Gardening in North Otago February 19th 2010

What a wonderful rain we got on Thursday night, just what North Otago was wanting, I have another wedding here tomorrow so was glad of it.
I have been cutting back so much I am afraid of getting rsi in my fingers!! but it all has to go if it has died back to encourage new fresh growth.
February: can be a good month for taking cuttings and propagating your own plants.
Why? Because by late summer the soft new spring growth has hardened and the cutting is less likely to lose water from the leaves.
Semi-succulent plants like geraniums (Pelargoniums) or impatiens are easiest for beginners, but many common shrubs such as abelia, buxus, lavenders,camellias, azaleas, fuchsias and hebe's have a relatively high success rate.
The trick when growing plants from cuttings lies in keeping the cut pieces alive while they develop their own new roots.
Professional nurserymen do this by growing cuttings in glasshouses where they’re regularly misted with fine sprays of water. But there
are lots of techniques that can help a home gardener to achieve success. Try these:
Take cuttings early in the morning, while it’s still cool. Choose tip pieces that are about 100- 150 mm long. Wrap immediately in damp newspaper and then in plastic.
Work in the shade. Fill pots with Seed Raising Mix and water well. Allow to drain.
Trim the base of the cutting so that it ends just below a leaf node (which is where the leaf is, or has been, attached to the stem).
Remove bottom leaves, leaving a few at the top. Large leaves can be cut in half (with scissors or sharp secateurs) to further reduce water loss. Dip the base of the cutting into hormone Gel or powder.
Use a pencil to poke holes in the top of the mix a 150mm pot can hold about six cuttings.
Insert the base of each cutting into a hole and gently move the mix back to hold it in place.
When the pot is full of cuttings, water carefully.
Place the pot in a lightly shaded spot, out of direct sunlight and Ideally, cover with plastic wrap.
Use wire hoops made out of an old coat hanger or chopsticks to support the plastic and keep it above the cuttings.
Check regularly to make sure the mix stays moist.
After a couple of months, gently move the stems to feel if they’re firm. This will mean roots have started. When roots are established,
new plants can be moved into individual pots filled with good quality potting mix and fed with a gentle liquid fertiliser such as Fish Emulsion.
Plant these cuttings out in spring.


I keep on about planting bulbs, they are in the shops and they want to be in the ground now.
A bulb comes ready-equipped with the promise of a flower. In its previous growing season the bulb did all the work
of flowering, and the embryo flower is now safely stored within the bulb. It’s just waiting for the right moisture
and temperature triggers to start growing.
In all but the warmest areas, bulbs can be left in the ground from one year to the next, but good feeding’s the secret to ongoing success.
Water the growing bulb regularly with soluble Flower & Fruit fertiliser Continue feeding this way every one or two weeks,
even after flowering, until the leaves have died down completely. Good drainage is important, too.
If soil stays wet for long periods (especially during cold weather) your bulbs will simply rot away.
Vegetables:
Keep sowing veg seeds like carrot, beetroot, parsnip, spring onion, and keeping onions and lettuce because there is plenty of growing time left.
to germinate seeds before the frost start again.
Feed citrus trees with citrus food and spray any scale you notice with winter oil.
Cheers, Linda