June: A good time to plant tender crops outdoors
If you don’t have a greenhouse or polytunnel, then the next few weeks, in June, are the best time to plant some of the more tender crops – aubergines, cucumbers,…
Rocket Blog: Category: Planting & Growing
Why & When to Feed Your Veg Plants
Why feeding your plants is a good idea Giving your plants a liquid feed regularly during the summer is the best way to boost the nutrients in the soil for…
Attract bees & pollinators to your kitchen garden
One of the best things you can do for your garden is to provide food for pollinators, particularly bees. More bees & pollinators = more pollination = more tomatoes, courgettes,…
Pinching out tomatoes
Whether you’ve already got some plants growing in a greenhouse, or have yet to plant tomatoes, it is worth knowing when and how to pinch out the side shoots to…
June in the Veg Patch
Many gardeners feel they have ‘missed’ the planting season as we hit June, but that’s not at all true when you’re growing from plug plants – it’s a really great…
Don’t be tempted to overcrowd plants
This photo is a classic example of someone trying to plant too closely together and not giving the plants enough space, either above or below the surface of the soil….
Why do leaves turn purple sometimes?
This is seen fairly often in the garden, where a plant’s foliage develops a pink-purple tint at the edge of the leaves, and if not addressed it can turn the…
Planting Ideas for the next few weeks: late May to early July
Whether you are yet to plant out for the season or have been growing for a few weeks, the next few weeks bring plenty of opportunity to get plants in…
When & how often to water your veg plants
With more sun on the forecast for the week ahead, and plenty of planting going on around the country, we thought we’d give some tips on watering in the kitchen…
Top tips for strawberries
It’s strawberry time! Strawberries start to fruit after they have flowered and been pollinated which is round about now, at the end of May and on into June. Whether you’re growing…
3 Signs of Plant Stress
There are a number of things that can cause a plant to get stressed – unfavourable weather conditions, inadequate water & nutrients, pest damage, diseases, lack of sunlight and so…
Ways to net brassicas against pigeons/butterflies
It’s sensible to protect brassicas – kale, broccoli, cabbage, sprouts, cauliflowers – from pigeons and cabbage white butterflies. Here are a couple of ways to do that without spending unnecessary…