Gardening: tomatoes; wisteria; magnolia grubs; tennis-court vine; hay

Supermarket tomatoes are bland. Here is a simple trick to fire up their flavour.

Give tomatoes a five-minute bath in hot water before chilling to improve their flavour.

Dunking tomatoes in hot water may be a strategy to boost flavour in supermarket tomatoes.

Typically they are picked green, to be ripened while stored and transported at low temperatures.

Picking before ripening and chilling affect flavour development, but scientists from the US Department of Agriculture found that giving green tomatoes a five-minute water bath at about 52C before chilling dramatically improved flavour.

A suite of aroma and flavour compounds that are suppressed by chilling were produced in even higher concentrations by the hot-water treatment, even with subsequent chilling.

Of course you can’t beat your own homegrown tomatoes, picked ripe just before eating.

Have you got your seedlings ready to plant?

Reader Q&A

Can we save a glorious native wisteria (Hardenbergia comptoniana) that has climbed into the canopy of a dead acacia or must it die too when the tree is cut down? - VERITY PRAED, MUNDARING, WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Like many natives, established plants of native wisteria are unlikely to transplant successfully. However, it responds well to hard pruning, usually done after the early spring flowers have finished. This means you could cut off the parts growing up the tree, then let it regrow up a new support or across the ground.

Every year a grub eats the petals of my portwine magnolia. General-purpose sprays have had little effect. The tree is otherwise healthy. - IAN TONKING, ROBERTSON, NSW

There are several effective grub or caterpillar sprays but timing their application is important. Spray at the first signs of attack and repeat after seven days. Eco-Neem is certified organic; Yates Success Ultra is low toxicity and has some residual action as well.

We wish to cover our wire tennis court fence quickly with a climber to screen the view of the houses behind. What would you recommend? - RICHARD FAURE-FIELD, GOLD COAST, QLD

The fastest climber is potato vine (Solanum jasminoides) but after a few years it gets woody underneath and can become unattractive. The densest screening and most long lasting would be fragrant star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides) but it is not nearly as fast. Other choices include yellow-flowering Carolina jessamine (Gelsemium sempervirens), maidenhair vine (Muehlenbeckia complexa) or one of the Pandorea varieties such as ‘Jazzy Bellz’ or ‘Flirty Bellz’.

We use pea straw to mulch our garden but sometimes white or black mould grows in the middle of the bale. Can we still use it without adverse effects on the garden? - JAN BRAMMY, CUDLEE CREEK, ADELAIDE HILLS

Mouldy hay and straws are not damaging in the garden. But they can be toxic to animals that eat them, and when handling you should use a face mask, eye protection and gloves to protect you against breathing the spores. Pea straw is an excellent mulch that breaks down to condition the soil, adding nitrogen. It would help to store your bales under cover to avoid them getting wet.

Send your questions to [e-mail] or Helen Young, PO Box 3098, Willoughby North, NSW 2068. Visit helenyoung.com.au. September’s best question wins the delightful Daisy design outdoor beanbag cover worth $170 from IS Gift. The waterproof, UV-proof cover is 140cm x 140cm with inner zipped bag, beans not included. isgift.com.