Game on! It’s the great summer-crop wait out! Has your garden hit the tomato, pumpkin, bean or corn planting sweet spot? If not, I’m sending you the strength to resist rushing in! The day is coming, my friend. As the air slowly warms, the soil soon follows. Be guided by temperatures and the state of your soil, not by the stand of seedlings at the supermarket! Air that’s colder than 13°C and soil that feels soggy or cold, or measures less than 18°C is not an ideal environment for heat loving crops.
At my place, last nights low was 8°C, and my garden soil is 14°C. Things are warming up nicely but are still too chilly for summer crops. I’ve got a wee way to go before reaching the corn, kumara, pumpkin + bean happy place. I’m lucky – I have a greenhouse which is absolutely warm enough right now and tomatoes, cucumbers, courgettes and beans are boosting away.
If conditions aren’t right as yet, keep your summery seedlings growing in pots, somewhere sunny and warm. When the roots start to poke out the bottom of their pot, move them into the next size up. While you wait, prepare the beds for your summer crops, by sowing a living mulch on them.
A fertile living mulch
Living mulch is simply mulch that’s alive – its using plants to cover the soil. When covered with plants, soil hums with life and mineral exchange and immunity are high – a strong beginning for our food crops!
If your soil is too cold to plant tomatoes, divert your energy into sowing living mulches on your summer cropping beds. Your soil, your crops and your life (less hassle by far) will be better served.
- Nectar rich flowers like phacelia, crimson clover, buckwheat or mustard are honey for bees. Sow them now in the pumpkin/ squash/ zuchinni beds and watch pollination rates go right up.
- Sow marigold, phacelia, buckwheat (separate or together) on the tomato/ pepper + aubergine beds. Nasturtium is awesome too.
- Sow crimson clover on the corn bed for a nitrogen fixing groundcover.
Get going this weekend! Spread a fine layer of compost across the bed if it needs it, then sow your living mulch. When the weather and soil temperatures align with the crops needs, bring your seedlings out to harden off outside for a few nights, then get planting into the living mulch.
Plant out + Grow
If this is your first time planting amongst a living mulch – its kinda wierd right! Treat it the same as if you were planting into your usual mulch, but instead of moving mulch aside to plant into – cut or break the living mulch off at ground level, then send a shovel full of compost into each pocket and plant the seedling out. Space seedlings at their usual spacings.
As the crop grows, keep the way clear and the light in, by breaking off any bits that over shadow. Lay these bits around the seedling as mulch. Try to keep the living mulch as cosy as you can without over taking the crop. Another little and often – albeit it super easy – job.
This cosy-ness is especially important if your living mulch is providing flowers to seduce the bees in. The closer this nectar is to the flowers that need pollinating, the better.
Seedlings love being cosy together, you just wait and see. The living mulch gives valuable protection from uncertain weather and extra support networks below ground as their roots and canopy establish.
So great! I’m completely inspired by this!!!!
Sooooo glad I read this before I started planting. I have seeds for what you recommend, and I have the watering system in place thanks to Otaki Hydroponics. You are a blessing Kath.
Once again great advice. I really appreciate your sharing of knowledge. I used to plant way too early and stressed over the baby plants. Spending lots of time putting covers over when weather cold. Now I wait then you’re right it’s game on.
Such satisfaction in the waiting Sue, the alignment of perfect conditions and timing rewarded with happy, successful plants. Struggling plants make more work and headache for the gardener!
Any suggestion of what to plant with potatoes?
I like crimson clover, nasturtium and/or peas Owen
Love this! Thank you for the inspiration! Had the same thoughts about tomato planting, but this alternative works perfect for me now!
Hey again Cath could you advise the variety of msrigold pictured here? I can only find seeds for the compact type plants, these bigger bushier rambling type one’s look way better for a living mulch. Thanks in advance
You’re right – these marigolds are awesome! African marigold are the ones pictured – I grow them in the greenhouse. The big bold beautiful marigolds I grow in the garden are Marietta marigold.
Hi Kath, thanks for the amazing advice! I’m trying to track down a soil thermometer like the one you have, but can’t find it online! Can you please tell me the brand or where I might be able to find one?! Thanks!!!
Sadly its out of stock Pauline – the only ones I can find are digital ones.
I got one from Bunnings – online as stores dont appear to have them. Great investment for me -roughly $15
How do I avoid those mulch flower plants from becoming ‘weeds’? I have had that problem in the past with nasturtium. I suppose I just need to cut them down before they seed?
Simply break off the bits that get in the way of other plants or the path or… yes you can also manage them by taking off immature seed heads though some self seeding is greatly beneficial. Its the kind of thing that is best learnt by doing – it will all become clear! Plants like nasturtium are so very gentle that you can easily uplift any seedlings and compost them or transplant them elsewhere – not at all tricky like convulvulus for instance so really nothing to worry about. I hope you enjoy trying it out and good job for being open to the new!
Hi, Kath
Thanks – just the info I’ve been needing, especially in this up and down weather! Two things;
(1) should I count wild (small) creeping strawberry as a weed and remove it, or see it as part of what my soil needs and leave it in and sow the cover crop seeds through/around it?
(2) I have been out measuring soil temps (average 16) and texture (still a bit heavy, wet) and we are about to have a cold snap: down to 2 degrees C in October! Is it OK to sow the cover seed and mulch it with chopped and dropped material today, or should I wait for a few more days for the warmer weather again?
Also, just ordered your Fruit Tree Pruning book: excited! Your regenerative permacultural approach is the best and you are answering so many of my questions, esp about temp being the key to timing (right now)
Hey Pam – what you count as a weed is totally up to you – its all about whether or not its working for you in your space right now or not. Could be an excellent groundcover or could be taking up valuable cropping space – your call my friend. The theme of the day is to match the crops to the conditions so mustard and lupin are sweet in the cold – go for it!
Hi Kath. Awesome article 🙂 What would you plant amongst garlic?
nothing! garlic really needs the airflow as rust prevention – just lots of mulch!
Hi Kath
Just wondering what the name of the marigolds in the photos for this post is? Love the way they spread more than the marigolds I’ve grown previously.
Cheers
They’re awesome aye…. Tagetes erecta or commonly called either African or Aztec marigold. They grow to about 1m.