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Showing 5131 - 5160 of 13866 comments

Coriander (also Cilantro, Chinese parsley) 13 Feb, John (Australia - temperate climate): Cilantro is, strictly speaking, the name for the leaves and Coriander is the name for the seeds. Just a little bit of trivia for you.
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Coriander (also Cilantro, Chinese parsley) 10 Feb, John (Australia - temperate climate): You are right. Confetti Coriander can be harvested earlier and is slower to run to seed.
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Asparagus 10 Feb, Lisa (Australia - temperate climate): Hi, This is my third asparagus year. My asparagus is growing in high raised garden beds. I have the most amazingly tall healthy ferns - they are so tall and prolific you can hardly get past them to the other raised beds. There aren't that many spears though. Will they come? Or am I destined to have a jungle of ferns? Does this happen? I did not pick many spears again this year, I left most to turn into my jungle.
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Asparagus 10 Feb, John (Australia - temperate climate): The 'fern' begins as the edible spear as it emerges from the ground. It is too late to harvest spears this year. Cut the 'ferns' off when they begin to yellow. The spears will emerge in the spring. They sre like 'buds' for the ferns. Cut them off with a knife below ground level. Clear a bit of soil so you don't damage any new tips still under the ground. Enjoy! Trust this helps.
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Sweet Potato (also Kumara) 09 Feb, eric pearson (Australia - temperate climate): Do you cut the end of runners off
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Sweet Potato (also Kumara) 09 Feb, John (Australia - temperate climate): You certainly can cut the runners back. Kumera/sweet potato is a member of the same family as the blue flowered Morning Glory vine and needs containing to stop it spreading. Do not cut it back too hard as the leaves are also feeding the plant. the runners will form more sweet potatoes where they are in contact with the ground and can form roots. You could also put a stake in when you plant them next time and tie all of the growth to the stake then at the end of the season cut the growth off, let it dry and use it for mulch or compost. Trust this helps.
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Sweet Potato (also Kumara) 16 Feb, Africanaussie (Australia - tropical climate): You can eat the tender shoots like spinach!
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Sweet corn (also corn,maize) 07 Feb, flo (Australia - temperate climate): Usually crop rotation is done so diseases don't build up in the beds, and also because each type of crop takes different nutrients from the soil. Growing the same crop in the same spot all the time would deplete the soil. Legumes fix nitrogen in the soil, so growing leafy greens to follow would have them benefitting from the nitrogen. Hope this helps...
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Horseradish 06 Feb, Sue (Australia - temperate climate): Is it best grown in full sun or shade
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Horseradish 08 Feb, John (Australia - temperate climate): Horseradish will grow in full sun or part shade. It is a very hrdy plant and will spread rapidly in good conditions. To contain it you can plant it in a large planter pot and sink the pot into the ground. Horseradish loves damp conditions and in this situation will produce the best roots but will still do well with less water. Trust this helps
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Chicory (also Witloof, Belgian endive) 05 Feb, (Australia - temperate climate): Would love to grow witlof /chicory where can I buy the seeds, I live in PE, thanks
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Chicory (also Witloof, Belgian endive) 06 Feb, John (Australia - temperate climate): Eden Seeds have chicory seed. I'm not sure whether they are in far northern NSW or SEQld but you will find them on the internet.
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Amaranth (also Love-lies-bleeding) 05 Feb, John (Australia - temperate climate): Where did amaranths orginate from
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Amaranth (also Love-lies-bleeding) 06 Feb, John (Australia - temperate climate): Amaranth originated in Central America and was used by the Aztecs for thousands of years. It is often called an 'ancient grain' but is not actually a cereal. Trust this helps.
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Amaranth (also Love-lies-bleeding) 16 Oct, Darko (Australia - temperate climate): Amaranth growing wild for centuries all over Balkans and am not sure if this is the same variety but we had it before Columbus and eat at emergency situation, wars, famine... Before converting to Christianity.
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Okra (also Ladyfinger, gumbo) 05 Feb, John droppers (Australia - temperate climate): How to cook it is have tried it it seems to be guey slimey
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Okra (also Ladyfinger, gumbo) 09 Feb, David (Australia - temperate climate): How to Cook Okra Without the Sliminess: www.youtube.com/watch?v=F39BHPwfBfo
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Okra (also Ladyfinger, gumbo) 06 Feb, Flo (Australia - temperate climate): It is always slimy when boiled or steamed. It is often used in curries etc, masks the sliminess a bit.
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Okra (also Ladyfinger, gumbo) 06 Feb, John (Australia - temperate climate): I have worked in a community garden with South Sudanese and they use okra in stews as it is to create a thickening effect. They also say that it is soothing for gastric problems. A lot of people say to soak it in vinegar for half an hour then pat dry and cook. Trust this helps.
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Watermelon 05 Feb, jenny philippi (Australia - tropical climate): we have planted potatoes in our veg but all of a sudden this vine appears and weeks later we realize it is a watermelon vine your page said watermelons should be avoided planting with potatoes. ours came up on their own. will both survive?
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Watermelon 06 Feb, John (Australia - temperate climate): They may not be good companions but if both are doing wellit's not going to cost you anything to let them go. If the melon roots are intertwined with a potato you may have to leave that potato until the tops of both die down
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Cucumber 05 Feb, (Australia - temperate climate): How to tell when apple cucumbers are ready to pick
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Cucumber 06 Feb, John (Australia - temperate climate): Most varieties of apple cucumber are ripe when the greenish tinge has gone and they are a clear white. When they are overripe they go yellowish and are often bitter. This would apply to most apple cucumbers but there are some more recent varieties available that are green when they are ripe and some that are a golden, almost brown colour. Trust this helps.
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Luffa (also Loofah, plant sponge) 04 Feb, Coco (Australia - temperate climate): hi does any one know if I could use the seeds to plant from a store bought loofa ?
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Luffa (also Loofah, plant sponge) 04 Feb, John (Australia - temperate climate): If the seeds are only a season or two old there is no reason why not. Loofa is a cucurbit (a member of the pumpkin, squash and cucumber family) but has no close relatives that it could hybridise with. Grow the same as pumpkin. Trust this helps.
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Lettuce 04 Feb, Gail (Australia - temperate climate): I have planted a variety of lettuce from seed. From about 15 seeds planted only 1 is starting to grow. I can't see anything eating the shoots could there be bugs in the ground eating the seedling before it shoots?
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Lettuce 04 Feb, John (Australia - temperate climate): Lettuce and other fine seed like carrot needs consistent moisture to germinate as the seeds are fine. A notorious thief of lettuce and carrot seeds are ants! Sprinkle pepper along the row when sowing the seed, this is an excellent deterrent. Trust this helps.
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Cape Gooseberry (also Golden Berry, Inca Berry ) 03 Feb, Gayle (Australia - tropical climate): Will gooseberry bushes grow in Rockhampton Central Queensland and can I buy from you (We don't sell plants - Gardenate)
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Cape Gooseberry (also Golden Berry, Inca Berry ) 05 Feb, John (Australia - temperate climate): Look up seed catalogues on the net. They are easy to grow from seed.
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Onion 01 Feb, Grace (Australia - temperate climate): I'm looking at onions. Temperate area. Cohuna vic. What isnthe difference between the "transplant seedlings" and "plant in garden"? Hmmm. Or does the "plant in garden" mean I can plant seed straight into the garden instead of growing them now in seed trays?
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