Artichokes Beans

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Growing individual vegetables

ArtichokesEach year after establishment

remove all but the four strongestsuckers. To obtain big flowerheads, lateral buds surroundingthe main head may be removedwhen about as big as a hen's egg.

he globe-shaped flower head is the edible portion of the globe artichoke.;lobe artichokes Propagationne gobe art ichoke (cynaraSuckers froni old plants can be

scolymus) is the only true adi- transplanted in the early springchoke. I t is perennial, making a when 200 mm high-bushy plant about 1 . 5 m high and in rOWS 2 metres apart and 1metreresembles a large thistle. The between plants.edible portions are the immature Seed can be 25 mmglobe-shaped flower heads and drills, 30 0 mm apart. The seed-their fleshy bases. l-hese are lings can be transplanted in thepicked when most scales are un- spring, when they reach theopened and are bluish-green. size of cabbage transplants.Th e harvest season extends Beds should be prepared as fo rfrom June through November, but pumpki"s or other vine vegetables,the heads will not keep long. me with plenty of organic matter underopen heads are quite decorative. each plant. Three Or plants~h~~ are sometimes grown in are sufficient for the household.flower beds. A plantation of arti- Rep1ant suckerschokes may last for up to five three years.years, but crops on poor soils are Maintenancelikely to be disappointing after In late spring when harvest is com-two years. plete the stalks should be cut to

Globe artichokes grow well within 300 mm of the ground andwhere winters are moist and mild the plantation given a liberalbut will not withstand much frost. dressing of organic manure or 30If summer temperatures are high, to 50 g of NPK 8:4:10 completethe edible stage soon passes as the fertiliser per plant. Beds should

floral organ develops quickly and be kept well watered during thethe succulence is lost. ,drier months.

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CookingThe buds of globe artichoke canbe prepared in several ways. The

small side buds may be eaten rawor fried, but the main bud isusually boiled and the fleshy innerand outer bracts or floral leavesare eaten rather like asparagus,with melted butter, salt and

pepper.Remove any rough scales and

wash well in salty water beforecooking. It will take at least 30minutes of boiling before the buds

become tender.

Jerusalem artichokesAlthough the Jerusalem artichoke(Helianthus tuberosus) will growin any odd corner of the garden,adequate care is necessary to pro-duce good quality tubers.

The quality of the artichoketubers will also be improved if aheavy dressing of organic manureis dug into the soil. Apply 250 gof NPK 6 : 6 : 6 complete fertiliserfor every 10 plants. The bedshould be well-drained, butotherwise the location is not im-portant as the Jerusalem artichokegrows well either in the open orin fairly heavy shade.

Planting tubersSelect sets of a desirable size andshape which are not more than25 to 35 mm in diameter, plump,and without too many protuber-


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artichoke plant.

ances. Larger tubers may be used,but should be cut into 25 to 35mm pieces with two eyes or budsper set. Too many buds are adisadvantage as the resulting plantstend to bear a large number ofundersized tubers.

July is the best month for plant-ing artichoke sets. Plant sets100 mm deep in heavy soil, and

150 mm deep in sandy soils, at450 mm intervals along the row.Ten plants should be quite enoughfor the needs of a family of five.As artichokes often grow to aheight of 2.5 m they form a use-ful windbreak.

Cultivation and harvestingThe quality and texture of theartichoke tuber is adversely a e c -ted by the development of theflower. The flower buds shouldtherefore be nipped out as soonas they appear. Tubers may belifted from four weeks after theformation of flower buds and usedas required until the followingJune. At the end of June alltubers should be lifted with a fork.Those required for later use canbe stored in sand.

Jerusalem artichokes are best

planted each year. Neglected bedscan rapidly become a real prob-lem and it is best to treat Jerusa-lem artichokes as an annual crop.

CookingCooking quality is largely a mat-ter of freshness. Sprouted tubersshould not be used. Wash andscrub Jerusalem artichokes to re-move skins, in water to whichtwo or three teaspoonfuls of

vinegar have been added. Th e

Jerusalem artichoke should becooked gently for at least 30 min-utes in boiling water, with anonion and some salt, and servedmashed or whole with white sauce.

immersed in boiling water for afew minutes. This artichoke

It can be baked after having been

makes a delicious soup.

AsparagusAsparagus (Asparagus oficinalis)can be grown in the home gardenwith very little effort, providedcareful attention is given to theinitial preparation of the bed.Plantations which are well cared-for will last for up to 20 years.

Asparagus grows best in deepfriable soils, especially sandy loamsand peaty soils. Heavy soils, whichcake, distort spears. Becauseasparagus is such a long-term crop,it is well worthwhile spending timein the initial preparation of thebed. If soil is heavy, work amixture of loam and sand into thebed.

Good drainage is essential andbeds must receive full sunlight.Yield and quality will be poor ifthe soil does not warm up quickly

in the spring.

Raising asparagus plantsOne or two-year-old crowns areplanted out in the permanent bed.Plants are raised from seed whichis sown in August or September.As asparagus seed is extremelyslow to germinate, it should besoaked in water overnight beforesowing. Drill seed about 25 mmdeep into a seed bed. Many com-

mercial growers sow radish seed


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with the asparagus seed. Thisgerminates rapidly and indicatesthe rows; thus simplifying weeding.Plants should be thinned $0 75mm .apart at Ian early stage.

As the plants grow, the tallerle plant will become distinguish-e. The foliage begins higherthe stems than on the female

plants which have fronds almost

to the ground. The male plantsyield more spears than the femalepiants, so they should be retainedfor transplanting.

Young plants may be placed inthe permanent bed in the firstwinter but it is best to wait foranother year as this sex differenceis more obvious in the secondsummer when the female plantsbear berries.

Mary Washington 500 and aselection of this variety, UC 66,--1 the main varieties grown.

PlaCrcor

pa1soil

luting crownslwns are planted out in JuneJuly, but beds should be pre-.ed much earlier. Trench theI to at least 600 mm and incor-:ate sand with the sub-soil if itvery heavy.Large quantities of organic

manure should be worked into thebase of the bed and the top-soildressed with 150 to 300 g ofNPK5:8:4 complete fertiliser. Alter-natively, when planting, place aband of fertiliser along each sideof the trench.

Beds can be about 1 - 2m widewith a 600 mm pathway between.Plant two rows per bed as shown

in the diagram. Dig the twotrenches about 200 to 250 mmdeep; 250 mm wide with 450 mmbetween them. Along the bottomof the trench, build a small ridgeof soil.

The crowns are straddled acrossthis ridge, and the fleshy rootsarranged evenly in the trench.Space the crowns 400 mm apart.Press each crown into the soil and

cover with 125 to 150 mm of soil.Do not leave any air pockets. Thebeds are then built up as thespears grow.

Maintenance of asparagus bedsTwo-year-old plants may be givena light cutting in the second season,but one-year-old plants should notbe cut until the third season. Itis important not to cut even estab-lished beds after mid-December.

This weakens the crowns and re-duces the next year's crop.

The fern is then allowed to growup. It should be cut off 50 mmabove the ground when it turnsyellow and before the seed ma-tures. After the tops are removedthe beds should be lightly forkedand, if they are hilled, pulled backto a level surface.

Apply 150 g of lime to thesquare metre; followed by aheavy dressing of animal manure.A dressing of 120 to 150 g ofNPK 8 : 4 : 10 complete fertiliser,may be necessary if the fern hasshown lack of vigor.

Yield is largely determined bythe amount of fertiliser the bedsreceive. It is almost impossibleto over-feed asparagus. Weekly

applications of liquid manure canbe applied when cutting begins.Yields are improved if the bedsare kept moist, but do not over-water the plants.

Many people prefer greenasparagus to the white blanchedsticks. Green asparagus is easierto grow as it is only necessary toslightly hill the beds. Sticks canbe blanched by hilling up the bedswith soil from the side until they

Plantasparagus crowns in trenches 200 m m t o 250 m m deep and 250 m m wide.Spread the roots out evenly over the soil along the bottom of the trench and cover

with 125 m m t o 150 m m o f soil. Fill the trench as the crowns grow.


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Harvesting

Cut blanched sticks below the soilwith a special asparagus knife.To avoid damage to latent shoots,insert the knife at an angle, holdthe stick to be cut with the lefthand, and cut when the knifetouches the base of the stick.

Cut blanched sticks as soon as:y appear through the surface,d green sticks before the leaflles open. No sticks should beo - ~ e dto develop foliage during:cutting p d o d .For best quality, cut sticks justfore cooking. If asparagus must

be held before cooking keep thecut ends standing in water.Asparagus will also hold for ashort time in a refrigerator.

Blanched asparagus spears are cutunder the ground as soon as they ap -pear. A long-handled k nife is used to

t the spears.are 250 mm high.

The sticks should be cut whenthey first appear through the soil.It is necessary to rake the soil upover the beds several times duringthe cutting period to keep stickscovered.

Clirnbirtg Oenrzs are well slritcd to srrlallbe grown agninst fences or on trellises.BeansBeans (Phaseolus vulgaris) are apopular summer vegetable in thehome garden and, with successive

plantings, fresh beans are availablefor many months. Beans growbest in warm to hot, humid, wind-free weather conditions. They arewarm season plants and are sen-sitive to frost. November andDecember sowings of beans aremost successful in central and

southern Victoria (zones 1 and 2) .A windbreak of sweet corn orother tall-growing crop should be

established before the crop is sown.

gardens. They save spacr as t h e y curl

Varieties

The four main groups of beanscommonly sown in the home gar-den are butter beans, Frenchbeans, stringless beans and climb-

ing beans.Cherokee Wax is a popularbutter bean variety. Brown Beauty,Windsor Long Pod, and Hawkes-bury Wonder are the most com-monly grown French bean varietiesin the home garden. HawkesburyWonder produces a heavy crop ofgood quality pods over a longperiod and is tolerant of haloblight disease. Brown Beauty andWindsor Long Pod grow w611under a wide range of climatic con-


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ditions and produces a flush cropf excellent quality pods.

Brown Beauty is still a veryopular variety. It can be sown in

November and December.Windsor Long Pod is grown ex-ensively in the spring and autumn.t is often hard to judge the

maturity of Windsor Long Pod. Itas very long and attractive pods

which do not deteriorate in appear-nce rapidly. Home gardenershould have little trouble with thisariety if it is picked several timesach week.

The stringless varieties, intro-uced for the processing industry,re now becoming extremely popu-ar with home gardeners. Theyre not as adaptable as the stringedypes and are more sensitive toemperature and low humidity andence must receive good suppliesf moisture. Redlands Pioneer,endercrop, GV 50, Canyon and

Apollo are the varieties grown inVictoria. Canyon and Apollo areesistant to Summer Death.

Climbing beans are a great spaceaver in small gardens as they cane grown against fences and onellises. They produce many more

eans than an equivalent area ofush beans.

Blue Lake is a stringless climb-ng bean with straight, roundeshy pods of excellent quality.As all the varieties mentioned

o far are annuals, seed must beown each year. The perennialeans are more satisfactory in theool districts. Over the yearscarlet Runner has proved the

most adaptable. The beans, ificked when young, are tendernd fleshy.

Perennial climbing beansare diffi-

ult to grow under very hot con-itions because flowers are unableo set. Consequently, most yearshey are late croppers. Pod setting

helped by spraying the flowersith water during hot weather.Scarlet Runner and White Czar

st from four to seven years ande best suited to growing along

Clirnbir~gheurrs .r/~nrtltfhe sow3rl 1 1 1 row3s one r~ e t r e( 2p~7r tarltl 200 r i r r i ~ hrric


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r the drill-row to prevent cak-of the soil surface which woulderwise make the emergence ofyoung bean seedlings difficult.

Climbing beans must be sup-ted above ground. Some ofse varieties can be trained onises about two metres high.ces with an easterly aspect aresuitable. Vines can be sup-

ted on string or wire.

tivationeds can be controlled by shal-cultivation, but only when ab-

utely necessary as the bean iselatively shallow-rooted plant

the roots are easily damaged.Wind causes possibly more dam-

to bean crops than to any

er vegetable-

crop. sowingrows close together givesed support to each plant.

are most satisfactorywatering as they raise the hu-ity. This helps flower settinger hot dry conditions.

vestingans should be harvested as soonthey have grown to a suitable

as they can rapidly become

r-mature. Beans should beat least every week. All

size pods should be harvestedencourage the setting of later

wers. Rough handling of theh should be avoided as stemstender and damage to leavesstems may seriously reduce

life of the bush.

beansad beans (Vicia faba) growl during the cooler months andhstand frosts. They need littleention and are a welcome addi-

at a time of the year whensh vegetables in the home gar-

are scarce.The broad bean grows well inwide range of soil types, butes best in a reasonably heavy,l drained soil. However, it

not tolerate extremely acidnditions and some liming maynecessary.

Chocolate spot and broad beanvirus are two diseases which willattack broad bean crops planted inthe late autumn. For thisreason late July and Augustis the best time to sowbroad beans to produce disease-free plants. The pods will notmature much later than those sownin April, because flowers will notset until the weather warms up inthe spring.

However, there are advantagesin sowing a broad bean crop inthe autumn. There will be bedsvacant to take the crop at a timewhen the choice of crops to plantis limited, and if weather conditionsdo favor the development of dis-ease, the crop can always be turned

under as a green manure crop.

Soil preparation and fertilisersBroadcast 150 g of lime to thesquare metre before finally diggingup the bed, and again just beforesowing.

Apply NPK 5:8:4 completefertiliser, or 5 :1 blood and boneand potash at 60 g to the metre ofdrill row in bands 50 mm to the

side and 50 mm be!ow the level ofthe seed.

Sow the seeds about 100 to150 mm apart in single rows 600mm apart, or in double rows 200to 300 mm apart and with abouta metre between the double rows.Plants sown in double rows sup-port each other.

Place the seed in furrows 75mm deep down the centre of the

row without contacting the fer-tiliser. Cover with 50 mm of soil,leaving a slight depression alongthe row.

Dust the seed with thiram toprotect it from seed rotting orga-nisms.

When the plants become ladenwith pods, support the bush witha string stretched between stakes.Soil formed around the base ofthe stems will also support theplants. Occasional watering maybe necessary on lighter soils if therainfall is too light.

Poor growth of broad beancrops may occur if seed is sown ina bed which has grown a broadbean crop recently. Soil-bornediseases attack the roots and causethe plants to collapse. Rotation isthe only solution. Infected groundshould not be sown to broad beansor peas for six or seven years.

Failure of broad beans to rpods, especially early in the sprircan be caused by excessive nitrgen in the soil or by extreme varjtions in temperature. Aphids calso cause damage to flowers ayoung pods and should be cctrolled with spray.

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HarvestingHarvest broad beans before pods

become over-mature, as qualityrapidly deteriorates. Young im-mature pods can be eaten wholeif sliced like French beans, or theycan be shelled and cooked, skinnedor unskinned.

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Artichokes Beans