Gardening in North Otago 1st September 2017

SEPTEMBER, the season of new beginnings and some beautiful early spring days experienced here in North Otago over the last week to encourag buds to swell and burst, birds get busy buildings nests and new born lambs enjoy a warm welcome.

Slower to start here this year but now growth is moving I have been re potting cuttings that have been making roots during winter, fresh potting mix to sustain new leaf growth and flowers will ensure good results. Liquid fertilizer once a week can start now as well, I use a watering can, when leaves are dry of dew. Pansies, primulas, pollyanthus, sweet peas, lupins, all new seasons bedding plants respond feeding now.

I am sure every gardener enjoys trying new plants and colour combinations, now is the perfect time to sow seeds for summer flowering, I have sown some under glass and some just under frost cloth, better still in a glass or tunnel house if you have one, germination is fast when days are bright, warm and lengthening so we are off to a good start this spring. 

With very wide perennial boarders insisting on growing couch, biddy- bid, and chick-weed, I try to get rid of them now while the flowering plants are still low and with ground still soft weed pulling is easy. While doing this weeding I can see what needs attention like delphiniums needing staked to give support while growing, removing mulch from around iris rhizomes and peony rose crowns and removing self sown plants and natives before they settle in. 

The width of a flower garden can be reduced by planting a spreading front boarder, a front boarder of the same plant will also formalize a busy mixed garden and cut down on weeding and bird scratching.  

Boarder plant suggestions, lambs ear, purple sage, aubretia, dwarf agapantha, catmint, mondo grass,violas, Armeria maritima, commonly known as thrift and in very wide borders ground cover erica's will spread a meter and add colour during winter. A lot of the mentioned plants will already be growing in gardens so can be broken up to spread along a border.  

Roses are pushing out new shoots here, if you haven't pruned yet do it now before they leaf up and give them a dressing of rose food or compost if you have some, they are gearing up for a come back!

Dahlias, a little early for planting tubers yet but the addition of dolomite lime where they are to be planted will sweeten the ground ready for planting next month.

Deciduous magnolias are pushing off furry bud covers, camellia's and rhododendrons are bursting into colour, all plants, shrubs and trees will respond to feeding now the sap is well up and buds are swelling. Liquid feed all perennial and bedding plants making growth and use a good general fertiliser for trees and shrubs to help them along. 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 leaf and hide the blooms. (No feeding for Australian or South African shrubs such as leucodendron, protea, waratah and grevillea.)

Lawns:

Prepare ground for sowing new lawns, here on the coast ground will soon be warm enough to get a strike, sow seed thickly in spring to beat the annual weeds. Once spring mowing starts keep the mower blades up to allow grass to thicken. Remove moss with sulphate of iron watered on with a watering can and raked out when it has turned black. Feed lawns just before or during rain and they will stay lush.

Vegetables:

Here on the coast sow lettuce seed and plant lettuce plants at two week intervals along with all green leaf veg on offer for sale and peas, board beans,( other beans need the soil a little warmer). I was once told to plant each bean with a little pot ash to help with rust problems, they still get a little rust but I think that's probably due to them getting too dry between watering's. I will need to secure them with wire stakes before the strong winds arrive.

New potatoes: Prepare ground for planting sprouted seed potatoes. 

Strawberries: still haven't  prepared the strawberry bed yet, maybe this weekend.!

Fruit: Almost peach / nectarine bud burst, if you need to deal to leaf curl, this is a fungal disease which over winters in tree bark and around buds, leaves become curled and deformed with warty growths. Just before bud burst spray with liquid copper and once again after petal fall. If only a few leaves are affected remove and destroy. Success in holding off leaf curl has been achieved by spraying unaffected leaves with vaporgard ensuring both sides of the leaves are covered, two days later give the tree and surrounding soil a spray with condys crystals. Vaporgard has a UV shield aspect protecting chlorophyll allowing leaves to produce more energy from the sun. 

Below is a helpful NZ planting calendar you can down load.

http://www.tuigarden.co.nz/sites/default/files/document/Tui_Planting_Calendar_Third_Ed_0.pdf

Cheers, Linda.

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Gardening in North Otago August 24th 2017

Blossom, magnolia, daffodils and violets tell us spring is really here and I find I am needing to check the time often because days are drawing out. Six year old Grand Daughter Maggie pointed out that our large pink magnolias were throwing off their woolly blankets, large fluffy bud casings are covering the ground as beautiful magnolias take center stage. 

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. Newly planted lavender plants just need a hair cut and fed manure enriched compost plus a little lime.

With new spring growth happening it is the time for shrub height and width control . Soft shrubs encroaching on drive and walkways can be trimmed back , they will soon recover with new growth. I have been reducing the height on some of my taller shrubs like phebaliums, pittosporums and 

 psudopanax. You can do this if height is a problem without spoiling the shape of shrubs. What I do is cut out the center top leader down to where the side branches bush out, this removes the natural point at the top and will sometimes reduce the height by 2 or more meters. Shrubs will soon send up a new leader but will also put more growth into the sides which can be trimmed to shape if a problem. 

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, Jasmines here have not been knocked by frosts (yet), 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 for good health.This goes for most plants now, If you have no time to do anything else in the garden feeding plants is a must for now while roots are searching. It is well worth the effort and will minimize the spaying needed later on.

Now would be a good time to mention plants that resent being fed, many South African 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 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.  

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. 

Coffee grinds, Oat Bran, Builders Sand, Nut Shells, Sprigs of rosemary scattered around are said to repel slugs. 

continue to sow seeds under cover, 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 a bit 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.

Plenty of seed potatoes on offer now for you to get sprouting, early varieties can go in and should show leaf in about a month when frosts are over. 

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. I have been thinning and arranging  raspberry canes this week, take out old canes that have fruited and remove  all spindly canes excess runners, I train mine along a wire fence.

Now is a good time to trim, feed and shift citrus trees.

Cheers, Linda.

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Gardening in North Otago August 21st 2017

So much rain and mud!! here in North Otago I guess it's moisture just when new roots are in need BUT we Gardeners are in need of the perfect breeze and sunny days to be enthused enough to get gardens ready for the spring explosion. . 

We are doing the final winter clean up here, pruning, mulching and planting out. Finish pruning roses and supply food around the drip line to give them the best start to keeping them healthy.

Remove all old hellebore leaves, they harbor greenfly over winter. 

Trim old leaves from peony roses, destroy and remove mulch cover to let sun onto new shoots.

Prune hydrangeas spent flower branches back to the second bud from the bottom and feed manure enriched compost. A dresing of lime for pink, alum sulphate  for blue or coffee grounds / epsom salts. White do best in shade.

Trim catmint edging back to new growth and feed.

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 soil 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:

Best to stay off sodden lawns to avoid compaction, moisture brings worms up so they will be working away below the surface helping to aerate but lawns can be fed now, pick a day when rain is expected to wash powdered ferterliser into waiting roots.

Vegetables: Here on the coast get spring planting off to an early start, use cloches if you have them for colder gardens. Inland the soil will need thawing but I am sure seed sowing will be happening, clear polythene could be stretched out to warm and dry the soil for an earlier planting of potatoes and seedlings. 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. 

Seed potatoes should be sprouting and early varieties like rocket, cliffs kidney, swift and jersey benne may already be planted with protection from frosts in warm well drained sites. Rocket, swift, cliffs kidney, maris anchor, jersey benne, agria and ilam hardy are all good for container growing.

Fruit:

I was pleased to hear a few bee's out during the warmer days we have had, lets hope for sun filled days when fruit blossom is needing those busy bee's. Remember they are about if the sprayer comes out.

Cheers, Linda

Gardening in North Otago 15th August 2017

Spring has sprung, well it seemed that was the case last Monday when we were delivered a perfect spring day. Hellebore's, snow drops, camellias and jonquils have persevered through the coldest months to be the first bloomers of spring here in Rockvale garden.

This week I had the hose out to the rockery, it did not take long for that raised ground to dry on top after a warm wind. Raised gardens dry out quickly and need moisture kept up now to sustain spring growth. Folia feeding is also beneficial now as roots are forming and looking for nutrients. Worm tea at weak strength or diluted to (weak tea colour) horse / cow manure is an inexpensive folia / root food for newly planted annuals, perennials, roses and shrubs as new buds swell. This is the time of the year I notice yellowing of some plants, the ground gets depleted of nitrogen during winter affecting those shallow rooted camellias, azaleas and rhododendron, acid fertiliser especially formulated for them is available, ( If powder water in well)

Potted plants out growing their containers will soon show poor growth, these plants can be revived by reducing the root mass by half then re-potting back into the same pot or potting on into a larger pot. Remove the root bound plant from the pot and lay it on the ground, I use a sharp spade to chop the root ball in half. The use of tin foil, (shiny side against the inside of the pot ) will help with the pot sun baking, and the use of a heavy tree and shrub mix is best for moisture retention. With all the slow release fertilisers on offer now it's makes it easy to choose the right one for all plants.

As days warm weed spraying starts again and unfortunately will remain an on going task from now on until next winter. If Children or pets are a concern, there are safer, selective weed killer options these days utilizing potassium salts of fatty acids to kill weeds and unwanted grasses. 

A natural alternative to herbicide (for drive ways and paved areas only) is a cocktail of vinegar, salt and liquid detergent. Acidic acid in the vinegar and salt has all the ingredients needed to quickly kill weeds by drawing moisture, the detergent adds sticking ability. DO NOT use this combination anywhere near a garden because it is non selective of what it kills and will also be extremely harmful to soil life.

Recipe: 1 gallon white vinegar, 1 cup salt, 1 tablespoon detergent. Combine ingredients and spray at the sunniest time of the day for best results.

Lawns

Moss can be dealt to in lawns, pathways and garden structures. There are a lot of products out there to deal with moss but killing the moss in lawns is simply a short term measure, it does not address the basic problem. If you really want to eradicate moss from your lawn, then you have to find the problem causing it. The reasons are varied, but not too difficult to isolate.

Things that would be causing moss in your lawn could be: 

Water logging, Poor feeding regime, Soil too acidic, Shaded Lawns, Mowing lawns too close, .Drought - not to be confused with a bit of summer-browning and Compaction.Treating areas of moss in lawns can be carried out with sulphate of iron watered on at the strength displayed on the pack per sq meter, the moss will turn black and after a couple of weeks rake out the dead moss and re-seed.

Moss rarely competes with strong growing lawns, the first lawn feed can be as soon as new growth is noticed. Slow release grass fertliser is ideal when the ground is wet and rain is about to happen, powdered grass fertiliser  must be watered in either by rain or hose, if left to sit it will burn new growth.

Vegetables

Here on the coast get spring sowing off to an early start, plant peas and broad beans and veg seedlings on offer in garden centers.

Further inland the soil will take a bit of thawing before any planting but an early start may be achieved by using a row of cloches or a stretch of clear polythene to warm and dry out the soil. Plenty to do preparing veg gardens by digging in humus/compost in readiness for the big plant out. I see seed potatoes are available for sprouting, then into the ground for early crop on the coast, people have been telling me of the benefits gained from planting potatoes on a bed of pine needles, I lay them on comfry leaves but will use some pine needles as well this year, I am sure there will be many other potato planting traditions out there.

Fruit

My peach tree is just about at bud burst so will spray with a copper spray for leaf curl, once in blossom it is too late to spray.

If you have not already pruned your peach or nectarine tree that's ok, they are best left until after the coldest weather. I will run through how to go about it.

1. Standard type trees are easily trained to an open center or vase shape with 3 or 4 primary scaffold branches or they can be trained to V-shaped trees with just 2 scaffold branches, cut larger branches needing removal close to the trunk leaving only a small collar to prevent decay in branches.

2. Remove small weak upright branches on trunk or main branches.

3. Leave 50 to 75% pencil thick shooting wood per tree.

Both peach and nectarine fruit on wood developed last summer. Inspect the buds on newer wood, single buds are leaf buds, double buds are immature fruit buds and triple buds are mature fruit buds. Cut to an outward facing double bud, leave triples.

Cheers, Linda

Gardening in North Otago Early August 2017

The odd heavy frost last week,  even floored winter roses but they soon bounced back with a mild day following. 

Frozen ground makes it impossible to work in soil until later in the day so morning garden design is what I concentrate on for clients wanting ideas in place for spring planting. It's time to think about spring and what you would like happening in your garden, I have been dividing, shifting and planting delphiniums, dahlias, day Lillie's and clumping perennials into sunnier positions away from trees casting summer shade. My long and very wide herbaceous boarders have had the round headed laurel trees which were growing up the length of each boarder cut out, allowing me now to fill each boarder with spring and summer colour. Dahlias, peony roses and cosmos fill gaps well and lupins, delphiniums, fox gloves, hollyhocks and mignonette  give wonderful vertical interest when grouped in wide borders. If something works well in a garden bed why not fill with drifts of the same plant to make a colourful impact, this way of planting fills space allowing no room for weeds. Use same shade roses, hydrangeas, dahlias, daisies, geraniums and poppy's, spring bulbs planted this way always give the best show rather than different varieties planted together.

A few more hydrangeas have been pruned here and cuttings taken from the hardened stems that had flowered. A shaded moist area is best for bedding these down and hopefully roots will grow to feed the buds. 

Old wood can be cut out of  wigelia and spirea bushes, you can tell which branches they are because the wood looks old and spent compared to the new fresh wood, prickly berberis can be trimmed top and sides, budleias should be cut well down to encourage soft silver branching and catmint can now have all old growth clipped off.

Almost finished pruning roses here, only the flower carpet and fairy roses to go, both these varieties bush up with small non hard wood branching, large bushes can be trimmed with a hedge trimmer. If newly planted, prune back with secateurs to hard wood at an outward facing bud. Feeding and spraying roses is next, copper oxychloride and winter oil, they can be mixed and applied together,  the oil helps the copper to stick, copper helps protect new growth from frosts that occur in spring. Feed with rose food, blood and bone or old stable manure.
Vegetables and fruit

Vegetable gardens are enjoying frosts breaking down the soil,  time for sowing seeds to germinate in a warm place to be ready for planting out in a warm spring garden and seed potatoes can be sprouting in a dark dry place.

Fruit Trees are still available in Garden Centres,  I mentioned dwarf peach and nectarine trees for the small garden last week and will mention Ballerina apples this week. A very slim non branching variety of apple tree with Medium to large Crisp, juicy nice eating fruit. Hight 3-4m by 30cm wide perfect for adding height in a small garden. A dressing of potash now around fruit trees and fruiting bushes will assist with fruiting

Still time to get grapes pruned before sap rises, to prune a fruiting leader remove all new long growth on the vine other than the fruiting leader, on the leaders prune each new side growth back to the second bud. These fruiting buds should be a hand space apart to ensure adequate sized fruit, this means removing some of the new bud growth along the top of the leader and all of the new bud growth growing underneath. Some of these new budding top growths will throw two lots of bud branch, remove the least stronger one leaving only one lot of double buds to produce fruit.

Birds are hungry now and beginning to nest, with the help of Poppy and Maggie (Grandies) we melted dripping and stirred in wild bird seed, while it was firming it was pressed into three balls. The Girls climbed trees and pushed them into v branches for the birds to tuck into and Scruff the dog to sniff from below in the hope of some falling his way after he his share of the chook scraps and cat's food, very sneaky our now slightly chubby Scruff!

Cheers, Linda.