Gardening in North Otago August

 August and lucky enough to have experienced a good rain last weekend, so needed here in North Otago to benefit the rapidly approaching spring growth.

I have started on the roses, pruning the strong heritage and climbing first and noticed the bud swell and even shoots on some which means roses are taking in nutrients so feeding with rose fertiliser or manure enriched compost is what will give them the best start and keep them healthy.

Hydrangeas will be the next to be pruned  here 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.

I filled 2 litre milk containers with worm tea from my worm farm, adding to a full watering can 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 by folia 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. 

I have noticed frost effected foliage in parts of our garden, the mild winter encouraged new growth that could not stand up to the subsequent hard frosts, damaged growth is best not removed until hard frosts are over, new growth will continue to grow beneath. 

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)

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 roses, peony roses and gladioli from now until September if dividing or planting lillies get them planted straight away, they never stop making roots and should never dry out.  

Cut back leggy,bush lavatera and they will bush up again in no time.

Vegetables 

I have pushed wheel barrows of manure enriched compost up to my raised veg gardens, a bit of a climb and a good work out once it had all been shoveled onto the gardens. It will not take long for the worms to do their work now that it is dug in. Planting new seasons green veg seedlings and root veg seeds will happen here in a couple of weeks while white butterflies and aphids are still on holiday.

Fruit: 

Finish pruning grapes before sap rises if left too late a grape will bleed out sap. 

Time is running out for pruning fruit trees as well, keep an eye on peach and nectarine trees they need to be sprayed with fungicide right at blossom burst if leaf curl is a problem.

Cheers, Linda