Tomatoes in containers and French dwarf beans

Question: Which is the only fruit to have its seeds on the outside? Answer the strawberry, which may have got its name from the fact that originally straw was used as a mulch in cultivating the plants.

Summer and strawberries – the two things are inseparable.

Strawberries are the best loved of all summer fruits, their berries are irresistible to almost everyone and a big plus is they produce fruits quickly and can provide bumper crops.

Strawberries can be grown in a wide range of soils, from light sand to heavy clay. However, waterlogging will cause the fruits to become diseased and the plant to rot. The ideal soil is well-drained and rich in humus. They prefer to be planted in full sun, out of the wind. Plants can be planted outdoors from late June until September. If planted later, the flowers should be removed in the first year so the energy is used to develop a healthy plant in year two.

Strawberry plants can produce fruit for five or six years. However, after the first two years the yields will be reduced dramatically and a buildup of pests and diseases can occur. Strawberry beds are usually kept for two or three years before they’re cleared and planted on new ground.

Strawberries do not produce deep roots, but they very much appreciate their soil being well-dug to a spades depth. Prepare the soil at least one month before planting. Incorporate as much organic matter as possible and include two handfuls of bonemeal per square metre (yard). A few days before planting apply the recommended dose of general fertiliser such as Growmore. Strawberries are greedy feeders over a relatively short period of time.

Prepare the soil by digging over, removing any perennial weeds and adding manure. Place the strawberry plants every 35cm (13in) in rows that are 75cm (30in) apart. Plant with the crown at soil level and water well. To prevent slugs, put down pellets or place grit or broken egg shells under each plant. Place a net over the plants to prevent birds and squirrels from eating the fruit. Pick any ripe strawberries so they don’t rot on the plant. Check the plants every other day during the ripening period.

From late May, place straw in the rows and under the fruit trusses to suppress weeds and prevent the fruit lying on the ground. Barley straw is the best option, as it’s softer and more pliable. If you can’t get straw, use polythene sheeting.

It’s possible to extend the growing season by placing early strawberry varieties under cloches or polythene covers in late March. Grown in this way, the plants should produce fruit two to three weeks earlier than normal.

Propagation
It’s simple to make more strawberry plants. The plants send out runners over the surface of the soil during the growing season. These can be pegged down, usually in June or July, while attached to the mother plant. Eventually, they will form a separate plant.

Don’t allow more than five runners to develop from each plant. In August, when the runner plants are well established, cut them from the parent and transplant immediately.

Spinach

Let’s be honest spinach as a vegetable doesn’t have the greatest profile. Yet home-grown spinach tastes incredibly tasty and is really healthy to eat. So let’s concentrate on how amazing this vegetable really is.

The soil and location are one of the most important things to get right when growing spinach, it’s going to be vital to your success growing this crop.

Spinach plants tend to run to seed easily therefore it is always best to sow them in between tall growing plants to provide shade against the summer sun. The soil where you intend to grow the spinach plants should be well dug, you can also add a general purpose fertiliser to the soil just before planting to give them that extra boost.

Spinach seeds are grown like most others; sow the seeds outdoors in rows that are 12 inches apart. The seeds should be sown very thinly and covered with soil. These seeds can be thinned out again once they begin growing. With summer and winter varieties it is possible to harvest spinach all year long.

The plants won’t grow extremely large so you should initially thin the seedlings to be three inches apart, once the plants are large enough to handle and cook each alternate plant should be removed and eaten.

Keep the plants weed free at all times, this is best done by hoeing around the plants weekly. Picking first begins when you are thinning and continues right until the plants are mature. Once the plants are mature they will be at their prime stage for eating. However in my opinion the key is to keep harvesting as required to avoid a glut at the end of the season.

You should be careful when picking individually not to disturb the plants next to the one you are harvesting.

Chard

Chard is mainly sown in the spring for picking over the summer, although by protecting the crop with a cloche, leaves can be harvested during autumn and winter. Spinach can either be sown in spring for a summer crop, or in the autumn for leaves to pick over winter. Choose your varieties carefully – some are ideal for spring sowing and others for autumn. To make life easier, pick easy growing varieties that are happy to be sown in either season.

These leafy crops are ideal to grow in rows on the allotment or vegetable patch, or due to their brightly coloured stems and glossy leaves, try striking varieties of chard at the front of a flower border.

Alternatively, if you have a small garden they can be raised in large containers. Grow in a sunny or slightly shaded spot in moisture retentive soil.

Dig the soil in the spring before sowing, removing big stones, weeds and incorporating plenty of garden compost or wellrotted manure.

To sow chard up to mid May - make a trench 2.5cm deep with a garden cane and space seeds about 8cm apart. Cover, water and label - subsequent rows need to be about 38cm apart.

New rows should be about 30cm apart. For a constant supply, try sowing a new row every three weeks. For leaves to pick over winter, sow spinach in late summer and early autumn. When the seedlings are about 2cm tall thin out to leave the strongest seedlings plenty of space to grow - chard needs 30cm between plants, spinach beet 38cm and spinach 25cm.

Keep the soil around plants free of weeds and water every two weeks, adding a high nitrogen liquid fertiliser to the mix. Spring sowings should be ready to be picked within 12 weeks. Take what you need by cutting leaves from the outside of the plant, taking care to avoid damage to the roots.

Country Gardener’s pick of the varieties

Strawberries

• Elvira – a great first time strawberry to try, a very heavy cropper producing large, soft fruits from June to early July.
• Hapil – high-yielding variety with large, bright red fruits from early to late July
• Florence – grows well in all soils and produces large, dark fruit in late summer
• Vivarosa – is worth growing as something different as it is one of the few varieties to produce pink not white flowers

Spinach and chard

• Perpetual Spinach – as the name implies, this beginner-friendly plant is a cut-and-come-again crop that just keeps on giving. The perfect plant for the first time spinach grower, spinach beet with narrow stems and dark green leaves
• Bright Lights – fantastically colourful mixture of chard with red, white, orange, yellow and pink stems
• Ruby Chard – the classic spinach variety to grow glossy green leaves, red stems and veins
• Lucullus – Swiss chard with large white stems
• Space – the leaves are dark green, smooth, and rounded, held upright on super-vigorous plants. With a tangy, crisp flavour only possible in homegrown fresh spinach, this is already a favourite with gardeners