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Showing 6361 - 6390 of 13866 comments
Tomato 01 Jan, Kim Evans (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Can you grow tomatoes all year round if so could you please tell me how
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Ginger 01 Jan, Deby (Australia - tropical climate)
I'm in the Daintree rainforest and have put the tips of some ginger I bought at a local fruit and veggie wholesaler into a bucket with some drain holes drilled, filled with mixed mill mud and sand. All of the tips have spouted and looking really good with heaps of offshoots. I've watered them every day if it hasn't rained. I haven't pulled them up yet but after four months it's looking good.
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Ginger 15 Jan, Bernie (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Deby, I live in the Redlands area just outside of Brisbane and regularly grow ginger in my garden. Depending on how many plants you have in the pot they should be fine. I would recommend spacing them out at about one per 30 centimeters apart. You are doing the right thing keeping them watered but do not let them get waterlogged. Do not dig them up until the foliage has died down, around August/September. Then you can keep some for re-growing and the rest is for eating. It will freeze well and then just grate off what you need. DO NOT de-frost it as it will go to mush and be useless. It is also easy the dry and made into ground ginger. To dry it slice into 5cm pieces and dry in a dehumidifier. To grind it use a flour mill or a mortise and pestle.
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Shallots (also Eschalots) 01 Jan, Gary (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
Do I keep the small bulbs for next years planting ? when I do I harvest the shallots ?
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Shallots (also Eschalots) 04 Jan, Prometheus (Australia - temperate climate)
Hi Gary, yes you certainly can keep the bulbs for next year's planting. The bigger cloves are best for this (you only need a single clove to get an entire bulb / head, like garlic; it's quite magical). Shallots should be harvested once 75%-80% of the tops have browned and fallen over (most of the plant above the soil will look dead). Do be patient, as they tend to swell in size at the very end of their growth cycle and will be smaller if you harvest too soon. Just pull or lightly wash off any large clumps of soil and leave in full sun to dry for about a week. They are then ready to use and should keep for at least a few weeks, if not longer depending on variety. Hope you enjoy your harvest - they are a wonderful vegetable to grow.
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Cucumber 01 Jan, Param (Australia - temperate climate)
Hi i planted cucumbers few times this season and all the seedling have died again and again. Never had that problem in past. It was very hot recently in melbourne aus. Any thoughts???
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Cucumber 10 Jan, Shahrukh (Australia - temperate climate)
The first time I planted Lebanese Cucumber this season in Ballarat only one of six survived. I planted in the same spot again but removed all fertiliser from the plant hole. I also covered them with plastic oil container bottoms when the temperature dropped. When the weather grew warmer I threw over pieces of shade cloth on days of 30 degrees and over usually in the afternoon. This is the first time I have had healthy looking fruiting cucumber plants.
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Coriander (also Cilantro, Chinese parsley) 31 Dec, sandra (Australia - temperate climate)
Help please I live in Brisbane and anyones whoes been here in Summer knows its pretty hot and humid. I desperately want to know how Ii can grow corriander in these conditions without it going to seed. Can I grow it in side in a pot? Please advise
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Coriander (also Cilantro, Chinese parsley) 14 Feb, The Delectable Garden (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Hi Sandra I've done the move like you and no-one tells you what a huge difference there is going to be in your gardening, both what you can grow and when! The short answer is you cannot grow coriander in summer in Brisbane! It will almsot always bolt straight to seed or die as soon as you plant seedlings. You could try sowing some seeds in a pot and grow it indoors. Personally I haven't found this terribly successful. You can get the perenial coriander, but I'm not a fan. If you want to use this, my tip is to put in big chunks of leaves so that you can get the coriander flavour but remove the unpalatable leaves before serving! The other option (for next year) is to freeze coriander in several ziplock bags when it is growing in winter/spring and use these in curries etc in summer. Not good if you want fresh coriander. For this you will have to try the organic markets during summer. Rohanne, The Delectable Garden
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Coriander (also Cilantro, Chinese parsley) 02 Jan, tastyvish (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
Coriander is easy to grow, particularly in moderately hot climate.It can be grown easily in pot near window seal.Picking regularly will prevent the plant from going to seed like basil.
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Shallots (also Eschalots) 31 Dec, (Australia - temperate climate)
Have just harvested my 2nd crop. The original ones were from Coles supermarket vegetable section. Good luck
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Pumpkin 30 Dec, des (Australia - temperate climate)
I planted 4 seeds, 3 have produced some small yellow pumpins,the other ,which i placed awire mesh around , hased produced 3 nice sized pumpkins.But, they are green,not yellow.Can you tell me why , and what to do? Thank you
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Chilli peppers (also Hot peppers) 30 Dec, Stuart (Australia - temperate climate)
First time gardener here! I planted young 15cm jalapeno plants almost two months ago. There were four stems all together in a small rectangular pot, so I planted them as they were. I assumed the instructions meant space them apart from other plants at x distance, but was I supposed to separate each stem and plant them apart? They're just budding little fruits now but I'm worried they'll fail eventually. Any advice?
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Chilli peppers (also Hot peppers) 02 Jan, tastyvish (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
Hi Stuart, Ideally it should have been separated at the time when they were young,This would have given each punnet to grow and you could have enjoyed more fruits but don't worry if pot size is good they could be grown together.The best pot size for chill from my experience is 40 cms.You can always re pot and separate them during autumn,
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Okra (also Ladyfinger, gumbo) 30 Dec, N.MADHAVAN (Australia - temperate climate)
you can get the seeds from any nursery, bunnings or reject shop
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Okra (also Ladyfinger, gumbo) 30 Dec, N.MADHAVAN (Australia - temperate climate)
I used to grow Okra successfully in the past. lately I am having problems in growing them. Some times I do find the freshly emerged has been cut in to two. Has any one had similar problem. What could it be due to?
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Carrot 29 Dec, Heather Ryan (Australia - temperate climate)
I have recently acquired a 4m x4m plot in a community garden and the soil in quite sandy.I have previously only gardened with clay soil and these soil conditions are a new learning curve for me.What can I do to improve the soil for vegetable growing.
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Carrot 30 Dec, Gregg Miller (Australia - temperate climate)
Heather, I guess you are in a coastal area. The use of seaweed has very successful in this way. My Mum used to gather seaweed from the local beach on the NSW Central Coast. Use the seaweed and along with spent mushroom compost, news paper, straw, other compost from organic matter only. Australian soils are very poor and most need this kind of build up. Local Stores that sell mushrooms will also sell spent compost. You could also try a legume such as peas, these add nitrogen, easy to grow and then turn in. You may also find Complete Australian Gardener book willbe most helpful. Gregg.
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Carrot 02 Jan, Gregg Miller (Australia - temperate climate)
Heather I was wondering how You went. Gregg Miller Sydney
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Carrot 08 Jan, Heather Ryan (Australia - temperate climate)
I have recently acquired a plot in a community garden and as the soil is sandy over limestone, I had every intention of using the No- Dig method of raising the garden beds and building up the layers starting with a wetta soil product with a bentalite clay additive, newspaper,a layer of coarse composted bark chips and then the usual layers of lucerne ,blood and bone, manure ,pea straw, compost etc. I know Perth soils are very sandy and they use this wetta soil product to help retain some moisture...Am I wasting my time trying this. Great idea about the seaweed! Would you have dry it first or do you use it in its fresh state. I have only gardened on biscay clay soils around the Barossa Valley previously so this is a whole new ball game for me. Appreciate you taking the time to reply,Thanks!!
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Carrot 10 Jan, heatherRyan (Australia - temperate climate)
P.S. Sorry the correct spelling of the clay product is bentonite clay and I did a little research about Seaweed and you don't have to wash the salt off it it you only use small amounts of it . I am still awaiting approval for my plot as it has to go before a committee meeting who meet monthly.
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Carrot 13 Jan, Haydn G (Australia - temperate climate)
Hi Heather, You may wish to check out a product called Soil Solver Clay. This contains kaolin clay and is far more "garden friendly" than bentonite clay. I have used both and found kaolin clay more favourable and you can use a lot more in your soil to hold the moisture. Also, I have seen a reduction in nematode activity when I have used kaolin clay. This may be coincidence only. Have a look at the Youtube video by Trevor Cochrane. Hope this helps.
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Carrot 15 Jan, Heather Ryan (Australia - temperate climate)
Thank you for joining the conversation on my sandy soil problem. I will certainly do some research on the product you suggested and watch the video. - any knowledge from personal experience is certainly appreciated. Heather.
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Carrot 10 Feb, Karl Parkes (Australia - temperate climate)
In 2009,I moved into a sydney coastal village at Narrabeen, and was given quite a large garden area for my use.This area was originally a sand dune area and the "soil"was atrocious and dried out before my eyes.Also nutrient quality was practically zero.So I got to work on the problem.Once a month for FOUR YEARS,I applied a 5 cm.layer of grass clippings all over the place [tedious] and let it rot in.I also watered the clippings often so that they would rot away.Finally,it worked and I now have a top zonal area of about 30 cms.which appears fertile and my plantings are going well.I also applied chicken poo pellets 3 times a year and soluble fertiliser.I still have to water regularly because although the topsoil is now good,the underlying base is pure sand with no water retention properties.
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Carrot 16 Feb, Heather Ryan (Australia - temperate climate)
Thank you for joining in the conversation on a solution for sandy soils. I have read your comment with interest and will look forward to solving my problem too with a lot of organic matter, hard work and some patience. Pleased to hear all the work you have put into your soil is finally paying off...well done!!
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Carrot 31 Jan, Gregg Miller (Australia - temperate climate)
There are many ways to solve this sandy problem without going to great expense. Before You spend You hard earned $$$. Start a compost corner of Your garden. Only 'organic' matter from Your garden goes in. The seaweed, can You add this in ? If not keep all kitchen scraps, mown grass, other cuttings but do remember that 'weeds' have seeds and will invade Your efforts put them in Your bin. If there are any places where bagged horse, cow, chook poo etc are sold at road sides these will bring up Your soil Nitrogen levels as well. Spent mushroom compost has two advantages, it's perfect for You and new mushies usually grow. !! Good luck. Gregg.
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Carrot 10 Feb, Heather Ryan (Australia - temperate climate)
Apologies for the late reply.Thank you for your advice on improving my sandy soil problem...I'm lucky enough to be able to acquire a great variety of animal manures and have started keeping all my organic matter for a that little compost corner including my kitchen scraps, seaweed,egg shells and banana skins. I have progressed to doing one half of my plot with layering all of the above with peastraw in my No Dig garden and it's coming along beautifully. As they say it's cooking!!! We get a little impatient as gardeners and expect things to happen yesterday but I'm doing all the right things so all is good. Thank you again for your imput I have really appreciated the advice. Heather.
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Carrot 23 Nov, Robert (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
Hi Heather. I was in a more temperate area of Tas when I started gardening in nearly pure sand. Every weekend I took the kids to the beach and we collected bags of sea grass. Spread, and when dry tilled in. After two or three years, carrots were huge, tender and flavoursome. Some could be over 600mm long and completely edible. So there are advantages in persistence. Beware sheep manure!!!! It can be full of the most obnoxious weeds. Better to hessian bag it and place in a barrel of water for two weeks or more. Dilute the 'water' in your watering can, to the colour of weak tea and use as a plant leaf spray and around the roots. Once I had built up the humus, I could grow anything.
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Horseradish 29 Dec, joyce (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I have been looking after a friends plants. One of them was a horseradish plant in a pot. Just one little frail leaf. It did not last. So will I be able to get a replacement now from a nursery? I live in inner city Sydney
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Luffa (also Loofah, plant sponge) 29 Dec, Jessica (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
My luffa plant grow really tall and healthy but I didn't see any fruit yet? Could you pls tell me which month they will start fruiting??? Thanx
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Showing 6361 - 6390 of 13866 comments
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