The Invicta Gooseberries have started to drop off the plant so they were picked. The 3 year old bush yielded 7lb of gooseberries.

There are two types of gooseberry varieties:

• cooking gooseberries are often picked in the green or immature stage, but when they have reached full size.
• desert gooseberries are left on the bush until they become pink, softer and develop a sweeter flavour.

• individually or
• stripped off the stem with the leaves (wear leather gloves) and separated later

The gooseberries have a stalk which attaches them to the parent bush. At the other end is the remains of the flower.

So the gooseberry must be topped and tailed with scissors before eating.

Further information on gooseberries can be found here.

Downy mildew of peas (Pisum sativum) is caused by Peronospora viciae, which also infects broad beans.Downy mildew is regarded as the most common foliar disease of peas and is a major problem in the UK, particularly in the east. Late-drilled peas are the worst affected.

Downy Mildew Symptoms in Spring Beans & Peas

Yellowish blotches appear on the leaves, with a pale mauve or brown mould on the underside. Infected pods are spotted and distorted.

Downy mildew is more likely to appear when temperatures are below 10°C, & when crops have been wet for more than 12 hours.

Downy Mildew Control in Spring Beans

• Crop rotation reduces the possibility of downy mildew
• Plants affected with downy mildew should be burnt after picking the crop
• Sprays are available to control downy mildew. Although the disease may be present when the crop is in flower, no benefit will accrue from spraying at this time. Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions on the spray container.

The fungus Erysiphe polygoni causes powdery mildew of beans and peas.

The disease causes white powdery patches to appear mainly on the older leaves and stems of plants.

SYMPTOMS OF POWDERY MILDEW

White powdery patches appear on both sides of the leaves. Young leaves are almost immune. A large part of the talc-like powder on the leaf surface is composed of spores. These spores are easily blown by winds to nearby susceptible plants.

Heavily infected leaves become yellow, then become dry and brown, before dropping off. If the leaves drop off, the beans will not fill much further. The pods are covered with white patches which may develop purplish spots and become distorted .

The powdery mildew fungus can reproduce under relatively dry conditions. Increased humidity can increase the severity of the disease, and infection is worse during periods of heavy dew.

CONTROL OF POWDERY MILDEW

• Attacks of powdery mildew occur in dry seasons and are worst in sheltered gardens.
• It is not known how the fungus survives between crop seasons, & crop rotation and many other cultural practices seem to have little effect on the incidence of powdery mildew.
• Peas & beans need fertile soil. Plants grown in poor soil, without correct applications of fertiliser, will develop powdery mildew before well fed plants. Healthy, vigorous leaves and stems are less prone to infection.
• Mildew resistant varieties of peas & beans reduce the problem of the disease.
• Chemical sprays are available to control mildew. Always follow the instructions on the packet.

Elderberry bushes flower in June. The latin name of the Elder is Sambucus Nigra.

The flat flowerheads (called umbrells) are made up of many tiny cream-white flowers.

The flowers are strongly scented with an unusual flavour. Their flavour combines well with gooseberries. Elderflower cordial is a thirst quenching summer drink.

DADDY
If all these Kisses aren’t enough,
There’s two hands to help with garden stuff.

There are several environmental factors which provide the ideal conditions for the fungal disease Potato blight, Phytophthora infestans. These environmental factors have been quantified, and described in two different ways:

• A Beaumont Period is a period of 48 consecutive hours, in at least 46 of which the hourly readings of temperature and relative humidity at a given place have not been less than 20C (68ºF) and 75%, respectively
• A Smith Period is at least two consecutive days where minimum temperature is 10C (50ºF) or above and on each day at least 11 hours when the relative humidity is greater than 90%

Potatoes are most vulnerable to potato blight when the leaves have met in the row & by watching out for these particular weather periods at this time, it is possible to forecast the onset of Potato Blight. Then, protective fungicides may be applied to prevent the onset of the disease.

Both a Beaumont and a Smith period give relatively accurate forecasts, but a Smith period is more commonly used.� Information on Smith Period reporting & blight forecasting can be found on the British Potato Council website.

Torrential rain has fallen across most of the UK saturating vegetable gardens and flattening crops.

Edgbaston had the highest rainfall recorded in the UK, yesterday, at 75.8mm.Where the garden soil had cracked during the dry weather, the water was able to get away, down the cracks and into the natural drainage system. But if the soil had been walked on, consolidated, or rolled tightly down, the rain sat on the top of the soil surface, unable to get through the top crust. This has caused flooding.

Plant roots drown when sitting in flood-water, as the water pushes the oxygen out of the soil. Peas are one vegetable that does not like wet feet, and the yield of peas will be drastically reduced if pea roots are in water for more than 24 hours.

If the water is sitting on the vegetable bed, it may be possible to dig a gulley to help the water drain away. But the flooded areas should not be walked on, as the soil will become compacted and the water will find it even more difficult to drain away. The best thing to do is to check that all drains are unblocked and that ditches do not have any objects blocking the flow of water. If all the drains are clear, the water level should drop as the general water table lowers.

Strong winds together with heavy rain cause a real problem, and knock down shoots which are loaded with rain water. But plants recover remarkably well as they dry out, and usually perk up again.

The cold temperatures associated with the storms will have checked plant growth. But as temperatures rise, the humidity will increase, which provides perfect conditions for fungal diseases.

Potato blight is prevalent in these conditions, and growers are alerted by checking for a Beaumont Period. When a Beaumont period occurrs, it is recommended that protective fungicides are applied to prevent an outbreak of potato blight.

Soft fruit rots in wet conditions. Weeds prevent air movement in the plant canopy, which slows drying time of flowers and fruits and increases the chances for infection. Pick fruit frequently and early in the day as soon as plants are dry. Cull out all diseased berries but do not leave them in the garden. Handle berries with care to avoid bruising. Refrigerate fruit promptly at 32 to 50 degrees F (0 to 10 degrees C) to check grey mould developing.

Jamie Oliver is presenting a show called ‘Jamie at Home’ in a dozen or so countries around the world, at the moment. But it is not showing in the UK.
Jamie’s website describes the show as ‘cooking at home with simple, accessible ingredients. Over the last few years I’ve been growing my own fruit and veg with the help of my gardener Brian.’ Unfortunately, he does not elaborate on the life of Brian. But the show is ‘looking at how easy it is to grow your own produce; sometimes in weird and wonderful ways.’

Lets hope we will have a chance to see the show in the UK, as it is encouraging us all to keep vegetable gardening. Jamie says ‘Even if you live at the top of a block of flats you will be able to have a go at growing something!’

Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life (HarperCollins, 2007) is a must for vegetable gardeners.

The book chronicles a year in the author’s family as they attempt to eat food that is produced locally, and turn their backs on food that is shipped in from outside their one hour delivery circle. The author accepts that not everyone has the same climate, amount of space or time. It is full of common sense and is an amusing read.

There are some scary facts, including today’s children “are predicted to be this country’s first generation to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents” & “transporting a single calorie of a perishable fresh fruit from California to New York takes about 87 calories worth of fuel”.

Black-ink newspaper pages will conserve moisture in the vegetable garden, according to researchers at the University of Georgia.� The newsprint� works in two ways: