Martha, the 9 year old author of NeverSeconds, has shocked the world with photos of her sparse, unappetising school dinners.  She has only posted 7 reports so far, and cucumber is one of the few healthy items to be seen on the plate.

cucumber-cut

Cucumber is easy for the school as it:

• is not cooked
• requires little preparation – just slicing
• makes up one of the 5-a-day
• is a good source of fibre if the peel is left on
• is high in potassium
• contains anti-oxidants such as ß-carotene and α-carotene, vitamin-C, vitamin-A, zea-xanthin and lutein
• is rich in vitamin K

In 2005 TV launched  a series on Jamie Oliver’s School Dinners which highlighted the importance of nutritional school meals.  The NeverSeconds blog reminds us that more needs to be done and an increased effort is required to ensure that other fresh vegetables feature along with cucumber.

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Sow:

• into seedbeds – brussels sprouts, broccoli, winter cabbage & kale

place-seed-in-trench

• directly into the ground – peas, lettuce, salad leaves, spring onions, beetroot, rocket, carrots, coriander & kohlrabi

Harden off:

celery plants to set outdoors at end of month

celery-plant

Plant into ground at end of month:

beans, squash, courgettes, sweetcorn & pumpkins

courgette-ready-to-plant

Crop:

• cabbages & spinach left from winter
• new-crop lettuce, salad leaves, rocket and spring onions

Other jobs:

• thin seedlings

thinning-out-beetroot

• prepare ground for leeks

rake-seed-bed

• stake broad beans

broad-bean-plant-Optica

• put straw under strawberries

• weed, hoe & mulch regularly
  

  weed-too-big-to-hoe

  May is a busy time in the vegetable garden with lots of jobs to be done!

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Leaf Marquee

The LEAF Marque is a food label you can trust from farmers who care. Produce identified with a LEAF Marque logo indicates it has been through an assurance scheme that means it has been produced by farmers whilst caring for the environment.

LEAF Marque produce appears on products sold nationwide in supermarkets, farm shops and farmers’ markets. You may have seen it on vegetables, salad, fruit, crisps, oil or even flowers.LEAF Marque farmers care for the environment by:

• Carefully managing hedgerows to provide habitats and food for wildlife
• Using pesticides and fertilisers only when absolutely necessary
• Leaving a strip of land between hedgerows and crops to act as a habitat for as a wildlife
• Recycling on-farm waste and conserving energy
• Improving water efficiency and quality

Look out for the LEAF Marquee label which indicates food that has been produced by farmers who care for the environment.

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2012  rain so far:

• January  29 ml
• February 7 ml
• March 24.5 ml
• April 122 ml

The annual rainfall in the TopVeg Garden:

• 2006   631

• 2007   795

• 2008   571

• 2009   519
• 2010   432.5
• 2011    413

The April rainfall in 2012 was 122ml.  What was yours?

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Peas pudding can be served chilled on toast with salad, or heated up with roast beef and gravy!

Ingredients

* 1 pack of bacon
* 475gm split peas
* salt & pepper to taste

Method

* place split peas in a large oven proof dish
* cover with water
* add salt and pepper to taste
* leave soaking overnight
* chop the bacon and add to the mixture
* place in an oven heated to 150C until just set
* cool and then put in the fridge

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sowing-leek-seed

• Directly into the ground:

o broad beans
o kale
o kohl rabi
o parsnip
o leeks

• at the end of the month, under glass, to plant out at the end of May:
  + runner beans
  + french beans
  + courgettes
  + squash
  + pumpkins
  + sweet corn

• repeat sow directly in ground:
  + salad leaves
  + lettuce
  + rocket
  + parsley
  + coriander
  + carrots – use a stale seed bed
  + spring onions

Plant:

• Onion sets, garlic and shallots if not already done
• All hardy vegetables started indoors in March in the ground at the end of April
• Rest of potatoes
• Seedling vegetable plants purchased from garden centre

• Polythene & fleece can be used to protect early outdoor sowings & tender plantings. Some vegetables, particularly beetroot, will bolt if caught by a cold snap.
• Control slugs – put out traps – slugs can wipe out young seedlings
• Clear away winter vegetables & prepare soil
• Cover carrots & summer brassicas with mesh – to keep carrot fly & other flying pests off
• Keeping  weeds under control is a continuous job in the vegetable garden in April

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pea plant

ABSTRESS, a 5 year European research project, is aiming to develop pea varieties that can withstand drought conditions and climate change.

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A day off clears the mind and a trip to Chelsea will inspire every sort of gardener. Don’t be put off by the name Flower Show because there are plenty of vegetables to see as well.

 A modern take on a traditional kitchen garden, combining a beautiful space with a working plot producing fruit, herbs, vegetables and flowers has been designed by M & G.  The garden features raised beds where cabbages and beans mingle with clematis and roses. Lavender and herbs add fragrance and terracotta pots containing fruit trees appear throughout. They have a glass deck, that appears to float, & offers both a view of the garden and a sheltered space for people and plants below. The garden is framed by pleached trees nearly three metres tall.

Pleaching is a technique to weave the branches of trees into a hedge or to form a quincunx.  A quincunx is a geometric pattern consisting of five points arranged in a cross, four of them forming a square or rectangle and a fifth at its center. This is a standard pattern for planting an orchard.

How stimulating is that!  Lots of ideas to keep the vegetable gardener awake at night!

There will be plenty more to see at Chelsea, including:

• new plant introductions
• new exotic crops
• interactive displays
• an expert advice stand
• vertical allotments

These growing walls are fascinating. They make great use of space, crop heavily and vertical strawberry walls use less water than plants grown in peat bags.

ripening-strawberries

The quality of the exhibits at Chelsea is always exceptional. The vibrant colours, new innovations and heady smells are a tonic and never fail to inspire.

Click this link to buy Chelsea Flower Show tickets which are on sale now.

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raspberry-row

Raspberries become very heavy when they are in full leaf & covered in rain, so the supports have to be firmly fixed in the ground.

straighten-post

They say that there should be one third of the post below ground and two thirds above – so a big hole is necessary!

levelling-post

It is worth spending some time getting the post straight, as it is more likely to stay up if it is straight – & you will be looking at it for many years!

shovel-stones

Place some stoney material in the bottom of the hole.

thumpimg-down

Then firm the stones well down.  It is important to firm down a shallow layer, before covering with another layer, & then firming that down.

thumper

An old fashioned thumper is ideal to firm the material around the post.

soil&stones

Cover the stones with the soil that originally came out of the hole.  Thump down each shallow layer.  Try to return all the soil taken out of the hole back into the hole.  That pressed down will keep the post tight.

Preparing the supports for the raspberries is a long, hard job but well worth the effort as it will help the raspberries to grow well for many years.

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Any irrigation using a hose pipe is against the law when a hose pipe ban is in place.

drip-irrigation-pipe

Vegetable gardeners can act now to save water and plan for the summer growing season.  Things to do include:

• fixing leaky taps – a leaky tap can waste about 90 litres of water a week
• collect rainwater from the roof of dwellings, garages, greenhouses etc..& store in various containers
• install a water butt to collect rainwater.  Check your local water authority website as they often have offers on water butts.
• water plants with a watering can
• clean patios and paths with a bucket and brush rather than a hose
• mulch beds to reduce water loss by evaporation

Gardeners can act now to mitigate the affects of any hose pipe ban which may come to your part of the UK.

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