Saturday Morning With Jack Tame

Mulch and plant and plant and mulch… These are busy, busy, busy times in the garden. Even though we may still get some frosts here in the South Island, I am lucky to be able to chuck seed-trays and germinating plants in the tunnel house or, if I behave nicely, in Julie’s glasshouse.  But first, think ahead to summer. We often get seriously dry conditions here on the South Island’s East Coast. Grab yourself a heap of mulch, pea straw is often the go-to material down south. You can also use a load of good compost or a pile of last autumn’s dried leaves, compressed in an old wheely bin. Autumn leaves into leaf-mold.   You can also get a chipper that creates mulch from your pruning wood. I love my Hansa chipper, as it always allows me to keep the carbon “waste” and turn it into an investment for my soil. It won’t leave the property! Some mulch ends up in compost bin, coarse mulch is fabulous for the patches in the garden.  Mulch covers the soil, making it difficult for weeds to germinate and it keeps the moisture