Expert gives tips

How to get the Styrian gardening season off to a good start

Angelika Ertl has her hands full in spring - the garlic planted in the fall is already growing in the raised bed.

(Bild: Jauschowetz Christian)

Spring is here and nature and gardens are starting to sprout again. The "Krone" asked Styrian expert Angelika Ertl for tips and tricks. 

Even if the weather isn't exactly at its friendliest this weekend, all signs point to spring in Styria and eager hobby gardeners are already flocking to the starting blocks. To mark the occasion, the "Krone" visited the well-known and passionate Styrian organic gardener Angelika Ertl in her plant paradise in Feldkirchen near Graz.

"We're currently in the middle of preparing the beds and sowing seeds, and we're already planting lettuces in the greenhouses," says the Styrian with green fingers, who also has important tips for amateur gardeners:

Bed preparation
Now is the ideal time to get beds ready for the new season. Weeds need to be weeded and the soil needs to be loosened. "Very important: don't turn the soil over deeply, just aerate it well. Ideally with a digging fork." Otherwise you destroy valuable microorganisms in the soil. "Then you should work in good compost or rock flour to supply the soil with nutrients."

The ideal time to sow
Depending on the climate, this also depends on the region. "You have to be a bit careful now, ideally you should sow at the beginning of April," recommends Ertl. However, radishes, root vegetables and cabbages, for example, are already suitable.

Angelika Ertl already has her hands full in the garden.

(Bild: Jauschowetz Christian)

The right seeds
As an organic gardener, Angelika Ertl naturally recommends the right seeds and planting material. "In any case, seed or varietal seed and no F1 hybrids. These are genetic dead ends." For young plants, Ertl recommends markets with regional produce.

Fertilize correctly
Chemical fertilizers are not needed in the garden: "There is pelleted horse manure, or even sheep's wool - a great fertilizer. In any case, fertilization should be individually tailored to the plants. "If I fertilize a lettuce too much, it starts to 'shoot' and gets ruined."

Pruning plants
"Very important: plants that flower in spring should be pruned after flowering, if at all." In general, she advises against "janitor pruning". Each plant should be considered individually and pruned accordingly.

"Neat and tidy"
"Don't always tidy up and trim everything down," Ertl pleads for colorful diversity in the garden: native hedges and perennials or wildflower meadows help biodiversity and the soil.

Working in the morning gardens is a great experience, especially for children

(Bild: Morgentau Gärten)

Urbner Trend

Wie immer mehr Städter garteln

As spring arrives, city dwellers are also gripped by the desire to garden, but most are denied the joy of growing vegetables due to a lack of green spaces of their own. This gap has been filled in recent years by an increasing number of providers of urban self-harvest gardens. One pioneer of so-called "urban farming" is the organic vegetable farmer Christian Stadler from Linz. He brought his concept of "morning dew gardens" to the Styrian capital in 2018.

At three locations - Andritz, Mariatrost and Straßgang - there are self-harvest garden plots that city dwellers can rent to cultivate and harvest their own vegetables. "Many of our Morgentau gardeners live off their harvest all year round. We regularly receive positive feedback and have many regular customers who have been with us from the start," says Christian Stadler.

How does it work? There are plots of between 20 and 60 square meters. Some of the beds are pre-planted, but you can also get seeds and plants on site. For the rest of the season, the hobby gardeners are then required to do it themselves; advice and help is available if required, as well as a water connection and loaned equipment. The garden must be cultivated according to organic guidelines - chemicals are therefore taboo. You should plan around 1.5 hours per week for maintenance.

There are still plots available for this season, bookings can be made until March 31. Info: morgentaugaerten.at