Sunday 15th April 10.30am Tastetour & planting

cooee foodgardening fans

bring your tastebuds, gardening gloves & watering bottles along
to the garden 10.30am this Sunday morning
for a fresh-picked cuppa & chat
with other friendly locals

learn more about the garden's
tasty herbs, fruits, vegies and bushfoods
....and help weed, water & plant snowpeas,
broadbeans & other winter/spring yumminess

time to plant peas & broadbeans...hints & tips

Thanks to Scotsburn Nursery for seasonal planting tips: Hi Peter, As a first time gardener watching recently planted snow peas grow could you recommend a tying process to the 1 meter stake I plan to support their growth. To date they seem very flimsy and I don’t want to over or under support them. Kind regards, Peter Fantastic question. As a nursery industry professional I tend to overlook some things we take for granted. Here's images and tips on growing Peas. Clearly there is no need to worry about over-supporting peas. I recommend Jolly Garden Ties; they're like a long roll of t-shirt material offcuts. Old nylon stockings are also very gentle on soft shoots. Now is an ideal time to plant Peas, Snow Peas and Snap Peas In Melbourne's climate they grow quite happily through winter, though if frosts are severe protection with a cloche will help. We'll stop sowing Green Beans this week but have just started sowing Broad Beans, "a springtime treat" according to Stephanie Alexander. The biggest issue I'm aware of with Peas is Powdery Mildew.... best controlled by growing the plants in a sunny spot and keeping them growing vigorously with plenty of nutrient and water as needed. Peas and Broad Beans are terrific vegetables especially for novice vegie gardeners; very simple to grow and very prolific. Harvest Peas while they're young & fresh, preferably before you see individual peas pushing through the pods (true for all three types). You should be able to start picking 6-8 weeks after planting your Peas. Broad Beans take 2-3 weeks longer to mature and are also best picked before beans bulge through the pods....as a rule of thumb pick when they're 10-15cm long.