July Tips
Now is the time to:-
Tender perennial plants such as geraniums (Pelargoniums) and dahlias in pots and tubs have enjoyed the mix sunshine and showers and are flowering well. Now that the longest day has passed, keep them blooming by giving a weekly feed which is high in potash and lower in nitrogen. This will also help them withstand the cold weather later in the year. Tomato fertilizers are high in potash or if you really want to be enthusiastic you can make your own fertiliser with comfrey. (See bottom of page)
If you have any gaps in the vegetable garden, July is an excellent time to make the last sowing of beetroot, as well as perpetual spinach and Swiss chard to provide greens later in the year and next Spring.
How to make Comfrey fertilizer
Comfrey is a very valuable plant to have in an organic garden, because it grows very vigorously and can be used to feed other plants. Comfrey has very deep roots that bring up nutrients from the subsoil, which are then stored in the leaves. Comfrey leaves can be used as a nutritious mulch or compost activator, but they can also be turned into a free fertilizer for your tomatoes and other fruiting plants.
- Harvest your comfrey. Comfrey is a very vigorous plant. Once it has established in your garden, you will be able to harvest the leaves several times throughout the growing season. Simply cut the leaves right back and gather them up.
- Put the comfrey in a bucket. To make liquid feed from your comfrey, you will need a bucket with a lid. If it has a tap as well, that makes life easier later on. Stuff your comfrey leaves into the bucket -- cram in as many as you can.
- Weigh the leaves down. Put a brick or stone on top of the leaves to weigh them down.
- Don't add water. Many recipes for making comfrey liquid feeds advise adding water, but when comfrey leaves rot down in water, they make a horrible smell. If you don't add water, the leaves will still rot down -- but they won't make a big stink about it!
- Put the lid on. Put the lid on the bin to keep the rain and bugs out.
- Wait 6 weeks. Comfrey leaves will take a few weeks to rot down -- you can keep checking on the progress, but expect it to be about 6 weeks before they're finished decomposing.
- Drain off the liquid. Drain off the liquid feed -- it will look a little like a dark brown syrup and have very little odor.
- Put the comfrey leaves in the compost. The remains of the rotted comfrey leaves can be added to the compost.
- Start again! If your comfrey plant has grown a new crop of leaves, then you can start the process over.
- Use your feed. Your comfrey liquid needs to be watered down 15:1 before use. It is high in potassium, and makes an excellent feed for flowers, tomatoes and peppers.
