10 л воды.

Monty's favourite fruit.

Monty's favourite fruit - Plant features: Fruit & veg - gardenersworld.com:

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How to Grow Your Own Food

Kitchen Gardening 101: How to Grow Your Own Food | Kitchen Gardeners International:
Choosing Garden Crops

The most important recommendation after “start small” is “start with what you like to eat.” This may go without saying, but I have seen first-year gardens that don’t reflect the eating habits of their growers — a recipe for disappointment. That said, I believe in experimenting with one or two new crops per year that aren’t necessarily favorites for the sake of having diversity in the garden and on our plates.

One of the easiest and most rewarding kitchen gardens is a simple salad garden. Lettuces and other greens don’t require much space or maintenance, and grow quickly. Consequently, they can produce multiple harvests in most parts of the country. If you plant a “cut-and-come-again” salad mix, you can grow five to 10 different salad varieties in a single row. And if you construct a cold frame (which can be cheap and easy if you use salvaged storm windows), you can grow some hearty salad greens year-round.

When it comes to natural flavor enhancers, nothing beats culinary herbs. Every year I grow standbys such as parsley, chives, sage, basil, tarragon, mint, rosemary and thyme, but I also make an effort to try one or two new ones. One consequence of this approach is that I end up expanding my garden a little bit each year, but that’s OK, because my skills and gastronomy are expanding in equal measure, as are my sense of satisfaction and food security.

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Richard Sandford.

A former chef (with a Michelin star) and wine merchant, he has turned half an acre of his Berkshire farm into a productive plot.
The immaculate plants are defended against deer and rabbits by a tall fence and the garden contains a polytunnel, large fruit cage and a central flower bed.
Espaliered pears and apples edge beds that rotate tightly packed crops of brassicas, herbs, salad and garlic, while great pylons of scrambling vines produce shelling beans for year-round use.
“Apparently, to grow good asparagus you must add 20 tons of manure per acre."
Tomatoes are rich in lycopene, which is believed to fight damaging free radicals in the body. Richard chooses dark-skinned varieties as the colour is an indication of high levels of antioxidants.
Parsley contains vitamins A and C and is believed to help prevent macular degeneration (i.e. loss of eyesight).
Onions are rich in the flavonoid quercetin, which has a variety of health benefits, while preliminary scientific studies at the Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York suggest that garlic prevents breast and prostate cells from dividing, thus limiting tumour growth.
Horseradish contains thiocyanates which have been shown to provide some protection against cancer, while marjoram and thyme are respectively antioxidant and antiseptic.
So Richard produces the greenest chard, the most orange carrots, purple chillies, blueberries, blackberries, kale and asparagus, all to make up a richly coloured and flavoured diet.
The polytunnel is home to over 70 chillies including 'Hungarian Hot Wax’ and 'Aurora’.
It produces in excess of 250kg of tomatoes, such as 'Black Krim’, 'Purple Russian’ and 'Red Zebra’, which are eaten fresh, dried and preserved.
Home-made passata is a favourite, using 'Jersey Devil’ and 'Speckled Roman’ tomatoes. “We cook the tomatoes and strain off the juice to make tomato stock – nothing is wasted. And we also reduce passata with chilli and spice to make harissa paste,” he explains.
Roast tomato and garlic sauce, and tomato and chilli jam are favourites (see right). Sugar and salt are kept to a minimum while flavour is added with horseradish, black cumin and fresh herbs.
Japanese wineberry is the perfect example, the fruit tastes nice but you generally don’t get much of it. I put 12in (30cm) of seaweed and compost and clover mulch around the plants each year so I get sensible size fruit and lots of them.”
A gardener since the Seventies, Richard still regards the activity as fun. “I don’t plod away from year-to-year. I like to try out new things and experiment. One year I’ll plant 10 varieties of carrot, another I’ll do 10 different heritage shelling beans. Usually only a couple will be any good, but those I will grow again and I collect a lot of my own seeds as well.

Цитаты про клубнику.

одним из лучших предшественников для клубники является чеснок