Gardening in North Otago March 19th 2010

Another dry week with Autumn making a start... leaves, leaves, leaves, another wedding in the garden tomorrow so again things are full on keeping things look fresh as they are slowly drying up!!
Nights are cooling off now which is a blessing for dry parched plants, deep watering and mulching is the only way to save precious shrubs now. My rhododendrons, azaleas and hydrangeas are really suffering and with such a big garden I am spotting everyday shrubs that have missed being watered.
Continue to remove spent summer annuals and always fork in and fresh compost and wet well before replanting beds. Be on the look out for useful self sown seedlings like fox glove, lupin, cineraria, and primula melacoides, they can be transplanted now to settle in before winter. Plants for spring and winter flowering can be planted out now on the coast even though there has been no rain, as long as the ground is well watered before they go in and new plantings are shaded from the hot autumn sun until the days are cooler. These plants will keep making strong feeder roots over winter and be well ahead of any thing planted in early spring. Plants that will go through the winter are, antrrhinum, calendula, iceland poppy, stock, pansy, primrose, pollyanthus, viola and wall flowers. This will not work further inland where the ground freezes.
Lift gladioli now and store in a dry place, if left in the ground they may be attacked by pests.

This is the best time to plant conifers, which in my mind have a place in any garden as winter interest when gardens are bare and uninteresting. Conifers come in many shades and sizes and the size given on any conifer label is only up to 10 years. No mater how small they are said to grow they all keep growing to a larger size than the 10 year size given. Don't be afraid to cut out conifers that have out grown their space, I had 4 20 year old conifers cut out this week and will build up the soil where they were growing and start again in the same place with new conifers.

Get that grass seed in now, the cooler nights and mornings are allowing the moisture to remain longer after watering and a strike will happen pretty fast as the ground is still nice and warm.
I am really wanting to dethatch my lawns but have decided to wait until all the weddings are over which will be after next weekend. The dry weather encourages thatch to build up around the grass roots and lawns can become thick, with it killing out the good grass.

Keep an eye out for the first early frosts if you still have pumpkins and corn to harvest, dry off pumpkin and squash skins before storing them in a cool dry place.
The birds are making a feast of apples and late peaches, if they are eating them then they will be ready to pick and use. Apples can be stored in a cool dry place for ages.

Cheers, Linda.