Gardening in the heat

NIR HALFON

The second week of August 2020 was the hottest period I have ever experienced in the garden at Plaw Hatch Farm. How do gardeners cope with the heat? Early starts, lots of water, hats, sun cream and finishing early, not to mention having an afternoon rest.

The tunnels get hot as soon as the sun is out. We had to make sure that we harvested salad and leafy crops as soon as possible; they suffer the most from the heat. Fruit-bearing crops love heat, and as the temperature and light increased so did the rate of ripening and the quantities of tomatoes, cucumbers and courgettes.

Working in the heat is tiring. Early starts, and hot, sauna-like conditions, take their toll. We spent the week starting early, as soon as there was light around 5:45am. We finished at lunch time giving ourselves time to recover and rest. Sometimes afternoons were spent doing easier things such as mowing with the tractor or sorting our onions and garlic.

Water is an issue in this heat. Everything dries very quickly. The spring was the first thing to dry out. It happens yearly that the spring dries around this time in summer. In this case we have to allow mains water to flow into the system. It will take a week or so, after a good bout of rain for the spring to recover. Usually, the tunnels are irrigated continuously. Every day, two or three of them get properly watered. When the weather is hot, we need to water more often. Also, the seedlings are taken out of the propagator and watered twice a day with sprinklers.

Many tasks would be difficult to achieve without the amazing help we received from the local community. Last month, people helped with lifting the onions, weeding the leeks and picking blackberries. In the next weeks we will be needing help with bagging onions and potatoes and more blackberry picking. Blackberries are one of the favourite soft fruits in the dairy and are in abundance this year. If you would like to come on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays 09:30 - 12:00, please contact Nir on 07815035262, nir@plawhatchfarm.co.uk for more information.