我的菜園四月在種什麼？What Am I Growing in My Vegetable Garden in April?
今年是我第三年在英國種菜，累積了兩年經驗後，今年試驗好好掌握不同植物的特性，充分運用小空間種更多菜，增加產量，減省購買種子和菜苗的支出。
This year marks my third year of gardening in the UK, and with two years of dirt-under-the-nails experience, I’m gradually getting the hang of things. This year, I’m all about fine-tuning my gardening game, utilising the characteristics of different plants to maximise the use of small spaces for higher yield, and to cut expenses on seeds and seedlings.
豆苗 Pea Shoots
豆苗是用來填補空檔的好作物。在冬末花園仍未夠暖種植其他菜之際，我種植了一些豆苗，令我們提早有自家菜吃。它能夠固定氮氣，為泥土提供營養供應之後的農作物！上月頭才只有腳毛那麼大的豆苗，月尾大豐收！修剪過的菜苗會長得越來越壯，之後應該可以再採摘一兩輪後，才騰出花盆種植其他菜。
I find Pea Shoots a great crop for filling gaps. While it’s still a bit chilly for other vegetables to grow outdoors at the end of winter, I planted some pea shoots so we’re munching on homegrown greens earlier! They are also good at nitrogen fixing so planting them during the colder gap is a way for enriching the soil in the pot for growing other plants later on. Look how the tiny sprouts at the start of last month has grown into a full-blown harvest in a couple of weeks! After trimming, the plants will shoot further; they should be ready for another round or two of harvest before I use their pots to grow other vegetables.
油麥菜 Indian Lettuce
上個月介紹過的油麥菜，在三月第三週收成了第一輪，有一碟炒菜的份量。追了肥，現等待新的葉子長出來，預計四月中左右又再吃一輪。（這篇文章記述了我種油麥菜的做法。）
Remember the Indian Lettuce I wrote about last month? It made its way to my plate in a stir-fry the third week of March. I gave them a feed after harvesting and am now waiting for new leaves to pop up for another delicious meal around mid-April. (Check out this article for my experience in growing Indian Lettuce.)
唐蒿 Garland Chrysanthemum
唐蒿三月底也收成了一輪，夠兩口子吃一餐麵的份量。我把幾棵特別強壯的，移植到酒桶大盆去，讓它開花結子。唐蒿的花朵很美麗，可以美化花園，留種子也可以用來在年尾繼續栽種，不用再買新的種子。
Some Garland Chrysanthemum was also harvested at the end of March, enough for a meal of noodles for two. I transplanted some of the strongest plants into a large wine barrel planter, allowing them flower and seed. Their flowers are a delight to the eye, and they’ll be supplying seeds for next year’s crop, saving me a few pounds on buying new seeds.
芥蘭 Kai Lan
二月播種的芥蘭，幼苗在有蓋棚屋內長得不錯，再過一兩週，菜苗大一些，抵擋溫差與蟲害的能力強一些，屆時會把它種到室外。
These Kai Lan seedlings sown in February have grown well inside the shed. In another week or two, when the seedlings are a bit bigger and more resistant to temperature fluctuations and pests, I’ll plant them outdoors.
櫻桃蘿蔔 Radish
在閒置的花盆、菜床邊種植櫻桃蘿蔔，可以充份運用空間，填補泥土的空餘位置。它的栽種期短，最適宜做「短期住客」。
I potted some radishes into the empty spaces in pots and a vegetable bed. Radishes have a short planting period, making them the perfect ‘short-term tenants’ for gaps in the planters.
芥蘭頭 Kolhrabi
在另一個菜床的空隙，移植了芥蘭頭的幼苗。它的栽種期大概要四個月，待五、六月採收了蒜頭後，這個菜床就輪到它來當主角了！
In another vacant spot in the vegetable bed, I transplanted some Kohlrabi seedlings. They take about four months to mature, so after harvesting the Garlic in May or June, the Kohlrabi will become the stars of the show in that bed!
蒜頭 Garlic
近日加了雞糞肥後，葉子比上個月更青綠、更強壯了。之後我會繼續定期約每兩週施肥一次，靜待五、六月有蒜心吃。
With a bit of chicken manure magic, the leaves of my Garlic plants are looking greener and stronger than last month. A little feed every fortnight, and we’ll be ready to harvest some Garlic Scapes in May or June.
韭菜 Garlic Chive
三月下旬收割了一輪，幼幼的。另外為它分了根，增加產量。
Late March saw the snip of tender Garlic Chives. I also divided up the plants to increase yield.
辣椒 Chili Pepper
辣椒怕冷，冬天難以在戶外存活。去年買了這棵壯健的辣椒，想把它留下來，今年就不用再買。我在入冬前把它的葉剪光，移栽到室內，上個月移到小溫室，待它慢慢適應溫差，現在可以重新放在戶外栽種了。
Chilli Peppers struggle to survive outdoors in winter. This Chili plant I bought last year was so healthy that I wanted to try overwintering it so I don’t need to buy a new one this year. Before winter, I pruned its leaves and moved it indoors. Last month, I moved it to a cold frame to harden it off. Now, it’s back outdoors.
蕃薯葉 Sweet Potato Leaf
也是首次越冬，放在室內栽種，結果成功保存了菜苗，今年不用花錢再買。蕃薯怕冷，我暫時把它繼續留在有蓋棚屋內，待天氣暖和一點才放到室外。 另外我也嘗試了用另一個方法幫蕃薯越冬，把根苗跟泥土放在紙盒內冬眠。它似乎沒有死掉，可以放入泥內試試能否長起來。
It is also the first time I’ve overwintered Sweet Potato plants, and I’m pleased to report they’ve made it through. I don’t need to buy new slips this year. Sweet Potatoes are sensitive to cold, so I’m keeping them in the shed for now until the weather warms up. I’ve also tried another method of overwintering by storing it with soil in a cardboard box. The plants seem to have survived, so I’ll try planting them in soil to see if they’ll grow.
檸檬 Lemon
小檸檬樹的越冬過程沒那麼順利，葉子都落清光了！且看它會否長回來吧！
The small lemon tree didn’t overwinter as successfully – all its leaves fell off! Let’s see if it regrows!
士多啤梨 Strawberry
移植到吊籃內之後有點垂頭喪氣似的，希望適應一下之後會重新站起來吧！
After repotting into hanging baskets, the strawberries look a bit droopy. Hope they will perk up soon!
菜頭再生 Regrowing Food Scraps
葱、大葱、西芹、白菜的菜頭，切下來放在水中或泥土中，都會再長起來，能省下點點買菜支出。
I always pop the scraps of Spring Onions, Leeks, Celery and Cabbage in water or soil and let them regrow. A hack to save a few pennies on grocery expenses.
芫茜 Coriander
從店舖買來一盆盆、種在泥裏的香草，吃了葉子後，可以連根種在花盆裏，重生長出葉子。芫茜不喜強光，我把它放在花園較陰暗的角落。
I like buying living herbs from shops and pot them in the garden, to let their leaves grow back after harvesting. Coriander doesn’t like strong light, so I planted it in a shady corner of the garden.
生菜 Lettuce
從菜檔買來連根的living lettuce，種在花盆裏，吃多少採摘多少，採摘後新的葉子再長出，又得到一棵大生菜，很划算呢！
I also potted up a living lettuce I bought from a vegetable stall for continuous harvest – pick what you need, and it keeps on giving. A real bargain!
薑、蘋果樹、各式香草 Ginger, Apple, and Various Herbs
繼續生長良好。蘋果樹開始長出新葉和花蕾，含苞待放。
They are all keeping well. The Apple Tree is getting ready to put on a show with new leaves and flower buds.
