Kem Ormond’s vegetable garden: How to keep crops producing through December

Harvesting rhubarb leads to rhubarb crumble. Photo / 123RF

Kem Ormond is a features writer for The Country. She’s also a keen gardener. This week, she is busy harvesting and has decided it is rhubarb crumble time.

Everything is romping away at the moment in my garden, and yes, that includes the weeds.

I’m incredibly grateful for the long evenings because there’s plenty to do, and harvesting is one of the big jobs this month.

Picking regularly keeps plants like zucchini producing, and the same goes for peas, beans and rhubarb.

The growth in my watermelon and cucumber is incredible, and even my sunflowers are up to my waist.

It won’t be long until I need to weed my beetroot, and the sweetcorn is doing well.

I experimented with corn seed this year.

I used seed from my last year’s corn, and I planted a commercial packet of purchased corn seed at the same time.

My corn came up a good week before the other corn. So, I might try this again next year.

I was lucky to have a friend with a shucking machine, so that made stripping the cobs easy.

As soon as something is big enough to make it into the kitchen, pick it.

I’ve got so much rhubarb that a few crumbles are definitely on the cards.

Regular harvesting really does encourage plants to keep giving.

Summer crops need a boost if they’re going to keep producing, so now’s the time to feed them.

I like to make my own liquid manure, and it’s simple and effective.

I use a big bucket or small drum, throw in seaweed, comfrey leaves, chopped borage, and some animal manure, then let it soak in water for a few days.

When it’s ready, water it on to the garden, but avoid splashing it on anything you’re about to harvest.

And as always, wash your produce well before eating.

Another way to make the most of your garden space is to plant quick growers between slower ones.

Lettuce works well between broccoli, cabbage or cauliflower because you can harvest it before the brassicas need the room.

If any lettuce bolts, I just chop it down and let it mulch.

Peas and radishes prefer cooler conditions, so planting them alongside broad beans gives them a bit of dappled shade.

The old saying “little and often” really applies to succession planting.

It’s the best way to keep a steady supply of fresh food coming.

When you replant, don’t forget to refresh the soil with compost and manure so your next crop gets off to a good start.

December is also the time to thin out young fruit on grapevines and fruit trees.

I can see small bunches of grapes already appearing on my vines, and I can’t wait till I can sit in the sun and enjoy a delicious bunch of juicy grapes.

Thinning helps the remaining fruit grow bigger and better, but with all the wind we’ve had lately, I wouldn’t thin too hard, as nature might do some of the work for us this year.

Enjoy the abundance, keep planting, and make the most of these long summer evenings.

Finally, I have to share some good news about the bumble bees I received from Biobees in Hawke’s Bay and donated to the Heritage Food Crop Research Trust in Whanganui.

They’re thriving in the trust’s tomato house, happily pollinating and enjoying their new playground.

It’s great to know they’re doing their job so well.