We are becoming increasingly used to changes in our climate which frequently undermine our best efforts to till the soil and enjoy the results. Our aubergines have been a striking example. They were planted in 20cm pots, in good rich soil-based compost, fed and watered regularly – but not too much – all snug and warm in the polytunnel, and what happened? Strong, well – grown plants with several glossy aubergines near the base, then, a lot of dead blossoms higher up, followed by some tiny new, pea-sized aubergines. It didn’t take a Sherlock Holmes to discover the probable cause. Adopting his methods, we deduce that the plants first experienced ideal weather and temperature during the early period – hence the well-grown fruits at the bottom of the plants. The withered blossoms higher up the stems showed the plants were now under extreme heat stress. Finally, the baby aubergines at the top showed they were able to set as the temperature cooled again. The keen-eyed sleuth would reinforce his theory by pointing to the fact that we’d had an exceptionally good crop of peppers and chillies, which originate in Mexico and South America and therefore, unlike aubergines, revel in as much heat as they can get. My Sherlock was an adviser for the RHS, who said that he’d had a similar problem in his polytunnel and had solved it by draping a large duvet cover over the tunnel in periods of extreme heat. Useful tip, assuming he knows what he was talking about. Continue reading “Ken Mines’ H D Garden Page – September”