Many people are under the impression that gardening is very traditional with very little change through the years. Nothing however could be further from the truth! The gardening world is constantly changing, with developments coming along ‘thick and fast’ to enrich our gardening experiences.
This month, let’s take a look at the vegetable patch!
We all have our favourite vegetable varieties which we tend to grow each year, but this shouldn’t blind us to what is happening in the world of plant breeding to improve our choice in areas like taste and pest and disease resistance.
Tomatoes are a great example! Many gardeners have suffered with the fungal disease ‘Leaf Blight’ which can decimate outdoor crops and increasingly indoor ones too!
The good news is that plant breeders have come to our aid with a new series of varieties that have genuine resistance to the fungal spores.
We just have to remember to hold our nerve, as we will start to see the dreaded effects of infection on the leaves. Worry not though, as you will soon see the leaves start to look better as the resistance to the fungus kicks in and the plants revive. Magical!
Look for varieties with a ‘Crimson’ prefix e.g. Crimson Cocktail (cherry type fruit), Crimson Crush (standard fruit size) and Crimson Blush (Large beefsteak type).
Apart from solving our problem in the garden, this development also means we can avoid the use of chemical pesticides and fungicides in the garden.
That’s got to be good for our health and the environment too!
