August 2016 Issue #132

Hello,

What fun that we both love gardening. Thanks for joining me.

1) Go for gardening gold!
2) Eco gardening tips
3) Pressed Watermelon with Basil Water

Go for gold, go gardening!

Garden with the joy that you've just won a gold medal at the Olympics.

Eco gardening tips

• Brassicas and pests
  Brassicas attract pests; no argument there. Some suggestions: The white butterflies and moths vanish in cold weather. So this is the time to plant out seedlings; from autumn to spring, depending on your climate.
  
  

  Cooler weather usually stops any remaining eggs hatching. You can also use a deterrent with floating row covers, or recycle old net curtains from charity shops.

  Hand picking of caterpillars or a good spray every 4-5 days works well too. See organic pest control.

• Seedlings in pots
  Last newsletter I mentioned that eggshells weren't large enough for propagating seeds as they didn't allow for good root growth before transplanting.
  
  

  Another negative is that eggshells take forever to rot, so seedlings need to be removed or the eggshells need a good smashing.

  Deep pots are best for sprouting seeds, preferably tapered, as this forces roots to go deeper... a perfect start for little seedlings when transplanted.

• Ooh aagh!
  If you think a jalapeno chilli is hot with its Scoville heat measurement at 10-15000 units, it's not as HOT as the Carolina Reaper with a Scoville value of 1.569-2.2 million! It's the hottest pepper in the world.
  
  

  “...it knocked me to my knees."

  A handy tip to ice that chilli fire in your mouth is to use lemon juice, or another citric acid fruit such as pineapple.

  To see a photo of the quirky looking Carolina Reaper and read about the aim to produce a pepper packed with capsaicinoids, and possible health benefits, see it on No-dig gardening's facebook page.

A week by week and zone by zone growing system

Want to know what vegetables to plant?

Want to know when to plant them?

The GroVeg Garden Planner is your answer. Click here for a 30 DAY FREE TRIAL!

Pressed Watermelon with Basil Water

This recipe comes from a most useful book:
Cool Waters: 50 Refreshing, Healthy, Homemade Thirst Quenchers Dribbleicious!

Ingredients

• 4 cups watermelon chunks (about 1/4 large melon)
• 6 to 8 basil leaves, chopped
• Pinch of sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon white vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar).

Method

• Combine the watermelon chunks and basil in a colander placed over a large bowl. Using a metal ladle or spoon, mash and press the watermelon and basil to extract as much juice as possible (the remaining pulp should be fairly dry).


• Season the juice with the sea salt and vinegar and strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a large pitcher. Top up with water as desired, stir and serve.

Preparation: 15 minutes
Serves: 1 large jugful.

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Live, love and garden.
Megan

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