Gardening in Waitaki March 29th 2023

April now with these last days of March feeling like July, Brrrrrrrrrrrrr, what a shock to the system not only for Gardeners but for gardens as well. I could almost see the dahlias shivering, and now we wait to see if it has had an effect as dahlias will collapse with frost. Easter break is a good time to get work done around gardens, if weather allows. Autumn is known to be the ripening season as plants begin to harden as winter approaches, seeds, fruit and veg harvest time and a lot of cutting back. However the rain and cold we have experienced changes the normal. Blooms and seed heads have been damaged for seed collection but most fruit will have been harvested before the cold snap, apples and pears will hang on trees into winter. Autumn rain holds back leaf colour and drop, keeping the rake up ongoing. When leaves do change and fall we need to deal with them. Thick carpets of leaves on gardens may do more harm than good because they can create a rain shield keeping a winter garden dry. A thin leaf layer is fine and will break down but rake piles off and use in compost or bag and make leaf mulch. All gardens need humus and leaf mulch is an answer. Leaf mulch: fill a plastic rubbish bag inside an empty rubbish container. Fill with leaves that have been run over with a lawn mower, pack in shredded leaves shaking from time to time to remove air from the sides. Take the full bag from the rubbish container and tie closed leaving a hole to insert a hose, poke holes around sides and at the bottom of the bag for worms to find a way in. Soak leaves with inserted hose then leave bags in an open area on bare ground for 6 months before using. If it smells like the forest floor after rain it is ready to add to gardens. Feed rhododendron & camellias with fertiliser mixed especially for them and water in to boost them for spring flowering. (Azaleas are fed when finished flowering) Lily bulbs can be divided now and will be on sale this month, they can be planted from now until June. Vegetables: Time to dig up and divide Rhubarb crowns, mixing in heaps of compost before replanting and a good time for sowing winter veg. Harvest Pumpkins and corn this month remembering not to remove the stalk from the Pumpkin, this stops it from rotting. Spring onion seed sown in a pot in a sheltered place can be pulled as they’re needed and will keep growing through winter. Fruit: Still harvesting apples, quince and late peaches plus gathering walnuts during April and Easter egg hunts will be on again. Cheers, Linda.

Gardening in Waitaki March 20th 2023

What strange Autumn weather we are experiencing during what is usually a settled mild time, how our weather patterns have changed. With rain keeping moisture up to trees and plants new growth carries on and leaf change and drop is held back. A light frost was experienced inland last week so the change of sessions has begun.Weeds after the rain are small and with frosts not far away they won't get away like they do in spring. ( wishful thinking?)  Gardens will be tired now, cut back, lift and divide summer flowering perennials and shrubs, remove seed heads from ornamental grass if you have not already done so, clumps will look a lot tidier, if left seeds will spread.   This is a great time to make new perennial beds or reorganize existing beds, with perennial clumps increasing in size annually they soon over fill a space. Lift overgrown or stagnant clumps, break up and replant some of the youngest growths from the perimeter. Healthy vigorous plants can be reduced by putting a sharp spade in where you would like a reduction then lift the cut portion out without disturbing the plant remaining. I do this with asters, phlox, aubretia, small grasses, hosta's, and herbs like sage, thyme and lemon balm. Rockery plants can be divided now as well. Once plants have been sectioned and rearranged, cover the bed and around plants with compost which will encourage new root growth and help keep the perennial bed warmer through the colder months to come. Lilies, this is the main time to shift or divide old overgrown clumps of lilies. Be careful not to break the fleshy scales and to retain all the basal roots. Don't pull old stems away from the bulb, it leaves a hole where water can enter and cause rot, cut old stems short and bend, never allow Lily bulbs to dry while out of the ground. Ponds have been overheating this summer encouraging oxygen weed and slim to grow rapidly, I use a leaf rake to lift it out where I can get at it. I always put barley straw at one end at the start of summer to help pond life. Water iris are a lovely addition to a pond and can be repotted now. To re pot water iris line a plastic pot ( large enough to stand the top heaviness of the iris when tall) with sacking or even a chux cloth place gravel then soil, a little stable manure, or slow release fertiliser granules, plant iris then top with a generous layer of gravel. The gravel on the bottom and top helps to prevent manure or fertiliser leaching from the pot while at the same time weighting the pot down when the iris becomes top heavy. Topping ponds up often during hot weather helps to cool water and keep ponds cleaner. Now would be a good time to cover a garden pond with netting to catch leaves as they fall.  Lawns: Get new lawns sown now, the cooler nights and mornings are allowing moisture to remain longer after watering and a strike will happen pretty fast in the warm ground. For established lawns dry weather encourages thatch to build up around grass roots and lawns can become thick with it killing out good grass. If you feel your lawn is being choked by thatch this is the time to address the problem. A dethatcher can be hired from our local garden hire business. Once a good portion of thatch is removed good grass gets a chance to grow strongly again. Scarification will also help remove moss and an added bonus is thatch removed can be added to compost heaps. Grass grubs are on the go munching grass roots and leaving dead patches, treating lawns can be done from now until May. Vegetables. March is an important month for planting winter veg, preparing soil prior to planting with compost, general garden fertiliser and lime (only if needed to bring the Ph up), I add lime to my compost. Keep planting all veg seedlings on offer but cover from birds and white butterflies. Prepare garlic beds with compost/ manure worked in then left to settle until planting out in June. Heartsease (small wild pansy) is a companion plant to garlic and onions. Fruit: Continue planting strawberry plants, raising the beds where drainage is suspect and adding manure rich compost to the beds. Pruning stone fruit trees in late summer, early-mid autumn can be done, nectarines, peaches, apricots and plums. If you do prune in autumn, protect cut wounds with a water based paint, pruning paint or beeswax to seal wounds and prevent disease entering.Weed, manure, mulch/compost around fruit trees while the ground is warm. Citrus should be producing flowers and fruit well this season so give them citrus food as a reward. Apples are dripping from trees, it is best to pick apples for storing when not too ripe and store them in a cool dark place. Start pruning pip fruit trees any time after the leaves have fallen, remove dead or damaged wood, crossing or inward turning branches, excess leaders or sucker growth developing on the main trunks. Shorten back vigorous leaders by about a 1/3 to promote branching. Prune long side branches back to a weak twig to discourage further spread. Cheers, Linda

Gardening in Waitaki March 8th 2023

With days shortening, mornings & nights cooling it will not be long before the major leaf drop and days filled with raking, Right now we need to play the waiting game for trees surrounding gardens to drop all before getting gardens ready for winter with spreading compost then mulch. However, branches can be lifted on large trees and climbers like wisteria, jasmine and honeysuckle can be trimmed along with hedges and shrubs to allow new growth to harden in time for a winter freezing. Deadhead dahlias and geraniums to keep them flowering through until the first frost and continue to remove spent summer annuals so ground can be worked ready for planting winter flowering annuals, such as primulas, wall flowers, polyanthas, pansies and viola's. Fork in some compost and dampen well before replanting beds. Be on the lookout for useful self sown seedlings, you will find quite a few for transplanting now to settle in before winter. Spring bulbs need to be planted during autumn and I see many varieties on offer. Plant in groups, at the depth suggested on packets ( 4 to 6 inches of dirt cover ). Peony roses will be on offer now, they are really worth planting having big showy blooms to take over from spring rhododendron displays. Peonies are very adaptable, but they do prefer a sunny, well-drained, slightly acidic soil benefiting from compost added when planting. Be careful when planting not to disturb the new shoots (eyes) forming as a peony root to be planted should contain at least 3 eyes that will eventually become stems. A root with only 1 or 2 eyes will still grow, but it will take longer to flower. Taking the time to prepare the soil before planting is time well spent, plant with the eyes facing upwards and the roots spread out. Peony roots should be planted relatively close to the soil surface; only about 2-3 inches deep. It may seem odd to leave roots so exposed, but they need a winter chilling to attain dormancy and set bud, so keep mulch away from the base of peony plants as they can remain in the same spot for upwards of 70 years. Lift gladioli now, you do not need to wait for leaves to die back, dry in a warm place with a dust of insecticide to prevent infestation before storing in a cool place for next growing season. They can be left where they are growing if there is not a pest problem. If you want to grow a great number of gladioldi and don’t mind spending a few years doing it, seed germination is a way. Leave the flowers on the stem for about six weeks after they die off to produce hard casings filled with seeds. Sprout seeds into miniature plants and you’ll have full-sized gladiolus in about three years and may even produce new varieties this way. For quicker results try propagating small gladiolus corms. Each plant will have a number of baby corms, known as cormels or cormlets, attached to the bottom. When you remove these cormlets plant separately and they’ll grow to flowering size in a couple of years being true to the Mother plant whereas seeds will develop their own shades. It is time to empty compost bins in readiness for incoming autumn leaves, spread around to give a boost to soil. Shrubs, plants and bulbs take so much soil goodness during each growing season until soil reaches a stage of needing more than Man made fertilisers which work as plant food promoting growth and in doing so depleting soil of humus. Compost / humus is a soil enhancer taken down to roots by worms to get the best results from both ornamental and vegetable gardens. Lawns: Autumn is new lawn sowing time, the cooler nights and mornings allow moisture to remain longer after watering and a strike will happen pretty fast with the ground retaining warmth. Fruit: Apples and pears are dripping from trees, pick when pips are brown and store carefully without bruising in a cool dark place. Vegetables: Good growth will still be happening as long as water is kept up, pumpkins and corn should almost be ready to harvest. Dry off pumpkin and squash skins before storing them in a cool dry place. This is a good time for planting above ground annual crops that produce their seeds outside like lettuce, spinach, celery, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, and grain green crops for digging in to decompose and become humus. Cheers, Linda.

Gardening in Waitaki March 1st 2023

Here we are already MARCH and how fortunate we are here in the south to have had the privilege of enjoying a perfect summer to lead us into the wonderful, ripening autumn season. The horror for growers and Gardeners in the far north is for me a tragedy like no other that I have known in my reasonably long life time. Affecting so many New Zealanders with some having lost not only crops and gardens but every single hard worked for possession owned. Here is a way to help from a distance. Kidscan: Donate $15.00 https://www.kidscan.org.nz/ Gardens will be tired now so cutting back is the only way to smarten things up and get plants and shrubs to push new growth and colour out. Petunias and begonias are loving the warmth and will keep flowering if dead headed often. Many new seedlings can be planted out once gardens are trimmed back and cleared of annual weeds, cut back what has been flowering and add new annuals to take over. Stock, statice, snapdragon and wall flower are good fillers at this time. Seed collecting: I am still collecting and storing seed pods from summer flowering plants and have a good collection of lavatera, delphinium, cornflower, poppy and marigold seed to name just a few. The hollyhock, foxglove and delphinium I will sow now and carry through winter once germinated, the others I will save for a spring sowing. Roses: Keep the rose dead heading up to encourage the last blooms of summer, it is 6 weeks from a prune to another bud which will take us into April, after that flowering it is best to not dead head, leave blooms to make seed which will help to harden wood for the winter ahead. No feeding roses from now on as it will only encourage soft new growth then die back when frosts arrive. March is defiantly a great planting month, soil is warm for 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 the labels to establish frost ratings before buying, if in doubt wait until spring. Spring bulbs : The widest variety of spring bulbs are now on sale in Garden centers so it’s time to plant for a stunning spring show. During the year surplus bulbs are bought into The Waitaki resource recovery park, they have been dried and stored and are now bagged for sale. Spring bulbs need to be planted 4 to 6 inches deep, that's 4 to 6 inches on top of the bulb, if not planted deeply eventually when they do come into leaf and experience a dry patch they wont take up enough moisture to come into bud. Herbs: This will be the last month to cut fresh herb growth for drying and using through winter. If herbs were cut back before making seed fresh new growth should be ready to cut. I cut rosemary, lemon balm, bergamot, bay, basil, borage, chives, dill, lemongrass, mint, oregano, sage, savory, tarragon and thyme which are bunched and hung or spread out on news paper in a dry well aired place to become dry and crunchy before rubbing and storing in glass jars. The mentioned herbs can be blanched and free flow frozen as well. Lawns. After baking hot days and a lot of mowing lawn growth starts slowing down, although catchers will still be filling up for a while yet. Don't feel you need to cut lower than usual because growth has slowed, a scalped lawn dries out faster and encourages weeds. Autumn is the best time to sow new lawns, weed growth is slowing, the flat weeds can be popped out with the blade of secateurs before they seed and spread. Fruit: Late peaches, nectarines, quince and apples will be ripe now, there are so many ways to use fresh apples, apple jelly, apple and quince jelly, apple pies, apple sponge, apple shortcake. Or just pick, peel, stew and freeze before birds get them all. I have just made chilli Worcestershire sauce, so good. https://www.instructables.com/Chilli-Worcestershire-Sauce/ Grape bunches will be plump and heavy, birds will be waiting. Vegetable Gardeners will be planting new crops for the cooler seasons, leaf veg should not bolt so readily now and will not mind the days getting shorter and root veg seeds will germinate well while the ground is still warm. A second sowing of peas will be up in no time, corn soon picked and the pumpkins will have out grown their space. Pumpkins should be picked before the first frost. 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. Root veg seed should germinate quickly in warm/moist autumn soil. Cheers Linda