Gardening in North Otago 29th October 2013

Another lovely week in North Otago after a windy but still warm Labour week end. Our Kanzan cherry blossom was blown away too soon but we still have the beautiful Shimadzu sakura low spreading almost white flowering cherries in full bloom. These are truly beautiful and deserve a spot in every garden big enough to cope with them. Weed spraying, lawn seed sowing and mowing has been keeping me pretty busy out here, the ground is warm now even after that recent cold snap and the weeds grow before my eyes, still time to pull out or hoe and spry before they make seed and spread every where. Just watch spraying around roses, they only need a sniff of a hormone weed spray to put out stunted deformed yellowing leaves and then eventually die back. Roses are doing well after the good deep rain soakings and the nights warming up, keep the food and deep root watering up to them as they bud up, foliar feeding on fresh new leaves works well now along with slow release fertiliser which ensures they are feed each time they are watered. Healthy well fed roses are less likely to become diseased. Cut back Erica's and callunas that have finished flowering, this stops them from going woody, taking all the spent Flowers off will encourage them to produce fresh new green growth for summer. If you don't cut the old flowering growth off they will make their new growth out from the old growth which means they become woody at the bottom. Cut back aubrietia rockery plant and you will get another flowering. Also cut spent flowers off hellebore's so you get the full effect of their wonderful leaves. Polyanthus have been wonderful over the Winter but now it's time to cut them back and shift to a shady spot, they can be planted out in a sunny spot again early next Winter. Lawns: keep feeding lawns when rain is about, powdered fertilisers need to be washed well in to stop it burning lawns during hot sunny days. New grass sown now will strike very quickly, sow thickly to choke out annual weeds. Spray flat perennial weeds in established lawns but not new lawns, annual weeds that grow up with new grass will eventually be mowed out. Vegetables: PLANT, PLANT, PLANT plants & seeds, I have planted out pumpkin and squash plants grown from seed, they need a large prepared area for them to ramble with a lot of compost and old stable manure dug in. The leaves will always let you know when they need water. If you have a glass house or tunnel house why not plant some peppers, they can grow high so when their stems are strong enough bang in a stake and attach a string from the stake to the roof to support them as they grow up. Berry Kane's and strawberries are doing a lot of growing now as well, They both flower and fruit up really quickly as long as they get all day sun they will ripen fast. Berries and new seasons peas are perfect for encouraging Children into the garden they all learn the results of clearing ground and planting are well worth the wait. Keep manure enriched compost up to rhubarb, if the soil gets hard and dry around rhubarb it will grow stringy dry uneatable steams, rhubarb sponge and cream, YUM. Keep picking herbs to stop them going to seed, dry what you don't use and store away until the months when they are not available. Drying herbs :Pick in the full heat of the day, lay out on news paper in a dry airy place until crisp, (all moisture must be gone). Then rub together into sprinkle sized bits and store in brown paper bags or glass jars. The elder flower is blooming which for me means making elder flower cordial, this is the summer drink in the UK , so refreshing with iced water. Elder berry here is considered a weed because the birds drop the seed and it grows any where and everywhere, when it pops up here in our garden I pull it out and pick my flowers from a bush on the farm. I thought I would share the very easy recipe with you all. Elder flower cordial Prep Time: 40 minutes Steeping of flowers: 48 hours Ingredients: 1k /2 ¼ lbs sugar 1.5 litres / 6 cups boiling water 4 medium lemons, washed 30 large Elderflower heads, shake to remove any insects ( Do not wash) 2 oz citric acid (available from a chemist Preparation: Place the sugar into a large saucepan/stockpot or a large Pyrex bowl. (I use my croc pot) Pour the boiling water over and stir until all the sugar has dissolved and leave to cool. Grate the rind of the lemons with a fine grater, add to the sugar water. Slice the lemons into thick slices and add to the water. Add the citric acid and stir, then finally add the flower heads to the water and stir again. Cover and leave to steep for 48 hours. Strain through clean fine muslin cloth into a clean bowl. Using a funnel, fill sterilized bottles. Seal and store in a cool, dark place (not the refrigerator) for a few weeks or freeze in plastic bottles to keep for longer. The cordial is delicious diluted with still or fizzy water. Once a bottle is opened store in the refrigerator. Cheers, Linda.