Gardening in North Otago 14th February 2012

What dull drab weather we have been subjected to during the last three weeks, but I hear the sun will be back this weekend, hallelujah!
Plants are really needing sunshine now, dry ground and dull days, this is all wrong for the stage plants are at this time of the year especially fruit and grain crops. There is so much to do right now, dead heading roses, cutting back just about anything that has flowered, getting rid of weeds before they run to seed and yes watering and more watering. The one thing we can hold off from at this time of the year is planting trees & shrubs, unless you are able to water new plantings daily.
However I must say I enjoy working on these overcast less hot days and have been getting a lot done. I am still filling gaps in my garden with annual seedlings I find around our garden.
I plan to trim the photinias bushes we have around the garden to reward me with bright red new foliage in April / May and into the winter.
If you think something in your garden needs a cut back do it now, at this time of the year you cannot do damage the grow back rate is pretty quick. Even if the plant is still producing flowers, but you notice there are more seed heads than flowers it's a good indication the plant or bush is ready for a trim

If you have a buddleia ( the butterfly bush) tall thin arching branches with grey/blue leaves and lavender, purple or pink long narrow flower heads at the end, cut them back almost to the ground when they have finished flowering then again at the end of winter. They grow back very quickly and are best grown at the back of a border.

Lavenders can be topped now to encourage new flowers, its just a matter of cutting off the old flowers unless the bush has gone ugly and woody in which case take it out and replace with a new lavender plant.
With roses delivering us their second batch of blooms right now and the overcast days and dry ground conditions my roses are not the healthy specimens they were at the start of the new flowering season. I have been removing rust and black spot diseased leaves because I decided not to spray again this year. My trial was to foliar feed as much as possible to keep the roses healthy but with all the overcast weather the leaves needed to be kept dry to not encourage mildew and fungus. Deep root watering only and keeping the leaves dry has worked so for me, there is no sign of the usual mildew and I don't mind having to remove the black spot and rust leaves by not spraying in the hope the roses will build up a stronger resistance.

Bulbs are arriving in Garden centers now as late summer is the traditional time to plant winter and spring flowering bulbs.
Providing a well drained soil or potting mix (if putting in pots) will ensure success with most bulbs. Drainage in heavy soils can be improved by working in a generous layer of gravel prior to planting. The general rule when planting bulbs is that the depth of the soil above the bulb should be about twice the length of the bulb. Now days planting instructions and where to plant are offered on bulb packets. If it says full sun, shade or semi shade then that is where they must be planted to preform at their best.
I have been removing masses of oxygen and duck weed from my ponds and using it to mulch around plants, it is wonderful as a mulch and should add a lot of goodness to the ground as it breaks down. Ponds can get a bit murky at this time of the year, if you think your pond is stagnant and producing lots of green slime flood it then add some non sprayed straw and weigh it down with rocks. This will soon neutralise the water and get the pond working the way it should.

Lawn clippings should be still filling catchers, keep the food up to them when it rains and keep the blades up a notch to what you usually have them set from now on to give needed shade to roots. Spray lawn weeds out before they spread but do not use the clippings in the compost or around the garden. I scatter mine along fence lines which need to be kept wed free.

Vegetables
Keep water up to the vegetables especially raised gardens where drainage is greater. Don't leave veg past it's best along side healthy vegetables and always rotate plantings of leafy veg with root veg to eliminate disease being passed on.
Mound soil up around the roots of corn not ready yet, and keep an eye on the pumpkin patch, their leaves soon let you know when they need water to help them grow a prize winning crop.
Any spaces you have vacant fill with a green crop, wheat, barley, oats, blue lupin or mustard seed. Dig into the soil before it flowers. The humus created from a green crop is about the very best thing you can do for tied soil.

FULL MOON
Saturday, 18 February 2012
Garden:
Plant root vegetables such as carrots, beetroot, parsnips, turnips and swedes

Liquid feed tomatoes, peppers with liquid comfrey, adding vermicast or some other source of humates/carbon to hold the minerals where the plant roots need them.

Continue making liquid comfrey to feed tomatoes and peppers

Foliar feed three days after the full moon

Spray any tomatoes or potatoes with signs of blight or pumpkins showing signs of powdery mildew with raw milk (1 litre to 10 litres)

Cover seed crops from birds

Harvest seeds and dry and process as fast as possible

Cheers, Linda