Gardening columnist
AS THE DAYS STRETCH TO BECOME IMPOSSIBLY LONG, POPPY OKOTCHA SHARES HOW TO SETTLE INTO A STEADY GARDEN RHYTHM THIS MONTH
June 24 marks midsummer – the longest day and shortest night. From midsummer the days very slowly shorten as we shift into the second half of the year. The chaos of spring is cooling off and we (my garden and I) are settling into a steady rhythm. Green tomatoes sit primly on their vines, growing redder as they swell in the sun. The overbearing tomato mother that I am, I loom over them daily, prodding and poking, counting the days to fresh tomato salads eaten outdoors.
If you’re growing an indeterminate (cordon or vine) variety of tomatoes, to improve air flow you want to pinch out excess side shoots, foliage and any dead or damaged growth. This keeps our tomato plants healthy and their energy focused on fruit production. ‘Side shoots’ refers to growth appearing in the axils (little Vs where the leaves meet the main stem). I’m not fond of this job as it leaves my hands ponging of tomato foliage and although I love tomatoes, the scent of their leaves makes my nose wrinkle. On the bright side, the compost heap gets a good load of greens. With bush type tomatoes (determinate), you don’t need to bother with any of this pruning.
Elderflowers are filling the hedgerows. I gather them to dry for tea, a ray of sunshine to drink in midwinter. Some become cordial, with experimental sprigs of sage, lavender or nettle thrown into the mix. The elder tree is possibly my favourite, a common and tough old lady with her twisted, pale bark and offerings through the year that come at just the right moment. Elderflowers are a brilliant herbal treatment for hay fever, which plagues many of us at this time of year. It combines well with yarrow and camomile, who are both also in full bloom. Make a tea with fresh or dried flowers, brewing for 10-15 minutes with a lid on and sip in the sun with local, raw honey (also brilliant for hay fever). I always leave plenty of flowers behind, so they turn to berries come autumn, feeding the birds and to be gathered and cooked into a powerful immunity support syrup for winter.
I’m shelling peas and broad beans on a cloudy but warm day, surrounded by flowering herbs and buzzing little creatures busy pollinating. First early potatoes are just about ready to be brought up… this time of year seems to teach us the abundance and beauty that comes with giving. Giving some sweat to the compost heap, which in turn looks after the soil and the life it supports and holds; giving a seed to the earth back in October resulting in my harvest today, a flower offering itself to the bees leading to fruit, and the joy that comes with sharing a harvest, or a blooming garden.
“Elderflowers are a brilliant herbal treatment for hay fever, which plagues many people at this time of year”