Cinnamon But Not With Watermelon

We start with a look Cinnamon and cassia in the Spice it Up segment , and growing your own watermelon in Vegetable Heroes;

SPICE IT UP

• Cinnamon and Cassia part 1

Cinnamomum zeylanicum

Most if not all, cooks or chefs would’ve used cinnamon in their cooking at some time or other.

However, most likely the powdered form was used mainly.

What about the cinnamon sticks?
Is that where the powdered from comes from? 

If it's the bark of a tree, how does cinnamon get harvested?
Who rolls those sticks, is it by machine or by hand?

Let’s find out.
I'm talking with Ian Hemphill from www.herbies.com.au

• There are two types of cinnamon, Sri  Lankan cinnamon or Cinnamomum zeylanicum, (pictured) and Cinnamomum cassia or just 'cassia."
• They come from different trees and are grown in different countries.Cassia cinnamon is grown in China,  Japan and Vietnam.
• Can you imagine all those cinnamon sticks that are from Sri Lanka, are all hand rolled by ‘cinnamon rollers.’

You will know be able to tell the difference between cinnamon and cassia.

• The cinnamon scrolls have more rolls than cassia, and the cassia powder has quite a strong almost bitey flavour compared to the sweeter milder flavor or real cinnamon, if you test the powder on your tongue. 

  If you have any questions for me or for Ian, why not write in to Realworldgardener@gmail.com or write in to 2rrr, PO Box 644 Gladesville 1675

VEGETABLE  HEROES

Watermelon Citrullus lanatus

• Did you know that there’s an Australian Melon Association?
• What’s more interesting though is that watermelons are thought  to have evolved from a Citron, which grew in the Kalahari desert in Africa.

And who would’ve thought that watermelon fruit can be seen in drawings in Egyptian hieroglyphics dating back 5,000 years.

Why? Because the Egyptians believed that by placing the Watermelons in the burial tombs of Kings, it would nourish the occupants in the afterlife.

From Egypt, watermelon spread via trading ships to other countries along the Mediterranean Sea and then to Europe by the Moors people during the13th century.

• Where Belong Watermelon?

No surprises that watermelons belongs to the melon family or cucurbits, and can be round, soccer ball-size or an elongated, egg shape with smooth, hard, thick, green or yellow skin or rind.

Some watermelons are strongly striped with dark green markings, and others are only faintly mottled dark green.

The colour of the inner cool, sweet and refreshing flesh varies from red to yellow.

Dark brown seeds are arranged around the centre.

What may be surprising to you is that the pale rind just beneath the hard skin, can be cooked and eaten like a vegetable. Now that's a surpirse!

• In fact you can make rind pickles!

Sowing Watermelon

In temperate and subtropical districts plant out seeds or seedlings from September through to early January.

The same goes for Cool temperate districts, although December and January is better for seedlings rather than starting from seed.

In Arid areas, lucky you, you have from September through to March.

For tropical areas, another one you have to wait for the cooler months, April to July.

Growing Watermelon

Watermelon prefers to grow on new, fertile sandy-loam soils with a high humus content-that is, lots of compost and manures.

Plus they need lots of water and room.

The soil must be well drained.

Don’t try to grow watermelons in heavy soils.

Add Dolomite lime if your soil’s acidic because watermelons  prefer alkaline soils.

As with Zucchinis, make a mound full of that good stuff, and plant three watermelon seeds about 5 cm deep.

Watermelon flowers 

They may be thinned out later.

• Don’t bother with pots, because they germinate so easily.
• Another thing, don’t bother with saving seeds from the melon you bought from the supermarket, it’ll be a hybrid and your seed grown plant will be quite different.If you like saving seed, get an open pollinated variety of seed.

Where to Grow

Like Pumpkins, Watermelon needs plenty of room to grow sending out long vines and the fruits are quite heavy.

Watermelons also have very shallow root system and they need lots of moisture.

The soil should never dry out, and mulch helps with that.

Luckily, Watermelons are self -pollinating, so you only need one plant unless you are growing seedless melons which require a pollinator.

If you’re planning to grow your melons up a tepee unless you can work out a sling system using soft cloth or pantyhose, it’s probably better to grow them along the ground.

There are a few varieties of watermelon and I’m sure you’ve got your favourites.

The most popular is the Red Tiger –that’s a cylindrical melon with dark green skin and dark red, very sweet flesh. One of the few melons that have very few seeds.

Then there’s Viking- a medium to large, elongated melon.

Allsweet is large and oval-shaped.

My favourite is Sugar Baby, a small, round melon.

So how do you know when it’s ready?

Melons are ready to pick when the part in contact with the ground is turning yellow and the fruit sounds hollow when tapped.

Why Are They Good For You?

Watermelons are a good source of Vitamin A and C, the minerals potassium and iron.

Watermelons also contains high levels of lycopene a powerful antioxidant - lycopene is found only in small select group of fruits and vegetables. Watermelons are 90% water, that’s why they’re so refreshing.

AND THAT WAS OUR VEGETABLE HERO SEGMENT FOR TODAY 

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Pruning 101: Deciduous vs Evergreen and Sea Urchin Hakea

We start with part three of a new series “pruning 101” with landscape designer Jason Cornish, in Design elements and a fabulous pom pom flowers in plant of the week.

DESIGN ELEMENTS

• Pruning 101: Deciduous vs Evergreen.

Deciduous and evergreen plants have different pruning needs.
Have you ever had a shrub, say philadelphus that you thought wasn’t performing-no flowers for several years, so you transplanted it or pulled it out?
Perhaps you weren’t timing it right?

Philadelphus coronarius

I'm talking with Jason Cornish from www.urbanmeadows.com.au
Let’s find out.

Marianne's Tips on Pruning

Pruning group	Pruning method	Time of pruning	Examples of plants
Flower on current season’s growth	Old wood thing. New growth shortened.	Winter/early spring	Roses, abelia, buddleia. Hibiscus rosa-sinensis
Flowers on previous season’s growth	Immediately after flowering	Spring	Spiraea, Rondeletia,Prunus glandulosa, Acacia, Callistemon, Grevillea
Flowering on older wood and spurs	Maintain tidy shape	After flowering	Prunus cerasifera & other prunus species
For showy fruits	Cut away most of leaders	After fruiting if needed	Cotoneaster, pyracantha, Berberis spp.
For showy foliage	Prune 50% of growth’ feed and water	Winter to spring	Abutilon, Aucuba japonica-gold dust plant. Buxus.  Hebe, Euonymus.
Non flowering evergreen	Do not prune back beyond green foliage into older wood	Late winter	Conifers

If you don’t know what shrub or tree that you’ve got, the best advice is to wait until it flowers or sets fruit, and then prune after that.

• In the case of philadelphus, as soon as the shrub had finished flowering, cut out all of the stems which have just flowered.
• Prune them back to around a third of their length. They will soon start to produce new stems which will provide the flowering stems for next year. Don’t just prune little bits off the end 

If you have any questions for me or for Jason, please write in to realworldgardener@gmail.com

PLANT OF THE WEEK

Hakea petiolaris; Sea Urchin  Hakea

There are many reasons to like a particular plant which affects our choices.
For some it’s the flowers or the perfume, for others it’s the colour of the leaves.
But for something completely different, others like a plant because of the sound the wind makes through the leaves of that particular plant.

Hakea petiolaris flower

So what will appeal with this plant?
I'm talking with Adrian O’Malley, horticulturist and native plant expert.
Let’s find out.

For grey leaves, and spectacular flowers, the hakea is something to think about if you want a native small tree.

Medium tree 5 to 11 m high. Leaves are pale grey, broadly  obovate in shape and range from 5-15cm long by 2.3-6cm wide. 

Endemic to the south west of Australia, occurring at the coastal plain, jarrah forest and wheatbelt regions, often at the ancient granite outcrops of Western Australia. 

The only thing to watch for is high humidity can make them short lived.
Still, if you collect the seeds, then grow some more from seed and you’ll have another tree quite quickly.

If you have any questions for me or for Adrian, please contact us or write in.

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All Things Thanksgiving

When you think of Thanksgiving recipes, turkey is the first thing that comes to mind. Side dishes can be the best part! They can also help you eat all of the food groups. Try some of these recipes for a yummy Thanksgiving!

• Vegetables: Vegetables are an important part of Thanksgiving. Green beans, Brussels sprouts, and other fall vegetables are great options. Try these recipes: Vegetable Variety Pack, Green Bean Sauté, Spicy Green Beans & Roasted Brussels Sprouts.


• Sweet Potatoes: Sweet potatoes are a great addition to your Thanksgiving table. Prepare them from scratch as a healthier alternative to canned yams. Or you can mash them in place of regular mashed potatoes. Try these recipes: Maple Sweet Potatoes or Mashed Sweet Potatoes.


• Stuffing: Stuffing is an essential part of Thanksgiving! Prevent food borne illnesses by not cooking your stuffing in the turkey. If you have a slow cooker, try this recipe: Melissa’s Slow Cooker Stuffing.


• Gravy: Gravy is great on your turkey or sweet potatoes! Try this recipe: Turkey Gravy.


• Cranberries: Thanksgiving dinner would not be complete without cranberries. If you’re looking for something different than cranberry sauce, try making Cranberry Chutney instead.

Stay active: It’s always a good idea to get up and moving after that big meal! Some fun activities to do as a family include: Turkey Trot 5K, walking as a family, flag football. Check out this blog post for other ideas!

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Pruning Saws and Blueberries

We start with a look at pruning saws and why you might need two in Tool Time,, growing your own super fruit in Vegetable Heroes; part two of a new series “pruning 101” with landscape designer Jason Cornish, in Design elements and a blue flowers in talking flowers.

TOOL TIME

PRUNING SAWS 
There comes a point in your pruning when secateurs, and loppers just won’t do the job.
Do you strain, grit your teeth and pull faces when cutting large branches in your garden that your garden loppers can’t handle?
Let’s face it, the size of the branch is too big but not big enough to call an arborist, so what do you do?   
Get a pruning saw and here’s why.
Let’s find out. 

I'm talking with Tony Mattson General Manager of www.cutabovetools.com.au

There are two main types of pruning saws and both have different purposes for different types of cutting.

• Folding saw is typically straight and limited in length of blade-usually up to 200mm
• Fix pruning saw is curved and used for branches that are greater in diameter than 200mm.

 The pruning saw blade is made as a metal blank and the teeth are then machined into the metal.

The metal is then hardened so they don't wear and chrome plated so they don't rust.

Chrome plating will wear off eventually, ( faster on cheaper blades,) so it's important to clean the blade after use and oil the blade with light machine oil.

Tony prefers not to use vegetable oil because it leaves a sticky residue.

Did you know that pruning saws have less teeth than most woodsaws?
The other difference is that the teeth on pruning saws are larger and sharper, making the job of cutting tree branches easier.

Tony’s Rule: the length of the pruning saw blade determines how big a branch you can cut. Half the length of the blade, is the maximum size of branch that you can cut.
Tony also recommends that , if the chrome coating has worn off, oil your blade after you have used and cleaned it.
If you have any questions for me or for Tony, why not write in to Realworldgardener@gmail.com or write in to 2rrr, PO Box 644 Gladesville NSW 1675.

VEGETABLE (FRUIT)  HEROES

Blueberries

Would you have thought that the second most popular berry after Strawberries are Blueberries?

Blueberries are the fruit of a shrub that belongs to the heath family which includes cranberries, azaleas and rhododendrons.

• Did you know that Blueberries are one of the only natural foods that are really true blue in colour?
• They’re sort of a bluey purple colour and have what’s called a waxy ‘bloom’ that protects the surface of the blueberry.
• This bloom you can rub off with your finger if you’re curious to see what the true colour of blueberries are.

WE all know what blueberries look like from the punnets that are sold in the supermarket, but what do they look like when they’re growing on the plant?

Blueberry bushes, Floriade Venlo

Blueberries grow in clusters and come in sizes from a pea to a small marble.

Did you know that blueberries are one of the only fruits native to North America, but it wasn’t until the early 1950’s that blueberries were first brought to Australia.

Why’s that?

A couple of guys- Messrs Karel Kroon and Ralph Proctor from the Victorian Department of Agriculture trialled growing them.

But, Australia was out of luck there because these guys couldn’t get past the disease problems.

Twenty years later, the Victorian Department of Agriculture tried again.

This time, a chap called David Jones carefully planted and tended to his blueberry seeds and eventually successfully grew several blueberry plants.

Still, it wasn’t until the 1980’s that Blueberries were commercially available.

Where to Grow?

Blueberries like a sunny position but will also get by in some shade (but not too much, otherwise you won’t get too many flowers.

Blueberry flowers

The best time for planting is between late autumn and spring, when plants are sold bare-rooted and are less likely to suffer from transplant shock than at other times of the year.

You can buy containerised blueberry plants all year-round though.

What They Need?

Blueberries need moist soil, good drainage and lots of organic material.

Blueberries are acid loving plants that do best in soils with a pH between 4.5 to 5.5

If you can grow Camellias and Azaleas, you can grow Blueberries.

If you don’t have that ph you will have to add either elemental sulphur (where the pH is too alkaline) or lime / dolomite (where the pH is too acid). If the soil pH is higher the plants may show signs of iron deficiency.

If that sounds too hard, grow you blueberry plant in a pot.

Tip:Very important when growing blueberries. they have a very fine fibrousy root system, just like Azaleas, and this root system needs a porous medium in which to grow, a bit like coarse sand from where they came from.

If you have poor drainage, then grow them in a raised bed or at the very least, on a mound of soil and use lots of mulch.

Or, like me, grow them in a pot, but grow a couple to increase pollination.

So, a little bit fussy there.

When to Grow

Not all blueberry plants are alike, so choose the variety for your region carefully.

Did you know that there are three varieties of blueberry species?

•  Highbush, Lowbush (wild) and Rabbiteye.

Highbush varieties can be broken down into either Southern Highbush or Northern Highbush.

Gardeners in the know about chill factor will now know, that means a certain amount of hours below 7⁰C.

The highbush variety, grows to 1.5–3 metres, and has many different cultivars.

In Victoria, Tasmania and Southern New South Wales, you are more likely to find the Northern Highbush, high chill variety for sale in your nursery.

Winter chilling  is quite high -(over 1000 hours below 2°C) but they can still tolerate high summer temperatures.

• The fruit of the Northern Highbush is harvested later in the season, from December to April.
• For temperate areas which don’t get too cold in winter, you need to grow the warmer climate Southern Highbush and Rabbiteye varieties (originally grown in the southern states of America)
• These do well on the NSW North Coast and produce high value, early season fruit. These varieties are harvested from June to February.
• For Northern NSW and Queensland, you can grow a variety called Rabbiteye
• The rabbiteye is a low chill, late season variety that’s best at coping with warm and humid summers

Rabiteyes can also cope with dry conditions, making it right at home in Arid climates too.

And where does the name come from?

Rabbiteye Blueberries

Supposedly during the ripening stage when the blueberry is pink, if you look closely you will notice the calyx appears to be little rabbit eyes looking right back at you.

• IMPORTANT TIP: Blueberries fruit on the tips of the previous season’s growth.

I spoke to a blueberry grower last year and was told to let the shrub establish first.

That means, you must pluck off the flowers in spring so it doesn't set fruit, but the 3rd year you can let it flower.

If you let them establish for the first two years apparently the plants will last a lifetime!

 Once your Blueberry shrub is established new stems will come up and fruit for up to four years initially from the tip to down the whole branch.

From the third winter onwards, cut back old, dry stems every winter.

Cut them back either down to ground level or to a vigorous new shoot near the ground.

They first produce sideshoots from the base of the plant soon after flowering in spring. Then in early to midsummer, vigorous growths push up from the base of the bush.

Hard pruning in winter will encourage this renewed growth and result in larger, earlier fruit.

SHARPEBLUE

Generally a tough bush that needs constant picking of the ripe fruit or they’ll get too soft.

MISTYanother tough evergreen variety.. It is an early fruiting variety, with light blue, medium to large fruit of excellent flavour.

Blueberries are pest free apart from caterpillars and birds, and if you prune the shrub so its open in the middle it reduces fungal disease.

Selecting and Storing Blueberries –

Pick or buy blueberries that are firm and have an even colour with a whitish bloom.

Important:Blueberries are another fruit that don’t ripen off the bush.

Blueberries should be eaten within a few days of picking or buying.

Ripe berries should be stored in a covered container in the fridge where they will keep for about 1 week.

Bees are needed to pollinate blueberry flowers

Don't wash blueberries until right before eating as you’ll remove the bloom that protects the berries' skin from going bad.

If kept a room temperature for more than an hour, the berries will start to spoil.

Blueberries can be frozen.

Why are they good for you?

Blueberries have large amounts of anthocyanins,- antioxidant compounds that give blue, purple and red colour to fruit and vegetables.

Not sure what all the fuss is about? Antioxidants are very well known for their health benefits, especially their ability to reduce damage to our cells and Blueberries contain more antioxidants than most other fruits or vegetables

Blueberries are also a good source of Vitamin C, Vitamin E, manganese and both soluble and insoluble fibre like pectin.

A cup of blueberries will give you 30% of your RDA (Recommended Daily Allowance) of Vitamin C.

Plus they’re low in calories.

If you think they’re too fussy to grow,  for the same price as a cup of coffee, treat yourself to a punnet of Blueberries, eat them straight out of the punnet (wash them of course) and enjoy the health benefits.

AND THAT WAS OUR VEGETABLE HERO SEGMENT

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Pruning When and Bluebells

DESIGN ELEMENTS

When To Prune

Pruning is one of those jobs that eventually every gardener that grows anything will undertake.

Now that you’re committed to pruning that tree or shrub or hedge, what is the most important consideration do you think?
Do you know the name of the species of plant?
Some gardeners would have the ubiquitous plants like murraya, Viburnum tinus, star jasmine and Japanese box.
Others may be more adventurous and have Chinese fringe flower,(Loropetalum chinense), Bower vine (Pandorea jasminoides), or even a trumpet vine (Beaumontia grandiflora).

Do you know when it’s about to flower or set fruit?
So when should you prune it?
Well, today it’s about when’s the best time to prune.
Let’s find out.

I'm talking with Jason Cornish from www.urbanmeadows.com.au
Jason's tip is to wait until after flowering before commencing pruning as a general rule.
Pruning hedges is different because the flowers are not the feature, but the neatness is.
Depending on what the plant species is, for hedging, pruning occurs 2-3 times a year.
fore example, viburnum hedges.
For vigorous hedges such as Plumbago, you will need to prune 4-5 times per year.

• TIP:If you don’t know what shrub or tree that you’ve got, the best advice is to wait until it flowers or sets fruit, and then prune after that.
• Jason's General Rule Nr 2 : Jason’s strategy is lightly and often.

If you have any questions for me or for Jason, please write in to realworldgardener@gmail.com

TALKING FLOWERS

Bluebells

There are English (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) and spanish bluebells. (Hyacinthoides hispanica).

• Family: Asparagaceae

Flowering in Spring, the bluebell is blue.  but, there are also bluebells that have a creamy colour or an off white hue and even pink.

It might not look like it but bluebells has six petals.  These petals are all fused up together forming a narrow bell shape.

The main differences between a Spanish bluebell and  English bluebell 

English bluebells flower on one side, Spanish bluebells flower on both sides of the stem.

English bluebell is stronger scented. Spanish bluebell has only a very slight scent.

Spanish bluebell grows well in full sun but English bluebells prefers at least partial shade.

Spanish bluebell flowers lift their heads towards the sun. English bluebells never do.

• Superstitions:

Bluebells is a tool used for calling fairies.

“Ring” the bluebells like you would a normal bell and the fairies would come. But the downside is - if you actually hear it ring, it’s a superstition that someone that holds dear to your heart will die.

•  In a vase.

Cut the bluebell stem straight across the base and place in shallow water in the vase. Any more water and the stems will soften and fall over.

Replace the water in the vase daily.
I'm talking with florist Mercedes Sarmini of www.floralgossip.com.au

Video was recorded live during broadcast of Real World Gardener on 13th November 2019

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The Advantages of Recess Before Lunch

As lesson plans progress, children’s attention span shortens which makes it difficult for them to focus and be as productive during tasks assigned. As a result of this, it has been found that shorter, more focused lessons seem to be a more effective use of time when teaching our little ones. Likewise, eating habits during lunchtime has changed in many schools. Other than the observed benefits of taking more breaks, most kids prefer a longer recess time to play than the time it took them to finish their food.



For over a decade now, some schools have shifted their schedules around to allow for students to have recess before lunch. Many benefits have been observed and we wanted to share them with you. Some of these include:

• Increased physical activity


• Decreased visits to the nurse’s office


• Overall improved cafeteria behavior


• Students eat more and waste less


• Increased consumption of milk


• Students are more calm while eating lunch


• No need to cool down; more willing to work right after lunch time


• Improved social skills

Recess and lunch time should be a time for kids to socialize, bond, be active and get the nutrients needed to grow strong and healthy. Does your child’s school offer recess before lunch? If not, ask your school’s wellness committee about implementing the Recess Before Lunch Program. For more information, go to: https://www.actionforhealthykids.org/activity/recess-before-lunch/ 

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Bee Keeping part 2 and All Things Lettuce

We start with part 2 of a two part segment on bee-keeping, a veg that helps you sleep in Vegetable Heroes; a new series begins called pruning 101 with landscape designer Jason Cornish, in Design elements and a starry eyed violet flowered small shrub in plant of the week.

KEEPING BEES Part 2

Last week part 1 of this two-part series about bee-keeping went to air, so I’ll revise a little of that in the interview.
If you are considering keeping bees, don’t just get a bee hive and hope for the best.
Don’t be like some people that have put Flow Hives in the backyard and not put any bees in and wondered why they don't get any honey.

Would you be game enough to collect a wild swarm of bees?

Or others that have put just one queen bee in a Flow Hive [without a colony]."
Be informed and do the right thing.
Let’s find out about things you need to know about keeping bees in part 2 of this 2 part segment.
I'm talking with John Scot from www.eezybeez.com.au

Tip: using a smoker calms the bees quite a bit because it gives the bees a cue that something is going to happen.

You will also need to replace you queen bee after 3-4 years because she will have become less productive and your beehive colony will go into decline in as little as 6 - 8 months.

That is because the queen bee is unable to lay sufficient worker bee eggs.

Buying a queen bee can be done online and the best time to buy in Australia is from October until the end of autumn.

For a current list of queen bee producers refer to the Australasian Beekeeper (www.theabk.com.au), or the Australian Honey Bee News.

photo Ulrike Leone from Pixabay

Just remember, one of the most important things you need to do if you want to keep bees is to register with your state’s DPI.
If there's an outbreak of disease in the bee population that could threaten Australia's crops and environment, the department needs to keep beekeepers informed.
Registration allows the DPI to identify owners of beehives and know where the hives are located and communicate with them if there's ever an outbreak of disease outside of Australia,
If you have any questions for me or for John, why not write in to Realworldgardener@gmail.com or write in to 2rrr, PO Box 644 Gladesville NSW 1675.

VEGETABLE HEROES

ALL THINGS LETTUCE.

LETTUCE or Lactuca sativa, is a temperate annual or biennial plant of the daisy family Asteraceae..Lettuce helps you sleep better.

I’ll tell you why a little later on.

• What to the words Tango, Red Leprechaun, Tennis Ball and Freckles have in common? They’re all lettuce varieties that you can buy.

• Did you know that Lettuce was considered an aphrodisiac in Egypt?
• And that the Greeks used lettuce as a medicinal plant to induce sleep?

Lactuca sativa or lettuce is just everywhere and thought to have started in the wild as a prickly lettuce, found as a weed in the Mediterranean.

Why should you grow your own lettuce?

Nothing beats the freshness of home grown lettuce though.

What you mightn’t realise is that the flavour is lost in as little as 24 hours, and there’s no way supermarket lettuce is only 24 hours old.

• When to plant in Australia

 Lettuce can be planted all year round in all areas of Australia.

Having said that, in Arid districts, it might be a good idea to avoid the hottest months of the year, and in cool temperate districts, you might like to grow your lettuce in a greenhouse or undercover somewhere during winter.

• Not all kinds of lettuce are created alike however!

For all areas, planting or sowing in the summer months, should only be the loose leaf types of lettuce.

• Summer is not for sowing hearting types of lettuce.

Now’s not the time to be planting Iceberg and the other hearting lettuce varieties, like Butterhead and Cos Romaine because they prefer being grown in the cooler months of Autumn, and in some districts during winter.

These hearting varieties are OK in the coolest months. (The upper temperature limit to grow heading lettuces is 28°C)

Summer is just too warm for the hearting types.

• How to Grow Summer Lettuce

If you don’t want bitter lettuce leaves, they you have to grow it

as fast as possible and for that they need plenty of water and plant food.

Ideally your soil should hold lots of water and lots of nitrogen and other nutrients.

Sandy soils need help from your compost bin or worm farm.

If you have clay soils, growing lettuce shouldn’t be a problem, as is growing them in pots.

Remember this, Lettuce has shallow roots, so it dries out easily.

You must keep up a steady supply of water because any set back will at least, make them tough and bitter, at worst it will cause them to bolt to seed straight away without making any leaves for you!

So make sure they never get stressed (e.g. by forgetting to water them).

• Sowing lettuce 101
  

To sow lettuce seed, either spread the seed very thinly along a row and ever so lightly, in fact hardly at all, cover the seeds with soil, or sprinkle it over a bed and rake it in.

 For all you balcony gardeners, any largish pot will do for 3 or 4 lettuce seedlings.

Lettuce seed is very fine so just press the seeds into the soil and don’t cover them.

If you’re off to work everyday, sprinkle some vermiculite over the seeds and spray with water.

The vermiculite holds want but lets light through.

• By the way, lettuce seed doesn’t germinate that well at soil temperatures over 25⁰C. 

So if you are sowing it in a pot, keep the potting mix cool by putting it in light shade until the lettuce seed germinates.

I mentioned before that hearting types of lettuce will go to seed in summer very quickly and not form a heart at all.

For tropical and sub-tropical districts, the most heat tolerant kinds of lettuce are the open leafed varieties (Looseleaf).

All the pretty fancy lettuces you see in the shops, the frilly and curly varieties, they are your lettuce varieties you need to grow.

If your lettuce grows slowly even though you’re giving them plenty of water, then they need more food.

 Did you add organic compost, manures or worm castings to the veggie bed before you sowed the seed?

If you didn’t, then you need to supply extra nutrients, especially nitrogen. Some of the liquid fertilisers will do right now.

Some lettuce varieties for you to try are,

Lettuce Freckles-yep it’s freckly and it’s a butter lettuce as is Lettuce Tennis Ball.

Lettuce Amish Deer Tongue- Amazing two-in-one lettuce that can be cooked like spinach or used like lettuce, so you have a hot or cold vegetable to suit the season. Repeat harvest makes it a highly productive choice for space saving gardens.

Lettuce Crispmint is an outstanding variety with excellent flavour and crisp, minty green leaves. Seed Savers in the US have over 200 varieties of lettuce and rate this as one of their best.

to the elegant deep brown-red leaves that fade to green near the heart.

Lettuce Crispmint photo Diggers Seeds

So why is it good for us?

Lettuce is very good for digestion and promotes good liver function. It can reduce the risk of heart attacks and is good for healthy eyesight. It has good levels of Vitamin C, beta-carotene and fibre.

You won’t put on any weight eating Lettuce  because most varieties have over 90% water and are extremely low in calories.

Lettuce contain the sedative lactucarium (lactoo-caree um) which relaxes the nerves but not upsetting digestion.

As a general rule, the darker green the leaves, the more nutritious the salad green.

For example, romaine or watercress have seven to eight times as much beta-carotene, and two to four times the calcium, and twice the amount of potassium as iceberg lettuce.

By varying the greens in your salads, you can boost the nutritional content as well as vary the tastes and textures.  

AND THAT WAS OUR VEGETABLE HERO SEGMENT

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To Prune or Not to Prune

DESIGN ELEMENTS

• Series: Pruning 101

Pruning is one of those jobs that eventually every gardener that grows anything will undertake.
Except of course if you’ve only got a lawn and nothing else, but those gardeners are probably not listening to the radio show or reading this blog.

So over the next 4 weeks, Jason and I will be talking about various pruning jobs and methods.
Today it’s an introduction into what pruning is and different levels of pruning.
Let’s find out.
I'm talking with Jason Cornish from www.urbanmeadows.com.au

• There's several types of pruning.

Tip pruning: removing just the tip of the branches or stems to encourage bushy growth. Using your thumb and middle finger, it's easy to nip out the top couple of leaves at a point just above the next set of leaves lower down. This will stimulate two pairs of leaves to grow from that point.

Light pruning: to remove just the outer leaves without cutting into the semi hardwood or hardwood.

Medium pruning: not a hard prune, but somewhere between  a light prune and removing 30% of growth.

Hard prune: chopping the shrub or tree almost to the ground. A risky undertaking and may result in death of the plant. Some plants such as callistemons and lilly pillies will reshoot from being pruned in this way.

PLANT OF THE WEEK

Rock Isotoma: Isotoma axillaris
Family: Lobeliaceae
Fancy a shrubby ground cover plant with purple starry flowers that’s a real standout?
Of course, we all want those in our garden because they fit into any bare spot.
Let’s find out why we should grow it.

Isotoma axillaris

I'm talking with Adrian O’Malley, horticulturist and native plant expert.

Rock isotoma is a flowering perennial that grow up to 40cm high x 40cm wide.

Upright stems are often a purplish colour and covered with short, soft hairs quickly becoming smooth.

The leaves are about 1.5–15 cm long and 0.5–5 mm wide with deep, toothed, linear lobes sharply pointed at the apex.
Rock Isotoma grows naturally in sandstone rock crevices in bushland, but don’t let that stop you from growing it in your garden.
Treat it as a biennial plant, but as it self seeds that’s not really a problem.
You may see if for sale in your local nursery Isotoma ‘Blue Star’
It’s a terrific plant with multibranched stems, that grows into a great mound of lilac-coloured, star-like flowers
If you have any questions either for me or Adrian, why not write in to realworldgardener@gmail.com

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