Gardening in North Otago 23rd January 2010

What a strange January we have had, very little sun all month but when it is out it is soooo hot. This weather is kinder on plants than baking hot weather but the lack of sun is evident in most plants flowering ability. The roses are beginning to get mold in their leaves and buds which is usual when sun is limited, keep the fungus spry up to them to hold them until they see the sun again. Don't use sprinklers in this overcast weather, keep plants leaves as dry as possible. Deep watering around the roots is what I recommend to keep fungus at bay. Closely planted summer growth begins to rot with out the drying sun and warm winds they rely on for good growth and wet foliage rots faster.

Keep dead heading roses and cut back summer flowering perennials and shrubs to encourage continuous flowering, I have just cut back my daisy bushes, delphiniums, lavaterias, dianthus, lupins and most of the herbs because they were all going to seed. They will all come back fresh and most will flower again.
.I have cut the chrysanthemums back for the second time, they flower in the autumn on shorter steams by doing this. I cut some back 3 times before I let them flower. Plant some of their tip growth into river sand and they should root, plant out and next year they will be a clump like the Mother plant. Put stakes in now to support
for the next lot of growth.
The fruit trees are really slow in ripening the fruit but the vegetables are holding and and not bolting to seed so I guess thats one thing in favor of this non summer weather.