News, Views, Comment, Feature Articles, Information and Advertising about Elhovo, Bulgaria, and the surrounding areas.
FEBRUARY 2012
GARDENING CALENDAR
Well the snow finally got here brrrr..... looks like a mixture of cloudy overcast cold weather pretty much until March now. Its nice to try to get out into the garden on the lovely days we have had with blue skies as long as you wrap up warm of course.
THE VEG PLOT
In January I produced a three year rotational crop chart and promised to indicate when to plant and how to plant. There are so many vegetables to cover I will do these on a month by month basis.
Well whilst we have snow on the ground its impossible to plant anything of course and the soil underneath is likely to be very hard for some depth. Once the snow has melted its likely, because of the lack of wind in this part of the world that the soil will not dry out quickly and mine is very 'claggy' and turns to mud pretty much if trodden on. If you are very careful you could pin some black plastic sheeting onto the soil to warm it up a little in preparation for planting this works well in the UK of course for early potatoes first crop.
PLANTING CHART
This planting guide is just a guide as you can see the majority of activity is around the March to June period
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THE GARDENING YEAR IN BULGARIA
This is a new addition to the website which attempts to help ex pats with gardening tips delivered on a monthly basis throughout the year. I think it is true to say that because of the extremes of temperatures in this region from summer highs to winter lows that some knowledge of what grows best here needs to be looked at. However, much of what we learned in the UK still stands but, as the summers are longer we are able to grow plants and vegetables we were never able to do so successfully in the UK. In following what the Bulgarians do we can learn much, of course over time we will introduce many more things that we would like to try and the articles try to inform you where things can be sourced. Good luck. Jill Frost
If you have any questions you want to ask Jill or useful comments please send them to :-
gardening@elhovonews.com
gardening@elhovonews.com
PLANTING
ARTICHOKES - артишок
There are two types of artichoke, GLOBE and JERUSALEM the Globe type has its fruit above ground and Jerusalem is a root crop. Illustration shown as you would see them in the shops or at harvest.
Globe Jerusalem
ARTICHOKES - артишок
There are two types of artichoke, GLOBE and JERUSALEM the Globe type has its fruit above ground and Jerusalem is a root crop. Illustration shown as you would see them in the shops or at harvest.
Globe Jerusalem
Globe
Can be grown from plants (tubers) or seeds, these are perennial plants and if grown from seeds should not be cropped in the first year, however, for maximum crops these tubers should be replaced every third year.
To plant - Sow in shallow drills from seed in March/April - from seed. Tubers plant in late April - a bit triffid like in appearance
Can be grown from plants (tubers) or seeds, these are perennial plants and if grown from seeds should not be cropped in the first year, however, for maximum crops these tubers should be replaced every third year.
To plant - Sow in shallow drills from seed in March/April - from seed. Tubers plant in late April - a bit triffid like in appearance
Jerusalem
I love Jerusalem artichokes - they make marvellous soup and many other recipes that are delicious, however, they are often termed 'fartichokes' I will leave the effect to your imagination. Growing very tall indeed, they put up with most soil types, before Sir Walter Raleigh brough the humble potato from the Americas for QE1 - artichokes were the carb we used instead of spuds, Britian has always had a lot of wind....
Best planted from another artichoke tuber or a piece of a tuber. Plant in rows 15 inches apart in rows approx 2-3 feet apart, they prefer deeply dug soil so plenty of humus is required here, like potatoes. Easy to grow they need no other maintenance. Delicious.
NEXT TIME - AUBERGINES (EGGPLANT) патладжа
I love Jerusalem artichokes - they make marvellous soup and many other recipes that are delicious, however, they are often termed 'fartichokes' I will leave the effect to your imagination. Growing very tall indeed, they put up with most soil types, before Sir Walter Raleigh brough the humble potato from the Americas for QE1 - artichokes were the carb we used instead of spuds, Britian has always had a lot of wind....
Best planted from another artichoke tuber or a piece of a tuber. Plant in rows 15 inches apart in rows approx 2-3 feet apart, they prefer deeply dug soil so plenty of humus is required here, like potatoes. Easy to grow they need no other maintenance. Delicious.
NEXT TIME - AUBERGINES (EGGPLANT) патладжа
HERBS
I have grown and seen the following here :-
Parsley - flat leaf type
Horseradish
Thyme
Basil
Dill
Rosemary
Sage
Garlic (veg)
When it comes to vegetables and herbs you can save yourself a lot of hassle by buying plants from Elhovo market, these include :-
Tomato seed potato
Aubergines onion sets
Peppers
Chilli
Cucumber
Gourds
Lettuce
Cabbage
Buying Bulgarian plants can pretty much guarantee success because they are grown locally and show that they can grow well in this environment. To be honest, you can grow most things here and more than the UK in some cases, it's things like Lettuce that suffer in the heat so early spring crops fair well but midsummer is no good for them.
FRUIT
Over the next 12 months I will attempt to cover as many fruits as I can including nut trees. Here in Bulgaria I have seen the following growing or have grown myself :-
Almonds Apples Strawberry Raspberry
Plums Walnut Gooseberry Medlar
Melons Sloe Cherry Peach
Figs Apricot Grape Mulberry
Pear Quince Chestnut Watermelon
FLOWERS
One of the greatest joys I personally think of living in Bulgaria is the beautiful selection of flowers that can be grown and the extended season is also a joy too.
Just a small explanation of flower classifications which sometimes people get very confused about I know early days I needed to keep looking things up. So here we are.
I have grown and seen the following here :-
Parsley - flat leaf type
Horseradish
Thyme
Basil
Dill
Rosemary
Sage
Garlic (veg)
When it comes to vegetables and herbs you can save yourself a lot of hassle by buying plants from Elhovo market, these include :-
Tomato seed potato
Aubergines onion sets
Peppers
Chilli
Cucumber
Gourds
Lettuce
Cabbage
Buying Bulgarian plants can pretty much guarantee success because they are grown locally and show that they can grow well in this environment. To be honest, you can grow most things here and more than the UK in some cases, it's things like Lettuce that suffer in the heat so early spring crops fair well but midsummer is no good for them.
FRUIT
Over the next 12 months I will attempt to cover as many fruits as I can including nut trees. Here in Bulgaria I have seen the following growing or have grown myself :-
Almonds Apples Strawberry Raspberry
Plums Walnut Gooseberry Medlar
Melons Sloe Cherry Peach
Figs Apricot Grape Mulberry
Pear Quince Chestnut Watermelon
FLOWERS
One of the greatest joys I personally think of living in Bulgaria is the beautiful selection of flowers that can be grown and the extended season is also a joy too.
Just a small explanation of flower classifications which sometimes people get very confused about I know early days I needed to keep looking things up. So here we are.
At the end of February I will be taking cuttings of my geraniums which are overwintering in my porch away from the frosts which would kill them.
I will be putting the rooted cuttings into pots and window boxes to form the mainstay of a beautiful display.
By the end of summer, if you only bought one geranium plant, you should have several fully grown and beautifully blossoming plants from which to take your cuttings.
Tips to help you get started right : -
You don't have to take your cuttings from the woody part of a geranium...take it from the newest growth...cutting is easy. It helps if you use a rooting hormone - it gives you a slight head start on rooting.
Once you plant a cutting, wait a few weeks and pull on it very lightly...if it offers resistance it is probably rooting just fine and you'll begin to see lots of new growth. Geraniums like a moist, humid environment. I like to use the bottom end of a two-litre cola bottle like a mini-greenhouse to help with humidity.
By the end of summer, if you only bought one geranium plant, you should have several fully grown and beautifully blossoming plants from which to take your cuttings.
Tips to help you get started right : -
You don't have to take your cuttings from the woody part of a geranium...take it from the newest growth...cutting is easy. It helps if you use a rooting hormone - it gives you a slight head start on rooting.
Once you plant a cutting, wait a few weeks and pull on it very lightly...if it offers resistance it is probably rooting just fine and you'll begin to see lots of new growth. Geraniums like a moist, humid environment. I like to use the bottom end of a two-litre cola bottle like a mini-greenhouse to help with humidity.
NEXT TIME :-
More on vegetables, and I will do more on flowers and include trees....dont forget get your compost heap going it will reward you - see January's article on how to create one.
Jill Frost - for Elhovo News - February 2012.
More on vegetables, and I will do more on flowers and include trees....dont forget get your compost heap going it will reward you - see January's article on how to create one.
Jill Frost - for Elhovo News - February 2012.
