No. 81: One swallow does not a summer make, there is hope for late starters!

The adventure of gardening will (with the right mindset) bring you closer to nature. One of the things I've learned in my 42 years of grower guidance is to react very flexibly to weather conditions.

At the beginning of my career, fig trees would freeze to death annually; now we're surprised if a lemon tree has died... These few beautiful days give (unjustly!) some "beginners" the idea that they are now too late to plant, for example, potatoes or asparagus, tomatoes are already being planted outdoors, beans are being sown. My advice and reassurance: it's April, we still have 5 growing months, the entire cycle is just getting started! When the oak trees are in full leaf and the Rhododendron is blooming... then you can also sow or plant frost-sensitive plants.

An old gardener's saying in Dubbeldam: "Beans should not see the May sun." Books like "Sowing Schedule" help you sow vegetables and not panic.

For the past 10 years, I've dedicated myself to building a collection of Tomato and Pepper varieties that I'm truly proud of. In addition to 350 varieties of Tomatoes and over 200 types of Peppers, we also sell special PLANTS of these fruiting vegetables in late May (sometimes early June). One of our growers provides us with organically grown plants in a varied and very special assortment. Reserve these packages now!

This week, the first strawberries in 26 top varieties have arrived. Looking at the pictures of these fruits makes your mouth water... (By the way, I'm out of luck: after my last flu, I've lost 90% of my sense of smell and taste. So I have to make do with the texture and the memory of tastier times! They say it might come back within a year.)

We sell the strawberries by variety or in attractive packages. You can see the entire assortment here; note that 26 of the 72 varieties are now available for order. A nice selection from this collection can be found in the Modern Strawberry Pack. We offer the special varieties in the Black & White & Climbing & Giant Strawberry Pack.

Of course, I must also mention the top performer of recent years:the Strawberry Planter... can't keep them in stock!

I am proud to present to our grower customers: we imported this clever harvesting machine from the US, where it is called the 'Quick-cut Greens Harvester'. An ideal and cleverly developed marvel of simple technology that greatly facilitates the harvesting of young leafy greens (cut lettuce, mixed salad, spinach, purslane, turnip greens, kale, etc.) for small and medium-sized growers. It saves 900% in labor and easily cuts 80 kg of leafy greens per hour. The operation works by having your cordless drill power a shaft with nylon ropes. These ropes drive the leafy greens to be harvested towards a sharp blade (or saw blade) consisting of many semi-circular ground parts. After cutting, the greens fall into a collection tray in the same swing.

The razor-sharp saw blade provides a cleaner cut than harvesting by hand with a knife or scissors. A simple pin allows the blade to rotate for easy cleaning, sharpening, or replacement.

Hundreds of growers worldwide are now using this harvesting marvel, and the reviews are very positive! We have become the exclusive dealer for the Netherlands and Belgium.

Also, check out these promotional videos and user manual:

• Quick-cut Greens Harvester
• Review Quick-cut Greens Harvester
• Quick-cut Greens Harvester User Manual

What do these 2 animals have in common, do you think? Both are associated with a member of the onion family, or "garlic".

We are now selling the last few hundred Wild Garlic plants and our Elephant Garlic stock is also running low.

I am offering you a "Farewell Package" to completely bid farewell to these 2 species. 10 Wild Garlic plants (worth € 29.50) together with 10 cloves of Elephant Garlic (worth € 9.95) I offer you for € 25.00

Yes, yes, Marry and I have become Grandma and Grandpa! Lilou was born 2 weeks ago! Beautiful daughter of my daughter-in-law and son Annerieke and Jos. Some extra observation for mother and daughter was needed, but now they have been happily home for a week and are enjoying their daughter. We are, of course, enjoying it with them! To make it easy for Lilou later, we have adopted the honorary titles "Ootje and Groof" (Spakenburgs for grandma and grandpa) my wife originally comes from this beautiful fishing village on the Zuiderzee...

Ton Vreeken, April 20, 2018