Gardening in North Otago 1September 2015

SEPTEMBER Tra La" Spring thank goodness! The season of new beginnings and with a nice drizzle we had last week I am convinced a new growing season has begun. As I walked in the drizzle with Scruff I noticed all the pollen being washed into gutters, there is so much pollen in the air, settling on every outside surface and being breathed in I am sure there will be a lot of sneezing going on.  Everyday something new is happening in my gardens, sweet peas, ranunculus, anemones and tulips are well up and putting on good growth. I am now watching as I work around the garden as to what is pushing through. Weeds are off to a flying start as well so hoes and sprayers will be out, there are organic sprays and they work best when weeds are new and small so now is the time to remove them before they flower and make seed.  I have very wide perennial borders that insist on growing couch, biddy- bid, and chick-weed and this was the time I attack them while flowering plants were still low and the ground damp and soft, making weed pulling easy. While doing this weeding I can see what needs attention, delphiniums needing stakes before they put on too much growth, removing mulch from around iris rhizomes and peony rose crowns and removing self sown plants and natives before they settle in. I keep on about plants, shrubs and trees responding to feeding now, sap is well up and buds are swelling, liquid feed all perennials and bedding plants and use a good general fertiliser for trees and shrubs. Azaleas and tulips are the exception, azaleas like fed after flowering and tulips store enough food in the bulb for their requirements. If you load them up with more they will grow more leaves than needed and hide blooms.  Cut the old growth from cat-mint if you have not already done so, I leave old growth on over the colder months to protect the new growth. It is also time to dress your garden for late spring and summer, think colour and where you want it and what colour is needed where. At this time of the year concentrate on the sunny areas in the garden to get bedding pants and perennials moving. Why not plant wildflowers, this year I am filling egg cartons with seed raising mix and wildflower seeds, cartens can be buried into soil suppressing weeds then breaking down once seeds germinate and grow.   Roses: there are still roses on offer, they do not always need to grow together in a rose bed, use them as gap fillers in sunny borders. To give new to rose growers an idea of what to look for I will list the different types below once again.PATIO ROSES: grow about knee high for front border planting, plant 80 cm apart when grouping, these can also be grown in containers as long as the roots are kept cool ( tin foil around the inside of the pot before filling will help with this) feed right through the growing season.FLORABUNDA: Flowers grow in clusters - bushes grow to about waist high on average, space these about 1mtr apart when grouping. Cut off spent flower clusters and they will reward you with masses of colour right through the growing season. HYBRID TEA: This is the rose to give you the large exhibition one steam bloom. They grow about chest high, these are the picking rose and need feeding well right through the growing season to give the best results. MINATURE: A dwarf growing bush rose with all parts scaled down, height will be listed on the label. If you have a rose that is not performing and has been growing for a few years, dig it out, change the soil and plant another. The secret to keeping roses free from disease is to remove all last years' diseased wood and leaves from the ground around them and burn them. Keep the food up to rose bushes starting now while they are beginning to leaf and continue right through until the end of summer.  Lawns: With that lovely moisture last week I fed my lawn and can already see results, healthy lawns are fed often to leave no room for weeds. Vegetables: Plant carrot, spring onion, lettuce, brassica, pea and broad bean seeds. Still too early for tomato, basil, corn, summer beans and all from the pumpkin family.  Fruit: Buds are swelling to blossom burst as sap rises, what's needed now are sunny days and bee's. I worked on my gooseberry bushes this week,Thinning branches before the leaves arrive, cutting up the bottom branches to get bushes higher off the ground making it so much easier to pick the fruit as it hangs beneath branches..  Cheers, Linda.

Gardening in North Otago August 25th 2015

Spring is everywhere now and I find I am needing to check the time often because days are really drawing out. Our little 4 year old Maggie pointed out that the large pink magnolias were throwing off their wooly blankets and yes they are, large fluffy bud casings are covering the ground as beautiful magnolias take center stage.They are always out before blossom in this garden. 

Having seen some lovely new lavender plants on offer in Garden centers, I continue to cut back mine as they begin to put out new growth, really old woody bushes can be cut back hard to encourage new lower growth, if they do not respond it may be time to replace them. Newer lavender plants just need a hair cut and fed manure enriched compost and a little lime.

Softer shrubs that are encroaching on drive and walkways can be trimmed back , they will soon recover with new spring growth. I have been reducing the height on some of my taller shrubs like phebaliums, pittosporums, psudopanax and other busy natives. You can do this if height is a problem without spoiling the shape of shrubs. What I do is cut out the center branch down to where the other branches bush out, this removes the natural point at the top of the shrub and will sometimes reduce the height by 2 or more meters. The shrubs will soon send up a new leader but will also put more growth into the side branching which can be trimmed into shape if a problem. With new spring growth happening this is the time to do this sort of height and width control.

A lot of climbers are in bud now ready to do their spring thing so when trimming watch you are not cutting off new buds. Hardenbergia ( happy wanderer) flowered in early winter so if the frosts haven't cut it back, it is one that can be cut back. Jasmines have been knocked

by frosts, I will leave them a bit longer until I am sure the frosts are over before trimming them.

If you have still not feed your roses do it as soon as possible! they are moving fast now and need food kept up to them if you want them to stay healthy. That goes for most plants now, If you have no time to do anything else in the garden feeding plants is a must for health and vigour to take them right through to autumn. It is well worth the effort and will minimize the spaying needed for unhealthy plants.

Now would be a good time to mention plants that resent being fed, many South African plants and Australian natives such as proteas, leucodendrons, banksias, and all grevillia's do not need feeding. I have lost some of these because they had absorbed fertiliser from neighbouring plants. 

There is still time to divide hosta's while they are still not showing a lot of leaf, these dramatic shade loving perennials can really highlight a shaded spot with their fresh greens and variegated light shades. Simply lift established clumps at least 4 to 5 years old, use a sharp spade to slice them into a few good size pieces, then replant. They also look great in pots but get slug bate around them as soon as they start showing leaf or try some of the slug repellent methods that have been passed down by gardeners listed below. 

Coffee Grounds: Used coffee grounds spread around plants may work. 

Epsom salts sprinkled on the soil will supposedly deter slugs and also helps prevent Magnesium deficiency in your plants. Magnesium helps to deepen color, thickens petals and increases root structure. 

Oat Bran: Scatter oat bran on the soil to deter slugs and snails. 

Builders Sand: try barriers of sharp textured builders sand.(not beach sand) 

Nut Shells: Ground walnuts shells have been known to work. 

Sprigs of rosemary scattered around are said to repel slugs. 

Try a mulch of pine needles, these work well around strawberry plants.

I am continuing to sow seeds under cover, the seeds I planted two weeks ago are up already and getting a weekly liquid feed of diluted worm tea. Any seed packs that recommend spring sowing will pop up now. I sow my seeds in trays of compost and soil combined with a layer of seed raising mix on the top, this way your seed raising mix will go further. Once planted cover the trays with plastic or glass, but use spacers to let air circulate between the plastic / glass and tray. 

Vegetables:

If you plan to grow vegetables this summer get the garden ready now by digging in some weed free compost, then let the soil settle for a while before planting. Plant seedlings later in the day when the heat is out of the sun, then keep moist until they take hold and start growing. Watering is best done at the start of the day. In area's you do not plan to plant out for a while why do tired soil a favor and sow a green crop to add humus. Mustard, lupine, barley or wheat they will germinate in no time. If you do decide to do this dig it in when lush, soft and green, don't let it get to the flowering, stalky stage because it takes too long to break down.

Fruit This is also the time to give fruiting shrubs and trees a dressing of pot ash to help with fruiting. Deciduous fruit trees and everything in the way of small fruit should be planted in August at the latest. Now is a good time to shift citrus trees.

Cheers, Linda

Gardening in North Otago August 19th 2015

The benefits from that last rain here in North Otago are already obvious, moisture just when new roots are in need and with the subsequent heavy frosts it is still very wet and sticky under foot which has to be good for the beginning of spring. 

This week has been a bit of a downer for me, I thought I had made it through winter without succumbing to that dreaded flu virus, BUT then it got me and did it's worst. 

Back on deck now and doing the final winter clean up, pruning and planting out. It is at this time of the year I notice yellowing of some plants, the ground gets depleted of nitrogen during winter especially when plants are shallow rooted like camellia and rhododendrons, and potted plants with roots out grown containers. With applications of complete plant food and compost this condition will be rectified. Plant specific slow release fertilisers on offer make it easy to choose the right one and each time it rains or you water the garden food is released to plants. 

If you have not trimmed back ornamental grass's yet do it now, cut the old seeded ends well back and clean out the dead thatch around the base, its amazing how much you will need to cart away after this hair cut but they will grow back to their soft wafting shape in no time. Use what you have cut off as mulch around the garden, a cover for the compost or in the chook or calf pen. 

I imagine the weeds have started at your place as they have at mine! mostly chickweed. With the ground being so soft hand, and hoe weeding is really easy, get them out before they take off and seed everywhere, or dig them in before they seed.

Lawns:

Moss in lawns, pathways and garden structures love the dampness it is not as bad as usual here this year with the winter being dry but with the now damp ground warming, moss spors will be on the go. There are a lot of products out there to deal with moss but killing the moss in lawns is simply a short term measure they do nothing by way of treating the basic problem. If you really want to eradicate moss from lawns you have to find the actual problem causing it. The reasons are varied, but not too difficult to isolate. 

poor drainage, usually clay pan under soil (gypsum can help break the caly up)

poor feeding regime -( usually shown up by light green grass), 

soil too acid - (carry out a test, lime may be needed). 

Shaded Lawns - overhanging trees or large shrubs. 

Mowing lawns too close is a very common cause, for it weakens the grass allowing moss to take hold

Drought - if severe enough to harm or kill the grass. 

Compaction - continued use by children and pets with no remedial attention by way of aeration in the Autumn. 

A lawn well fed, cut properly, aerated and de-thatched (if there is a thatch build up) should not be troubled by moss because moss rarely competes with strong growing grass. 

Get the grass growing properly starting with the first spring feeding and rake in humus (compost or sieved soil) to add more body, this will encourage worms as well. Slow release grass fertliser is ideal when the ground is wet and rain is about. Treating small areas of lawn moss can be carried out with sulphate of iron watered on at the strength displayed on the pack per sq meter, moss will turn black and after a couple of weeks you can rake out the dead moss and re-seed. 

Vegetables: Pick winter crops while still at their best - Asparagus is a vegetable that repays planting over many years. To prepare beds cultivate deeply and add generous amounts of compost. Existing asparagus beds should be cultivated carefully to avoid damaging the crowns that lie just below the surface, add a new layer of mulch. 

Here on the coast get spring sowings off to an early start now, use a row of cloches if you have them. Inland where the soil will take a bit of thawing out before any planting, stretch out a length of clear polythene to warm and dry out the soil first. 

Fruit:

I am pleased to hear the bee's out in force again around blossom trees on sunny days. Remember they are about if the sprayer comes out.

Cheers, Linda

Frost after frost this week letting us know it is still winter and making early starts hard for those working outside. Still, blossom is bursting bud and bulbs beginning to flower regardless of how cold it is.
After months of pruning and hard stuff going on in this garden it is now time to top up with the lovely black compost I have had delivered from the Pukeuri plant freezing works. I like to use this on top of my home made compost to plant into because it looks good and is weed free.
If you have a large area needing this sort of cover ring Gregg at 0272293215 who delivers full truck loads. Once this cover is on I set to planting out what I have been nursing though the winter along with all those new spring plants on offer now in garden centers like pollyantha's, forget-me-nots, dianthus, poppy's, sweet peas, pansy and viola. With frosts still happening as they are any plants bought will need to be hardened off for a good while before planting out into an, open to the elements garden. Once in the ground plants can be helped along with folia feeding to get roots going and keep them strong. Slow release fertiliser will start working now that plants are moving, sprinkle around perennials, annuals and established and newly planted trees and shrubs.

Now that hydrangea bushes are bare of leaves and flowers I have been laying some lower branches down onto the ground, making a dent in the damp soil then covering with soil and weighting down with large stones. These covered stems should root once the ground warms giving me a number of new bushes to grow on as gap fillers. This layering method works with many shrubs, rhododendron, azalea, choisya ternata (Mexiacan orange blossom) and camellia, almost any shrub you can get a branch down low enough to bury in the ground.

Tip layering is quite similar to simple layering. Dig a hole 3 to 4 inches deep. Insert the tip of a current season’s shoot and cover it with soil, roots form at the bend. 

Fruit Trees are still available in most Garden Centres, if you think your garden is too small for fruit trees I have seen dwarf Peach and Nectarine Trees on offer, what better if a little tree is needed to add height in an area of a small garden why not have one that blossoms beautifully and then gives you fruit.These dwarf tree's are perfect for the smaller garden as they only grow to a width and height of 1.5 metres. They can also be grown in a tub and require very little pruning.
The bees are still not about in my garden, lets hope the days stay sunny when blossom is out and needs pollinating.

vegetables: Vegetable gardens really benefit from continuous frosts breaking up and aerating soil. 
I am still digging carrots and using silver beet and the garlic is up and growing well, if your veg garden is still cold and frosty there is not much for you to do apart from adding some compost and a little lime in readiness for when you plant out later this month.


Cheers, Linda.
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Gardening in North Otago August 4th 2015

A mix of frosts and dark sky's that send very little rain and have even had a warm northwester in the mix so far this week, but this could all change before this is in print.  Slowly the garden begins to awaken and spring is in the air with the swelling of buds.

I have shifted clumps of tall white phlox, they had become shaded and too protected by growing trees, these tall white phlox, when flowering have a wonderful musk perfume that drifts about the garden in late afternoon. Tall phlox come in a number of shades, they die down over winter, and need to be planted in an open windy spot that gets all day sun or they will be susceptible to powdery mildew. Mine have just broken the surface and will get a spray of copper oxicloride to help hold back the powdery mildew which they seem to retain in the clump over winter.

I have filled plastic 2 litre milk containers with worm tea from my worm farm, adding to a full watering to the strength of black tea, apply generously to new leaf, budding and flowering plants like pollyanthas, forget-me-nots, dianthus, sweet peas, pansy, viola. Any new plantings can be Helped along along by feeding now to get roots going and keep green and strong through any cold snaps yet to come.

Slow release fertiliser is a good idea now as well, sprinkle around established ornamental and newly planted trees and shrubs, plants start feeding on awaking. 

This week I have pruned more hydrangeas, the wood has hardened and buds are plump, Prune only those stems that have flowered, cut at the second bud from the bottom, leave all other stems because these are the flowers for this year. Spread old stable manure around the drip line and a dressing of lime for pink flowers and aluminum sulphate for blue, White never changes, but are best planted in light shade. 

If the PH of your soil is high blue hydrangeas will always revert to pink no matter how often you add aluminum to the soil. Pot grown hydrangea's can be controlled successfully by tailoring soil to requirements. Peat, pine needles and coffee grinds are also helpful to blue hydrangeas.

Cuttings from hardened geranium steams can be taken now, fresh grown geraniums give amazing colour to a warm sunny garden for all of the growing season and even into the winter, they are so easy to grow from cuttings. Take short cuttings, semi hard wood, (not a new green steam) and let them dry out a little before potting, this means you don't have to deal with them straight away. Plant them firmly into a soil and river sand mix, (Potting mix is too light to get a tight seal), I am forever taking cuttings off geraniums I like when I come across them in other gardens. 

Trim dentata lavender after it's winter flowering. Dentata is the tall growing one with the pale lavender bumblebee flower and serrated leaf, they are budding up now so will recover quickly from a cut back, leave trimming other lavenders until it is warmer but you can give all lavenders a dressing of lime.

Keep planting dahlias, peony roses and gladioli from now until September and cut back leggy, straggly bush lavatera and they will bush up again in no time.

Roses: A reminder of how importance it is to feed roses now they are making a move to bud up, powdered rose food needs watered in around the drip line, slow release fertiliser will work each time it rains, manure around the drip line, (not up against the crown), any of these will give the needed boost.

Vegetables 

It has been so good not to have to worry about bugs during the last few months when planting out leaf veg, but the birds are tucking into anything green right now, new plantings can be hidden from them with frost cloth.

Gardeners in cold frosty areas will be making a start now, add compost and a little lime in readiness for when you plant later this month.

It is seed potato time again, potatoes have a natural dormancy from the time they are harvested to when they begin to sprout, starting their next growth cycle. This can only be modified slightly by storage conditions. I set them out in a box on damp news paper, and leave in a dark place in the warmth of the house. Some leave them in a warm well lit place, what ever works for you I go with the theory that it is very dark down in the soil where they eventually end up. Seed potatoes are on offer now.

FIRST EARLY VARIETIES: Cliffs Kidney, Jersey Bennes, Maris Anchor, Rocket.

SECOND EARLY Ilam Hardy, Karaka, Red king.

MAIN CROP: Desiree,Agria  Mondial, Nadine, Pentland Dell, Red Rascal, Rua 

Fruit: 
Finish pruning grapes before sap rises if left too late a grape will bleed sap. 
Time is running out for pruning fruit trees as well, blossom burst is not far away. 

An update on Scruff the dog who I am sure feels life is complete now that we have found the wonderful dog park!! If he could say "What took you so long?" I am sure he would. He is in his element chasing numerous sticks and balls thrown by others,( for their dogs ) Scuff runs himself in circles with the huge and small not wanting to miss anything that moves and needs to be dragged away for fear of his little legs collapsing!

Cheers, Linda