Three Questions 1 Ph level likely to be living close to a CHCH beach with sandy ground 2Where to buy a test kit 3 In the vege plot, everything that grows above the ground is great, underground produce is useless, any ideas thanks.
brightlights60,
Jul 2, 10:59am
I hear you. I have a classic "gardeners back". First injured it years ago prolapsing a disc lifting a huge pot the wrong way. Crawled inside and lay on the floor cursing! In November I finally got my metalwork done (had a spinal decompression and fusion) and woohoo back in the garden. Back is fantastic. I have quite a big garden but spend very little time in it. Its been a labour of love over 17 years and looks fantastic most of the year. My latest labour is putting coconut fibre (found a guy that imports it in "brick" form. Add water and it fluffs up to 10 times its size) around plants that dry out in summer. Trying to get the chore of watering in the summer down a bit. We did put in an irrigation system but it got somewhat buried in the earthquakes. I loved doing my Hort course, because it gave me the theory behind what I already knew, and filled in the gaps of what I didn't know. CPIT is offering the level 3 course free at the moment which is a good one as well.
brightlights60,
Dec 2, 7:50am
Google is your friend for the first two. Having had our 2 first houses out by the beach, had the same problem. Always wondered why I could not grow carrots. Found out the answer when I "went back to school" and did the horticultural course. Soil needs a lot of things, but mostly it needs balance. Not only in nutrients, but in texture. Sand is great as water flows through it cleanly (and quickly) but its no good at sustaining nutrients, so you need to thicken it up a bit. We used to put things like mushroom compost on top, or bio blend and mix it in. Also, carrots seeds should be planted in a thin layer of very good soil (and very fine soil). The mistake most people make is to over water them, this makes the tops grow really well, but nothing underneath. I think its worth thinking about a separate bed for your carrots and or potatoes over by the beach, everything else will grow really well, but you need maybe a bit of soil with sand rather than sand with a bit of soil, plus some good compost (don't by the crap in the bags from the Warehouse etc, get a trailerload of bio blend or pig manure). Hope this helps.
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