Fabulous Florence Fennel
What a joyful month June is! June’s warm sunshine seems to infuse every fibre of our beings, imbuing our souls with a feeling of uplifting bliss that can only be found outdoors. June also brings us the gift of sweet summer rain to refresh our plants, and the excitement of a great many wonderful growing opportunities in the garden; it’s hard to beat this time of year!
Florence fennel is a marvellous vegetable to grow! The entire plant is edible, so there’s no waste. There’s very little time-consuming washing or preparation required for cooking Florence Fennel, which is a real boon when you’ve been working hard in the garden, or at your allotment all day. Great news if you want to eat some of your freshly harvested, home-grown, delicious produce for supper, but have exhausted yourself gardening, yet need to prepare a tasty, but simple meal! If you’re really tired, you’ll be glad to know that Florence fennel tastes great raw too!
Florence Fennel Varieties
There are a number of fantastic Florence fennel cultivars, which can be sown now, including: Florence Fennel ‘Romanesco’, Florence Fennel ‘Zefa Fino’, and Florence Fennel ‘Rondo’. These are three of my top performing Florence fennel cultivars. In previous years, ‘Rondo’ has produced the largest bulbs for me out of these three varieties, when sown this month, but all three cultivars are reliable performers, producing delectable tasting bulbs and foliage.
Florence Fennel Soils
I have found that Florence fennel thrives on our sandy soils, for best results add a mulch of home-made garden compost, or peat-free compost over the soil prior to sowing your seeds. This mulch will help to suppress weed growth, it will also provide your plants with some extra nutrients and will help to increase the water holding capacity of the soil, all of which will benefit your plants.
Florence Fennel Situation
To grow Florence fennel successfully, choose a bright and sunny or partially shaded location, as Florence fennel does not enjoy growing in too shaded a spot. There’s no need to start your seedlings off in seed trays – Florence fennel seed is best sown directly in the soil where it is to grow.
Watering Florence Fennel
Ensure that your plants receive regular, frequent waterings to enable your Florence fennel plants to grow and develop their sweet, slightly aniseedy swollen leaf bases. Do make sure that you provide your plants with sufficient water – give them a good soak twice a week. If Florence fennel plants become too dry – even for a few days – they very quickly sulk, before bolting skywards, when they become tough and inedible.
Make sowings of Florence fennel seed every few weeks to provide you with a good, sustained harvest at regular intervals into late autumn or early winter, depending of course on our Great British weather! Happy growing!
For more gardening advice for June, please click here.
For more gardening advice for July, please click here.
This article was first published in the June 2018 edition of Vantage Point Magazine.
Further Trials
You may be interested in some of the other trials I have conducted.
Tomato Trials
To see my Tomato Trials, please click here.
Vegetable Trials
To see all of my Vegetable Trials, please click here.
Compost Trial Reports
To see all of my Compost Trials, please click here.
To read advice on planting up containers, please click here.
Twine Trial
If you’re looking for a strong, lasting twine, to use to support your tomato plants or to support any other fruit or vegetables you’re growing, you might be interested to see the results of my Twine Trial, here’s a link.
Scented Daffodil Trial Reports
To see the results of my third Scented Daffodil Trial, please click here.
To read the results of my Scented Daffodil Container Trial, please click here.
To read the results of my first Scented Daffodil Trial, please click here.
Slug and Snail Trials
To see the results of my Slug and Snail Trial and discover the best methods of protecting your plants from slugs and snails, please click here.
To read about using nematodes to protect your plants from slugs and snails, please click here.
Sweet Pea Trial Reports
To read the results of my third Sweet Pea Trial, please click here.
To read the results of my second Sweet Pea Trial, please click here.
To read the results of my first Sweet Pea Trial, please click here.
Terrarium, Vivarium, and Orchidarium Trials
To see how my Orchidarium was created, please click here.
To see the design of my Rainforest Terrarium, please click here.
To read the first part of my White Orchid BiOrbAir Terrarium Trial, please click here.
To read the first part of my Madagascar BiOrbAir Terrarium Trial, please click here.
To read the first part of my Miniature Orchid BiOrbAir Terrarium Trial, please click here.
To see a planting list of ferns, orchids, and other plants that are perfectly suited to growing inside terrariums and bottle gardens, please click here.
To read about the general care I give to my orchids and terrarium plants, and the general maintenance I give to my BiOrbAir terrariums, please click here.
To read how I track the temperature, humidity, and light conditions inside my terrariums, please click here.
Other articles that may interest you……………
To see photographs of the RHS Kitchen Garden that Juliet Sargeant designed for the RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show 2017, please click here.
