Happy New Year!
With my feet a week on New Zealand soil and jet lag gone, it is time to get into some serious gardening. I recently posted a video on my Facebook page of the state of the gardens when I returned that had had no care and hardly any water.
Some of you commented how sad it was to see it this way, but I didn’t look at it like this – I was actually pleasantly surprised that anything was still alive! I will be posting more videos of those two garden beds over the next couple of weeks as they receive attention and will keep you posted on whether they come back to life to produce any food. Stay tuned…!
Having spent some time this week returning to my clients’ gardens too I am happy to report that 80% of the gardens that I take care of with a regular monthly spray programme on their fruit trees have ranged from absolutely no evidence of guava and codling moth, to a 70% reduction in guava and codling moth.
This is proof to me that optimal health will help reduce pest and disease.
These trees get pruned in late summer/winter; all wind-fallen fruit gets picked up and I deliver a yearly spray programme on a monthly basis. This time of year, they are all receiving a nourishing concoction of my products Fruit Optimise, Effective Microorganisms and Liquid Kelp.
The most important steps to take over the next few months to care for your fruit trees will be picking up fallen fruit off the ground and also keeping a record of how your trees are progressing, as when you change habits from no intervention to creating a care programme for your trees, it is easy to forget what they were like before you began! Also taking photos of where the fruit is forming can be handy when pruning time comes.
Looking ahead to autumn is the key right now, allowing yourself the time to think about crop rotations and how to create the optimal plan for your next season’s planting after your summer veg come out of the ground. Right now it is the perfect time to think about planting leeks for that autumn harvest….
My focus this year will be developing systems for large scale food waste, resulting in good, healthy organic food. Also developing my own garden more and seeing what delights I can grow for winter!
I’d love to hear from you about what your focus this year will be, and as ever, I’m happy to provide some insight if you have an issue that is plaguing you garden, so just reach out!
I’m now available again for consultations on planting, so if you are struggling to make your autumn and winter plans, help is at hand!
Happy Gardening everyone
