Top 10 plants for your vegetable garden

General Preparation

• Choose a suitable site in a sunny position and free from the root competition of trees and large shrubs.
• Dig over the soil to fork's depth.
• Add plenty of compost and organic matter to improve the soil.
• If the soil is heavy and contains clay, add plenty of gypsum.
• Fork through some Seamungus pelletised seaweed based plant tonic and soil conditioner , at the rate of 100g two small handfuls /sq m.
• Add some slow release pelletised fertiliser, such as Rapid Raiser, also at the rate of 100g per sq m.
• After planting, always water your new seedlings in and be prepared to water them more frequently if we do not get rain for the first few weeks. As the weather warms up, water your vegetables regularly, but remember that it is better to give the plants a good deep soak once or twice a week rather than a little bit every day.
• Keep garden beds weed-free as weeds compete with your plants for space, water and nutrients. This is especially important for root vegetables (carrots and onions).
• Mulch with pea straw to help prevent weeds from competing with your crops.

Note: Start planting in October. Suggested timing is a guideline only and will change according to the season and weather conditions, along with care of your plants.

Tomatoes

Week 1
Plant seedlings 50cm to 60cm apart and be prepared with a well staked, 2m high wire frame by each plant. An average family that loves tomatoes only needs 12 plants, as each plant can yield between 3kg to 5kg and even up to 10kg of fruit a plant. Try growing a few different varieties such as Mighty Red for general use, Roma for cooking and cherry tomatoes for salads.

Week 4
Train plants to four leaders and remove any lateral side growths that arise from the leaf axils.

Week 6
Once they start to flower, feed them monthly with an organic based fertiliser that is boosted with extra potash, such as Sudden Impact for Roses. Mulch well to maintain even soil moisture and avoid using a lot of high nitrogen fertiliser. Plants grown in the ground prefer deep watering at their root zone once every five to 10 days depending on the weather. Avoid overhead watering.

Week 10 - 12
Enjoy your harvest of delicious vine ripened tomatoes.

You might like to grow a few early plants in pots in September, ready to plant out in October.

Spring Onion

Week 1
Separate punnets and trim individual seedling roots to 5cm. Make a furrow at least 5cm deep and lay seedlings along one side of the furrow, 2cm to 3cm apart in rows 15cm apart. Backfill the furrow from the other side and firm down. Seedlings will stand upright within a few days.

Week 4
Thin out seedlings to every 5cm when they are nice and strong, and use those that you thin out as a substitute for chives for a wonderful onion flavour.

Week 4 - 6
Make a successive planting for continual supply. Do this every four to six weeks.

Week 6 - 8
Harvest and enjoy.

Silver Beet and Rainbow Chard

Week 1
Plant seedlings every 30cm to 40cm in rows 30cm to 40cm apart. For an average family nine to 12 plants are sufficient. Watch out for snails and slugs and, as a precaution, scatter some Multiguard Snail and Slug Pellets.

Week 4
Start picking outside stalks and leaves when large enough, leaving four to five centre stalks for
quick regrowth.

Week 10
Plants reach maturity and will start to send up flower spikes. Cut these off as they appear, unless you want to harvest the seeds for successive plantings.

Week 12
Although these plants can continue to be productive for several years, it is best to replant every 12 weeks to ensure that you have a continual supply of tender young leaves.

Beetroot

Week 1 - 2
Sow seed in rows 20cm to 30cm apart and 10mm to 12mm deep, in a row two to three metres long. Cover lightly with compost and water gently.
Keep damp until the seedlings emerge in 10 to 14 days. Watch out for snails and slugs and, as a precaution, scatter some Multiguard Snail and Slug Pellets.

Week 4
Thin seedlings out to 7cm to 10cm apart when they reach 10cm high. Use the leaves of your thinnings in salads. You can also pick the central foliage of the remaining beetroot at about 10cm long when it is still young and tender. Do not pick too much foliage or the root will not develop as well. Keep the bed weed free as weed competition will affect your crop. For continual supply, sow successive rows every four to six weeks.

Week 10 - 12
Roots are ready for harvest. Pull alternate rows to allow the remaining rows to develop to a good size.