MARKHOLE

  NEWS AND VIEWS

                                                                                                                                                                      June 2011

Dates for the Diary

Open Day July 30^th at 10:30

Our next event is Open Day. We very much hope that we shall see you there. Vince Cable hopes to be with us in spite of all his commitments, so surely you can manage to come along. Your Association also needs your help, to make this the best Open Day ever, so plan ahead. Homemade cakes and preserves and gifts for prizes would be most welcome. Volunteers to help run the event are needed. If you would like to set up a stall, a table or space may be rented for £1. Association members may enter the competition for the best container of produce. Take up the challenge of Open Day and let Mike or Denise know what you wish to contribute.

Controlling pests is also an ever present challenge. In recent years there has been a move away from poison sprays and the products available have been greatly reduced. This year we have an invasion of onion fly. This and carrot fly are best controlled by covering with fine mesh supported on hoops.

 Damage to many crops may be reduced by using resistant varieties. Choose varieties of parsnip resistant to canker, or carrots resistant to carrot fly. There are many potato varieties resistant to scab, but also ensure that the ground has not been limed recently, as scab thrives on alkaline soil.  The hose can also be useful. Directing a strong jet of water on brassicas infested with white fly can be as effective as spraying with insecticide. The white fly are washed to the ground and very few if any get back to the plant. Above all ensure that your plants are growing strongly. Vigorous plants are less likely to be damaged from pests and diseases than weak plants. Strong growth can be assured by digging to a good depth, ideally to a generous two spade’s depth and avoiding compaction of the soil. This can best be achieved by using permanent four foot wide beds which are never trodden upon. Potatoes and brassicas require generous amounts of well rotted manure to be dug in. If growing cauliflower, sprinkle household Borax where they are to grow. Our soil tends to be deficient in boron which leads to discoloration of the curds.

                                                                  Editor Peter Foote