Well, we’re not short on garden jobs to be done at the moment…there’s a lot going on in the land of vegetable growing. Three things to think about this weekend are:
- Pinching out tomatoes and beans
As beans start to outgrow their supports you can pinch them out at the top (this basically means cutting the very tip off – it stops the plant from continuing to grow upwards and start putting its energy into growing lots of sideshoots and beans for you.) With tomatoes, you’re wise to pinch off the growing tip once 5 or 6 trusses (clusters of tomatoes) have formed. This is done to help the existing tomato trusses to ripen – too many trusses and you’ll be eating fried green tomatoes all summer! - Picking peas and beans
If you leave them too long on the plant they won’t be nearly as tasty to eat, and by picking them regularly you’ll encourage your pant to produce a whole load more. - Being vigilant
A quick prowl around the veg patch takes no time at all but could save you a lost crop, so it’s well worth doing. The key thing to look for are clusters of caterpillars and eggs on leaves that can easily be removed before they do damage (wipe them off and give them to the birds!)