Old sacks protect direct sown greencrop seed for faster germination and bird protection
Direct sow
Greencrops – lupins, broadbeans, phacelia, wheat, oats, mustard or barley. Kings Seeds Autumn Manure Mix is awesome. Grow as many greencrops as you can fit. Here’s how to sow a greencrop.
Corn salad and miners lettuce – sweet little winter/ spring cut and come again greens. Sow them once, let them self seed and have winter greens every year.
In the greenhouse sow salads, leafy greens, beetroot and plant potatoes.
Good companions like calendula, poppies, cornflowers, larkspur and sweetpeas (must have sweetpeas!)
Tray sow
Onions. If you get the chance to play with growing onions – go for it! There’s no greater sense of pride than in your home grown onions.
Salads. Plant them under cover where they’ll grow nice and quickly. Use a cloche, a bit of frost cloth, an old window, a greenhouse or on the porch.
Broccoli and cabbage. Even though growth slows right down from now in its still worth it to keep planting brassicas.
Plant
Strawberries if you raised your own plants from runners. Plant into raised ridges if you have heavy soil. May plantings have all winter to grow lovely big roots. Big roots = bigger plants = more cropping. For big juicy fruits use rotten manure in your soil preps.
Garlic. My garlic is already in, but May is still a great time to plant out. Part of our rust prevention strategy is going to be finding varieties that are less prone. Heritage is going to be a big player here. Hardneck garlic’s are hardier than softnecks though they don’t store as well. If you team them up with an early garlic you’ve got your season covered.
Lettuces – under cloches or in the greenhouse.
Brassicas for spring eating.
Lots of silverbeet, perpetual beet, chard, kale and parsley – our kitchen cornerstones.
Lots of flowers like stock, primula, tulips, snapdragons
