Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
for long enough. The soil must not be allowed to dry out and, even if slug levels
in the tunnel are very low, seedlings may still need additional protection.
Underplanting
Shade-tolerant plants, such as coriander and daikon, will grow quite happily
provided that they are not in deep shadow, and so are suitable for planting
around the base of tall plants such as melons. By the time the days are getting
short the melons will have been taken out, and the underplanted crops will be
very grateful for any remaining sunshine.
Holidays
Leaving a polytunnel at the height of the growing season is a test of nerves, but
until there is a radical overhaul of the timing of school holidays many of us will
continue to be forced to do exactly that. An outdoor garden can be left for a week
or even two, and, with the exception of peas and beans, will probably survive
reasonably well as long as it rains once or twice. Not so the polytunnel.
If you leave the tunnel, you will probably want to try to arrange for a neighbour
to keep an eye on things while you're away, and this can lead to problems. Be
clear about just how much work it involves, and be especially clear about your
attitude to chemicals, including slug pellets. It's extremely important to discuss
the organic nature of a garden, in terms of what's OK to do and what is definitely
not OK to do, with anyone who is going to help you take care of it.
Shortly before you leave, spend two weeks writing down exactly what you do in
the tunnel each day - the list will surprise you. Having someone with food-
growing experience to look after things is obviously desirable, but even if you
manage this you should simplify the chores as much as you possibly can.
On light soil, just one hot day spent without water will seriously stress most of
the plants in a tunnel, and may well kill some of them. Watering is time-consuming,
and if your caretaker spends more time doing it than they would like, they're less
likely to do other things. If you don't have an automatic watering system (see
page 22), think seriously about installing one. Make a capillary bed too (see page
49). Put the pots on it, water them in, and stress the importance of never allowing
the reservoir to run dry.
So keep things simple, write it all down - and don't forget to bring back a nice
present.
