How to grow amazing organic veggies

Growing on large running vines, this plant takes up lots of space.

The ‘Butternut’ variety is smaller and can be trained up a trellis.

‘Golden Nugget’ is a non-running bush variety that will grow in a garden bed or large container.

Care

Sow the seeds where they are to grow on mounded soil in saucer-shaped troughs to direct water to the roots.

One of the quickest and easiest crops to grow, the crispy roots and young leaves of radishes are delicious in salads.

The seeds germinate in about 5-8 days and the roots are ready to harvest in 6-8 weeks.

Care

Sow the seeds directly where the plants are to grow.

Pick radishes while they are small to prevent them becoming tough and stringy.

There are hundreds of varieties of this popular fruit.

Sow the seeds or plant seedlings in December for an autumn crop, and for top-quality fruit, pick them when they are red-ripe.

Tomatoes can also be grown in large pots.

Care

Sow the seeds in punnets and transplant them to the garden bed when the seedlings are 75mm high.

To get a bumper crop, water and fertilise tomatoes regularly

While sweetcorn takes up a fair amount of space, it’s well worth it as homegrown cobs are sweet and tasty.

The cobs are ready to harvest when the silk has turned brown.

Pick them with a downward and twisting motion.

If you are limited with space, sweetcorn can be grown in large containers.

Care

It grows better from seed than a seedling.

Plant in a block rather than rows to ensure pollination.

If you have a small balcony rather than a garden, you don’t have to go without homegrown vegetables, as they can also be grown in pots.

Troughs are ideal for growing salad greens, baby carrots, spring onions, perpetual spinach, radishes, basil and other herbs.

But tomatoes, capsicums, chilli, zucchinis and eggplants need large pots that are at least 250mm wide to produce a good harvest.

Vegetables that are grown in pots also need to be watered more often, sometimes daily during the summer.

Feed them fortnightly with an organic soluble complete fertiliser.

And apart from growing vegetables in large pots and troughs, there are containers known as modular vegetable beds that are designed specifically for growing vegetables.

These modular vegie beds work well in small spaces.

They are made from Colorbond steel or timber and are available in lots of different shapes and sizes.

They’re ideal if you’re renting, as you can just pick up the bed and take it with you when you move.

You can also buy small vertical gardens for growing salad greens and herbs, which look great on walls and also save on space.

Freestanding vertical gardens can be easily moved to catch the sun throughout the different seasons.

Containers should be filled with a good-quality organic potting mix, generally you get what you pay for! Yates Organic Vegie & Herb Mix is perfect for vegetables, or they have specific organic mixes for strawberries, tomatoes, citrus and seed raising mixes too.

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