With more time at home right now, it’s the perfect opportunity to spend some time in the garden. We’re heading towards Winter, but that’s no excuse to do less gardening. Although the grass won’t need cutting quite as much, spend a little time on some other tasks around the garden.
Winter Vegetables
If there is one thing that all this isolation has taught us, it should be to explore new ways to be self-sufficient. Hopefully some of you have already tried your hand at baking bread, but how about planting some vegetables and reducing your need to go to the supermarket.
Hurry up and plant vegetables like kale, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, leeks, cabbage, beetroot, spinach and Chinese cabbages. Make sure you get them in quickly to ensure they get big enough to eat this winter.
Sow seeds for your winter crops like carrots, swedes, turnips and radish, and you’ll be ready with some nice fresh vegetables over Winter.
Start planting garlic and shallots when they arrive in store later this month. Plant them into beds that have been deeply forked, mix in lots of compost and sheep pellets. Plant bulbs 12 – 15cm apart, so that the pointy top of the bulb is only just clear of the soil and then mulch with pea straw to help suppress weeds.
Fruit Trees
Now is an awesome time to plant new trees like Feijoa and Citrus trees. And watch out too for plums, peaches, nectarines, apples and pears which will begin to arrive in stores in June – hopefully, by then we can go out and shop for them again!
A little love
Think of all your plants as we head into winter. Now is a great time to feed them so they’re nice and strong to survive winter. Consider mulching and adding some fertiliser to them, whilst also weeding out and removing any older flowers and annuals from summer, that are now past their best.
Go Easy
Don’t rush into any of the gardening work, and over-exert yourself. Gardening is one of the biggest causes of ACC claims! Take it slowly and gently – you have time so why try to fit it all into one day? For advice on medical insurance and ACC cover, call one of our advisers.