Welcome to Lee’s gardening advice for January written by local resident and keen gardener, Lee Stevenson (aka An English Gardener in Çalış).
Ok, I know its not officially spring yet but the weather we have been enjoying recently has allowed me to get outside and cut the grass to avoid it looking like a scene from Tenko.
Growing and preparing
It’s a good time to start growing seeds and preparing your gardens for the season ahead.
I intend to sow my hot chillies and selected varieties of tomatoes in early January. A longer season for chillies means more fruit.
Other edibles that can be sown now include:
- Broad beans – one of the few plants that can handle the cold weather
- Brussels sprouts – providing you have a space in your garden that you can leave for roughly nine months to grow these beauties
- Kohlrabi – mine are now young plants ready for planting out
- Leeks – may be better to buy as young plants which are available at any of the local markets
- Onions – I prefer to buy the small shallot sized bulbs that are in most local supermarkets and grow these on
- Peas
- Turnips and winter salad leaves such as rocket, chard or mustard leaves.
Clik here to view.
Flowers that can be sown from seed now include:
- Cornflowers – I recently found out these are also known as Bachelors buttons
- Calendula
- Larkspur
- Nasturtium – it’s surprising that the edible flowers on this plant aren’t used more
- Sweet peas
- Primroses
It’s also time for spring flowering bulbs to brighten your borders. Examples are:
- Daffodils
- Crocus
- Tulips
- Hyacinth
Left Overs
Poinsettias – not just for Christmas
If you were lucky (or unlucky some might say) enough to receive a Poinsettia this year you might want to try growing it on in your garden. There’s a 50/50 chance you will succeed depending on how the plant was cared for in the shop it was purchased from. They need bright but filtered light away from strong sun and draughts – under an evergreen fruit tree would be a good spot.
Clik here to view.
They can survive a minimum temperature of 14 degrees so protect with a plastic bag or a plastic bottle that has had the top cut off if your expecting a frost. Water them sparingly and, if planting outside, cut off roughly a third of the plant. When flowering, create humidity with water spray to extend the flowering time.
Amaryllis
Clik here to view.
Another popular seasonal gift is the amaryllis. As a general rule, the larger the bulb the more flower spikes it should produce. Once yours has finished flowering and the foliage has died off, store the bulb somewhere dry – out of the sun – and look to plant again next October in fresh soil for December flowering.
Re-cycle your Christmas tree
If you had a Christmas tree this year that had a root ball, try re-planting outside or in a large pot. If you’re planting it outside it’s best to dig a square hole. This is true for all trees to be planted outside, as trees have lazy roots and are not good at growing around corners. When the roots hit the 90-degree angle of a square hole, rather than snaking around to create a spiral, they spread out of the planting hole into the surrounding soil. In the end your tree will grow stronger and faster.
Clik here to view.
Pruning, planting and feeding
Its also a good time for pruning fruit trees such as apples and pears (not apricots or plums).
This time of year is good for planting (square holes remember) bare-rooted fruit trees and bushes ( those that have the soil shaken from their roots after they’re dug up).
Use this wetter weather as an opportunity to top dress your soil with rotted garden compost or manure.
If any of you have sobas and burn mostly wood, the leftover cold ash is great to use on the garden as a fertilizer, but please make sure its cold first. Not only does it contain lime & potassium, it provides many of the trace elements that plants need to thrive. Either lightly scatter or mix with any compost you are using.
Grow your own potatoes and garlic
Its a good time to chit (allow to go to seed) your own potatoes even though they’re currently so cheap. You really can’t beat fresh potatoes. Just choose any that you haven’t used – or like the taste of and fancy growing – and place them in a cool dry place on an old egg box. Once they have eyes (small shoots) place them on soil.
Clik here to view.
Potatoes are great for growing in pots or old compost bags and as soon as the potato has about an inch of growth simply cover the growth with soil. Keep adding peat until the plant has reached the top of the pot/bag – or grown as big as you require – and leave until the foliage either flowers or dies off.
Gently dig them up if grown in the ground (or empty the pot/bag) for fresh potatoes,
Another easy to grow soil-based plant that can be sown now is garlic. Choose a largish bulb with healthy looking cloves then simply remove the cloves, place in holes and lightly cover, In around nine months you will have your own fresh garlic.
Clik here to view.
Happy growing.
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Featured photograph courtesy of brian-kolb.com
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