Gardening in North Otago 30th March 2017

It's all on now shorter days, sticky ground, spraying weeds, compost to be emptied to make room for all the leaves and pea straw ready to go on.

Autumn weather is usually more predictable than spring or summer but this but not this year with overcast drizzly days instead of the ripening sun shine, however it is the time to reap and sow before the frosts.

I have been viewing the light situation around our garden before all the leaves fall, trees and shrubs get taller and wider every year blocking out light. Sometimes one tree or shrub will do the job of the two or three in one spot. Sacrifice a tree that gives little interest for a tree close by that offers more, and shrubs grown too big in the front of a garden hiding what is behind need to be cut back or maybe wrenched for shifting later or cut out. I have at times changed the whole look of gardens by removing a few front shrubs / trees, letting more sun in then planting out sun loving plants. 

Here on the coast keep cutting back large daisy and lavatera bushes to encourage new buds that will flower over the next two months. Also get all hedges cut back now before frosts start, this will be the last cut until the new growth in spring, especiallyphotinia bushes / hedges, a trim now will encourage vivid red leaves to brighten dull winter days. 

Easter is known to be a good clean up time in the garden and a visit to garden centres, here on the coast new plants planted while the ground is still warm will get roots going and with the right amount of winter sun will carry on and bloom. 

Plant: Viola, snapdragon, pansy, polyantha's, stock, calendula, wall flowers, sweet William and good old primula malacoidies. 

New evergreen shrub plantings will not put on any growth once the frosts arrive but will settle in getting roots established to push out growth in spring, Keep getting spring bulbs in the warm ground and Hybrid clematis are still on offer, they are the lovely huge bloom deciduous type which I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, they are not as invasive as the montana variety, these clematis love being planted into warm autumn ground and are so pretty growing in with other climbers and climbing roses, all clematis like manure and lime. 

Lawns: Spray lawn weeds and apply sifted compost with some gypsum added to lawns if they are compacted ( a bucket to the square metre), the compost will improve the humus content and the gypsum will soften clay soils. 

Veg: I have dug the last of my potatoes and stored them with a covering of herbs, peas put in are up and making growth, pumpkins can be left growing until the threat of frosts. Time to dig up and divide Rhubarb crowns, mixing in compost before replanting. 

Sow: Spinach,Snap Peas,brussel sprouts, board beans and Spring Onions, fill the top of a shallow pot with spring onions seed to have handy by the back door and start thinning and using when plants are still small.

Cheers, Linda http://nzstyleforever.blogspot.co.nz/

Gardening in Noorth Otago March 21st

Rain last week cooled us down after some nice hot days, weeds really take of after rain so the sprayer was out again around the gardens, drive and pathways, I can’t believe how fast they want to grow to seed stage at this time of the year, zap them before they do or another spray will be needed before winter. 

Cut back ornamental grass's they look great when they first get seed heads but the trick is to give them a chop before the seeds drop. I cut them back by two thirds and divide those clumps that have become too big by chopping into the middle with a sharp spade, then I stand on the half I don’t want to remove and pull the other half out to transplant somewhere else. 

Spring bulbs are going in here, I never say no to spring bulbs when offered and I cannot resist those big bags on offer at this time of the year. Thought needs to be given to where they are planted, if put in a narrow border it will not take that many years for them to fill the border on their own and spring will be the only time of the year that border will look good. To get the lovely spring look in narrow borders bulbs can be planted in plastic pots and then pot and all buried into the ground. This way pots can be lifted and put out of site once flowers have finished. Daffodils look at their best planted in drifts, in natural settings but a spring garden comes alive with a daffodil display. Spring bulbs in the garden or in containers must be planted before the end of autumn, tulips in May.

Keep sowing annual flower seeds, warm days will have them up in no time, I nurse them along in mushroom trays over the winter months in a warm sunny spot, folia feed with liquid fertilizer and cover with frost cloth if needed until they are ready for a mass spring planting.

Dahlias are doing well and should carry on flowering for a while yet, keep the water up to them and dead head to prolong flowering. I have a nice red pompom variety growing in different places around the garden which I plan to dig up when finished flowering and plant all together to give impact at the end of a vista. 

Roses: My roses will get only one more dead heading, roses need to make seed heads for new growth to harden enough before the cold months and the big prune in July. Plan winter rose plantings now while blooms are still on show so you can ask the names and place your orders for June/July delivery. 

Lawns: Grass grub is really bad in a few areas of our lawn, brown patches that birds pull to bits looking for grubs.The only thing to be done is remove dead grass, fill bare patches with sifted soil and plant grass seed, firm down, water, cover with shade cloth (bird protection). If done now it will strike and thicken before the ground gets cold. 

Vegetables: This is an important month for planting winter veg gardens, prepared prior to planting with compost, general garden fertilize and lime if necessary. Plant seedlings of beetroot, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, spinach, and silverbeet, protect from white butterfly caterpillar with shade cloth cover. On the coast sow seeds of carrots, parsnips, spinach, silverbeet, beetroot, swede, and turnip directly into the garden. These will need thinning later. Seeds of broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and brussel sprouts are best sown in trays for planting out later. Potatoes and onions can be lifted and stored in a cool, dry place. Shorter days mean tomatoes, pumpkin and corn will need maximum sun to ripen.

Herbs: Parsley can be grown from seed sown now. Perennial herbs such as chives, mint, thyme, rosemary, sage, and marjoram can be divided and replanted. Basil is a summer annual and should be picked before the cold weather to be dried or frozen for a taste of summer in winter cooking. 

Cheers, Linda

Gardening in North Otago March 24th 2017

Hurrah, the heavens opened and what a good rain last week, I am sure I could hear every growing thing sighing in relief. Autumn is happening, sun low in the sky and plants coming to the end of this growing season, preparing now for a magnificent colourful finale. 

Grass is staying green and weeds still popping up but if the hoe is kept on the go while weeds are small in soft ground they wont get away on us like they do in spring. ( wishful thinking?) I am still cutting back because everything is really tired now and wanting to make seed and when I start chopping back at this time of the year there is no stopping me from leaving destruction in my wake. 

While working my way around I dealt to all my bearded iris's by cutting leaves back by two thirds and making sure the top of rhizomes were above ground to bake in the autumn sun. Some needed shifted from the shade created by trees getting bigger, into sunny well drained locations. Iris's are well worth the trouble of growing and look wonderful planted together in their own bed enabling them to put a grand display on come spring. 6-8 weeks after blooming rhizomes can be divided leaving a chunk of rhizome and roots to every new division. 

If needed you can also divide and re potted clumps of water iris now. To re pot water iris line a plastic pot 

with sacking, or a chuxs kitchen cloth, place a generous amount of gravel on the bottom then some soil, a little stable manure, or slow release fertiliser granules well into the middle of the pot then plant the iris and add another thick layer of gravel. The gravel on the bottom and top helps to prevent fill and fertiliser leaching from the pot while at the same time weighting the pot down when the iris becomes top heavy. Submerge replanted iris back into the pond.

If you are having trouble with pond water growing green slime, remove as much of it as you can and place a good slice from a bale of  straw into a least visible part of your pond, weigh it down with a rock then flood the pond to overflowing. The straw will rot down and the pond will go through a murky stage before eventually working the way it should be. Be careful never to let fertiliser drift into ponds, nitrogen is what causes still warm water to green up.

Remove seed heads from ornamental grass if you have not already done so, they just pull away with a rake. Clumps can also now be trimmed back if getting too big or divided by putting a spade through the middle and removing half. Sometimes I have to dig the whole grass out to do this, by putting the spade through once pulled apart while standing on one half of the clump.

If thinking of adding Rose's, or more roses to your garden I suggest you look at rose variety books or go on line to make your choices now,  then get your order into a Garden center. New seasons roses will begin arriving in June and by ordering now you will be sure not to miss out. If ordering for a new rose bed be sure to take note of heights and widths because they will be all growing together and you would not want some out growing and shading others. 

All bought roses have been grafted onto strong root stack but roses can be grown from Autumn cuttings on their own roots. Choose a strong new growth about the thickness of a pencil that has made hard wood, if cut from the bottom of the bush three or four cuttings can be taken. Strip all leaves, make a straight cut on the bottom and a slanted cut at a bud node on the top of each cutting. Dig a narrow slit into firm damp earth and push cuttings in straight cut down, then firm soil around cuttings and water in. These cuttings will not make roots until spring, shift and pot each one up when you notice buds swelling.

Vegetables. March is an important month for planting winter veg, prepare prior to planting with compost, general garden fertiliser, I add lime to my compost then know the garden is getting it when compost is added. Beetroot, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, spinach, and silverbeet seedlings and broad beans can be planted, cover with netting or frost cloth if they are troubled by birds or white butterflies. In colder areas seeds of broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and brussel sprouts are best sown in trays for planting out later. 

A green manure cover crop will germinate quickly right now to be dug in before flowers develop, this will add enriched humus to soil. Blue lupin, mustard or oats are good options. 

Parsley can be grown from seed if sown now and perennial herbs such as, chives, mint, thyme, sage, and marjoram can be divided and replanted. Basil, a summer annual should be harvested, dried or frozen before frost. 

Prepare garlic beds, sow heartease (small wild pansy) along side, a companion plant to garlic and onions.

Fruit: Manure, mulch and compost around fruit trees while ground is warm. Late peaches should be almost ready to pick now. Feed citrus bushes with citrus fertiliser, they just keep on producing flowers and fruit. 

A Scruff update, he has small dog syndrome, barking and jumping up on visitors, the postie in that red  and yellow buggy makes him almost turn inside out!!! a stern talking to sends him off to take his frustration out on the bantams as they run in all directions with feathers flying!! He dropped his lead at my feet the other day ...telling me something??

Cheers, Linda.

Gardening in North Otago March 7th 2017

Signs of Autumn this week with our silver birch tree's tingeing gold after that north west wind but this garden is still holding green and colour and should continue to do so a little longer if moisture is kept up. Summer potted annuals will be looking tired now but dead heading and folia feeding will keep them flowering through autumn. Here on the coast we can still enjoy colour during winter if bedding plants are prepared now. The idea is to utilize the warmth from now on to encourage individually potted plants to bush, bud and harden for planting before frosts get heavy. Bedding plants that respond well to this method are pansy, viola, pollyanthus wall flower, stock, calendula and primula malacoides. It is so worth taking the time to pot individual young seedlings on into single pots for root development and become acclimatised to early winter conditions rather than buying plants that have been forced into flower at the time. I place these pots on trays and store them in a cool shady place until the frosts begin, then the trays are put in a sunny spot to bud up. Getting a bit desperate for potting mix while re potting I dug into one of my compost heaps and was pleased to find everything decomposing really well and was able to add some to what remained of the potting mix making it go further. March is defiantly a great planting month with warm soil and nights and mornings cooler, newly planted trees and shrubs settle in well. There are a lot of well grown trees, shrubs and plants on offer right now in Garden centers ready and waiting to be planted. Gardner's further inland will need to read labels to establish frost ratings before buying, if in doubt wait until spring. I am still dead heading roses to encourage a last vibrant show before they will be left to harden off for winter. Rust is always a problem on roses in autumn, strip the affected leaves from the bushes as well as those on the ground and burn them to reduce this problem for next year. Don't feed roses now, soft growth needs to make a start at hardening off. Spring bulbs can be planted now. If you have not already done so break up really large clumps of bulbs, clumps tend to double in size with out you noticing and in no time a garden bed can become choked, looking attractive only in spring and dull for the rest of the year. I have often been asked the reason for spring bulbs not flowering after the first couple of years from planting, the problem can be over crowding, lack of adequate light as trees become larger and throw more shade during summer, but the most common problem is bulbs may not have not been planted deep enough. Spring bulbs need to be planted 4 to 6 inches deep, that's 4 to 6 inches of soil on top of the bulb, if not planted deep enough and do come into leaf then experience a dry patch in autumn they wont take up and retain enough moisture to come into bud. Rake mulch off bearded iris rhizomes they need to be exposed to the sun for a baking now. Layer carnation stems by pinning the center of the stem down under the soil while still attached to the mother plant with the flower end still exposed, roots should form along the buried stem. Once rooted cut from the mother plant and pot up to grow on before planting out in lime sweetened soil. This layering method can be applied to many herbs, plants and shrubs. Lawns. After baking hot days and a lot of mowing lawn growth starts slowing down from now on, but catchers will still be filling for a while yet, keep catches up, a scalped lawn dries out faster and encourages weeds. There should be a lot of new lawns being sown in the next couple of months, don't worry about annual weeds appearing as the grass germinates most will disappear after the first mow. All lawn weed sprays are too strong for new grass. Fruit: This is proving a good season for apples, quince, pears and walnuts. The more I read about the health benefits from eating walnuts I feel we should all have access to a tree. The east coast is said to be the preferred place for growing walnuts, they need a dry climate, with a high summer temperature and winter chilling (down to -10ºC). Walnuts are self-pollinating but the more trees you have, the better the pollination rate, if planting trees from scratch, they won’t be producing at economic levels until about Year 8. Vegetable Gardens will be growing new crops for the cooler seasons, leaf veg should not bolt so readily now and will not mind the days getting shorter and cooler, root veg seeds will germinate well while the ground is still warm. My second sowing of peas are up, corn is still being picked and the pumpkins have out grown their space and just keep going. Onions can be lifted once leaves have bent over, don't bend or damage leaves before they are ready to bend naturally if you want them to store and keep well. Once dug lay them out in a warm place to fully ripen then store in a cool place. Cheers Linda