Ohhh yes the forecasters were right, that was a polar blast! and boy did it set people back from normal day to day living. But from the garden and land point of view surely a good dollop of snow is just what a known drought area like North Otago needs. A good deep watering will come from this and the benefits will be obvious in the spring through to early summer. It is still very wet and sticky under foot but plants and new lambs are pushing on and making it feel more like spring everyday.
This week I have been doing inside stuff but did manage a bit of the final winter clean up around the gardens I don't mulch with pea straw.,These gardens get a covering of the lovely black compost we get each year from the Pukuiri freezing works, which allows the bluebells, and daffodils to take center stage for the next couple of months. I do have pea straw in other areas where bulbs are growing and now that I can see where where they are popping up I push it away from them so light can get to them.
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 a lot of roots trapped out grow the container. With applications of complete plant food and compost this condition will be rectified, with all the slow release fertilisers on offer now it's makes it easy, each time it rains or you water food is released to the plant.
Trim back ornamental grass's now, cut back the old seeded ends 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 look wonderful and 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 shed if you have any.
Lawns
After all the snow & rain moss will thrive 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 they do nothing by way of treating the basic problem of moss in lawns. They simply kill the moss which is there. It will return
If you really want to eradicate moss from your lawn, then you have to find out the actual problem that is causing it, the reasons are various, but not too difficult to isolate. Moss is a sign that something is basically wrong with your lawn.
Things that would be causing moss in your lawn could be:
Water logging - in winter or summer.
Poor feeding regime - usually shown 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. Not to be confused with a bit of summer-browning
Sandy - free-draining soils. This can weaken the grass and allow moss to take over. Some mosses are quite happy in these conditions. Add humus (compost or sieved soil) to add more body and rake in, this will encourage worms as well.
Compaction - continued use by children and pets with no remedial attention by way of aeration in the Autumn.
Generally, lawns that are well maintained - which includes being well fed, cut properly, aerated and de-thatched - problems which result in moss will not occur in the first place. Moss rarely competes with strong growing grass in lawns. Get the grass growing properly starting with the first spring feeding when temperatures rise soon. 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. After a couple of weeks you can rake out the dead moss and re-seed.
Vegetables
Pick winter crops while still at their best - Fold cauliflower leaves over and tie to protect from frost and keep florets tight.
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 or a stretch of clear polythene to warm and dry out the soil.
Further inland the soil will take a bit of thawing out before any planting Can be done.
Fruit
My peach trees are just at bud burst right now so I am waiting for the rain to stop to enable me me to spray with a copper spray which will help with leaf curl.
If you have not already pruned your peach or nectarine tree I will run through how to go about it although it is late enough with the sap up and trees coming into blossom.
1. For the glass shape pick four main scaffold branches and simplify, cut larger branches needing removed close to the trunk, leaving a collar will encourage tree borer.
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, try to leave triples.
Citrus are susceptible to water logging so remove saucers from under potted lemon bushes while it is so wet and always ensure that your bushes in the ground have good drainage and are not sitting in a puddle of water.
Cheers, Linda
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Friday, August 12, 2011
Gardening in North Otago 10th August 2011
So much is beginning to awaken in the garden, I feel spring in the air with the fragrance from winter sweet, witch hazel and Daphne wafting to the music of Chopin around our garden. The birds are beginning to nest and my first jonquils have opened. I do love the beginning of a new growing season as you can surely to tell!
After months of hard stuff going on in this garden it is now time to create and dress the garden by planting out, feeding and watering. I have been liquid feeding with worm juice from my worm farm, which I add at black tea strength to a full watering can then apply generously to all new leaf and budding plants like pollyantha's, forget-me-nots, dianthus, sweet peas, pansy, viola and winter roses. Helping them along with feeding now will get their roots going and keep them green and strong through the cold snaps yet to come.
Slow release fertiliser is a great idea now as well, sprinkle around established ornamental and newly planted trees and shrubs to be there ready when the plants needs food.
This week the chain-saw was on the go again removing shrubs that had become woody and trees too close to each other, I look forward to filling all the gaps and creating a new look.
While on the go I set to cutting back my wigelias and spirea, removing all the old branches that have flowed long enough, you can tell which branches they are because the wood looks really old and spent compared to the new fresh wood there ready and waiting to take their place.
A few more hydrangeas have been prunned as nice fat buds are swelling on the stems. Cut only those stems that have flowered at the second bud from the bottom, leave all other stems because these are the flowers for this year.
Grow some cuttings from the hardened hydrangea, flowered steams which have been removed. A shaded moist area is best for planting these and hopefully roots will grow to feed the buds on the cuttings. Some times I get good results by covering the cuttings with a box keeping the light out which holds the buds back to encourage roots.
I have also been taking cuttings from the hardened off geranium steams, 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 with semi hard wood, (not a new green steam) and let them dry out a little before planting them, which means you don't have to deal with them straight away. plant them into a soil and river sand mix and firm down, Potting mix is too light to get a tight seal around the cutting. I am forever taking cuttings from geraniums I like when I come across them in friends gardens, and giving cuttings from mine.
Trim dentata lavender now, (that's the tall growing hedging lavender with bumblebee flowers) as they are budding up now ready to burst into flower, but leave trimming other lavenders a little longer. All lavenders like sweetening up with a little lime,
Cut back bush lavatera now also, they get very woody if left.
Dahlias, gladioli, and peonies are still available in the Garden centers this month, they can be planted from now until September.
Apply a dressing of Rose Food to establish Rose's and Water in well.
Vegetables & fruit
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 you need a little tree to add height in an area of your garden, why not have one that blossoms beautifully and then gives you fruit.They 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 vegetable garden is still enjoying a frost or two, although my raised gardens are in such a sunny location I would have liked a few harder frosts to break up the soil. I am still digging carrots and using silver beet and broccoli, and the leeks are growing well, it is so good not to have to worry about the bugs during these colder months. 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.
I have finished pruning my wine grapes - this year I have had to remove some old leaders, replacing them with new growth leaders along wires. The result of this will be vertical budding and fruiting next year. To prune a fruiting leader remove all new long growth on the vine other than the fruiting leader, on the leaders prune each new growth back to the second bud. These fruiting buds should be around 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.
I see the bees at work already which is a good sign for the soon to be happening fruit blossom pollination .
Cheers, Linda.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Gardening in North Otago August 2nd 2011
The start of another new month!! and a lovely week for working out in the garden this week for me, all the rose pruning now completed so will spray all this weekend with winter oil.
The wisteria is next to be pruned, All the long slim leaders growing out in all directions will
be removed.
Once your wisteria has reached the length you require with a chosen leader, or maybe two going in opposite directions all other leaders can be removed. If allowed to grow, a wispy new leader will eventually become as thick as a tree branch, and too many of theses become a tangled mess and very heavy if being trained along a balcony.Don't prune any other part off a wisteria at this time of the year because you may remove the flower buds being formed right now. Reduce the size of large established wisterias once flowering has finished.
Clumps of hellebore's are looking fantastic in our garden right now and with the sun we have been blessed with the bee's are out and about pollinating them. once pollinated the center of the flower changes with the forming of seed pods, when this has taken place the stems become firmer and will last in water when picked. Hellebore's seed down very readily growing masses of baby plants beneath the mother plants. These seedlings can be transplanted or potted up in the second year when they have developed two strong leaves, but will not flower until around the forth year.
I notice Marguerite daisies here that have been badly damaged after the snow, I will leave the damaged growth on top to protect the growth
below and cut back to hard wood when frosts have finished. Marguerite daisies like geraniums grow rapidly back to being bushy when the climate suits them.
Ordinary garden soils that missed a good conditioning in autumn would still benefit from a layer of Compost spread on top. It can be dug in around August once the temperatures begin to rise. Before then the worms will work their way up towards this new layer of organic matter
bringing the compost down into the soil for you!
Vegetables & Fruit
These lovely mid-winter days we are experiencing here in North otago seem perfect for planting at a time when we usually don't. There are edibles that go into the ground when it is cold and damp. But remember none of these will survive in boggy soils.I planted broad beans and peas three weeks ago and they are now well up.
Garlic and Shallots are available to plant - dig compost through your soil or fill a container and plant separated cloves of garlic approximately twice the depth of the clove. Take care not to damage cloves when separating out the bulb. You could get up to 20 cloves per bulb!
Strawberries are easy to plant in all kinds of containers or straight into sunny/raised garden beds along with slow release fertiliser. Strawberries also seem to do very well in a hanging strawberry bag, but it would pay to wrap it with bird netting once the fruit starts turning red.
I got really stuck into my gooseberry bushes this week, cleaned the middle out of cross over branches and took off the branches skirting the ground which lifted the bushes up enough for picking underneath, many of these lower branches had grown roots into the ground so I have potted these sections up, they will develop into good size bushes in a couple of growing seasons.
Cheers, Linda.
The wisteria is next to be pruned, All the long slim leaders growing out in all directions will
be removed.
Once your wisteria has reached the length you require with a chosen leader, or maybe two going in opposite directions all other leaders can be removed. If allowed to grow, a wispy new leader will eventually become as thick as a tree branch, and too many of theses become a tangled mess and very heavy if being trained along a balcony.Don't prune any other part off a wisteria at this time of the year because you may remove the flower buds being formed right now. Reduce the size of large established wisterias once flowering has finished.
Clumps of hellebore's are looking fantastic in our garden right now and with the sun we have been blessed with the bee's are out and about pollinating them. once pollinated the center of the flower changes with the forming of seed pods, when this has taken place the stems become firmer and will last in water when picked. Hellebore's seed down very readily growing masses of baby plants beneath the mother plants. These seedlings can be transplanted or potted up in the second year when they have developed two strong leaves, but will not flower until around the forth year.
I notice Marguerite daisies here that have been badly damaged after the snow, I will leave the damaged growth on top to protect the growth
below and cut back to hard wood when frosts have finished. Marguerite daisies like geraniums grow rapidly back to being bushy when the climate suits them.
Ordinary garden soils that missed a good conditioning in autumn would still benefit from a layer of Compost spread on top. It can be dug in around August once the temperatures begin to rise. Before then the worms will work their way up towards this new layer of organic matter
bringing the compost down into the soil for you!
Vegetables & Fruit
These lovely mid-winter days we are experiencing here in North otago seem perfect for planting at a time when we usually don't. There are edibles that go into the ground when it is cold and damp. But remember none of these will survive in boggy soils.I planted broad beans and peas three weeks ago and they are now well up.
Garlic and Shallots are available to plant - dig compost through your soil or fill a container and plant separated cloves of garlic approximately twice the depth of the clove. Take care not to damage cloves when separating out the bulb. You could get up to 20 cloves per bulb!
Strawberries are easy to plant in all kinds of containers or straight into sunny/raised garden beds along with slow release fertiliser. Strawberries also seem to do very well in a hanging strawberry bag, but it would pay to wrap it with bird netting once the fruit starts turning red.
I got really stuck into my gooseberry bushes this week, cleaned the middle out of cross over branches and took off the branches skirting the ground which lifted the bushes up enough for picking underneath, many of these lower branches had grown roots into the ground so I have potted these sections up, they will develop into good size bushes in a couple of growing seasons.
Cheers, Linda.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Gardening in North Otago 20th July 2011
I notice the days are drawing out a little since the shortest day, yes, true not wishful thinking.
Being out there freezing at one with nature I notice the daily pattern!! weeell some day's I can say this is the case.
This week I have spent another good percentage of my time raking up old leaves, will autumn ever be a distant memory? it is important to get leaves out of every nook and cranny during winter because bugs are looking for places like this to winter over. Once leaves have been removed from the base of roses, hydrangea's and other deciduous plants I am applying manure enriched compost, (not covering the base of the plant) to be there in readiness for spring feeding.
I continue to re-sawdust rough pathways which is freshening these areas up and allowing me to find a lot of self sown plants in the old saw dust topping which I delight in potting up or transplanting.
This week I thought I would write about the benefits of raised gardens as there is not a lot happening except pruning an
Limited time to spend gardening is a sad fact for young families today but I am sure most would love to grow their own fresh produce.
Raised gardens are the saviors of gardeners with limited time or poor soil. The basic idea of a raised garden is instead of battling against poor soil conditions, why not build above ground where you have complete control.
Advantages of a Raised Bed Garden
Aside from the issue of gardening in poor soil, raised bed gardens offer several advantages:
Raised beds warm more quickly in spring, allowing you to work the soil and plant earlier.
Raised beds drain better.
The soil in raised beds doesn't get compacted, because they are constructed with accessibility in mind.
It's easy to tailor the soil for your raised bed to the plants you plant.
Contained raised beds are not difficult to construct using wood or (here in North Otago) Oamaru stone seconds as a surround. If you need time to think about a permanent position for a raised beds you could make some using straw bales as surrounds for a year. Once in place to the size required fill them with soil and compost and plant out.
A sunny location is a must for growing vegetables and herbs, and access around all sides with a wheel barrow is recommended for ease of maintenance, keep the garden around four feet wide, this way you can access the middle.
Access to water is essential,with drainage being greater raised gardens need good soakings.
A raised bed of six inches above the soil is enough to grow leaf vegetables and herbs and at least ten inches for root veg but I don't see the sense in not raising it to a height that will benefit the amount of digging and bending you do.
keep an eye on what is on offer for planting now, this is the very best time for choice when buying deciduous tree's and shrubs.
Cheers, Linda.
Being out there freezing at one with nature I notice the daily pattern!! weeell some day's I can say this is the case.
This week I have spent another good percentage of my time raking up old leaves, will autumn ever be a distant memory? it is important to get leaves out of every nook and cranny during winter because bugs are looking for places like this to winter over. Once leaves have been removed from the base of roses, hydrangea's and other deciduous plants I am applying manure enriched compost, (not covering the base of the plant) to be there in readiness for spring feeding.
I continue to re-sawdust rough pathways which is freshening these areas up and allowing me to find a lot of self sown plants in the old saw dust topping which I delight in potting up or transplanting.
This week I thought I would write about the benefits of raised gardens as there is not a lot happening except pruning an
Limited time to spend gardening is a sad fact for young families today but I am sure most would love to grow their own fresh produce.
Raised gardens are the saviors of gardeners with limited time or poor soil. The basic idea of a raised garden is instead of battling against poor soil conditions, why not build above ground where you have complete control.
Advantages of a Raised Bed Garden
Aside from the issue of gardening in poor soil, raised bed gardens offer several advantages:
Raised beds warm more quickly in spring, allowing you to work the soil and plant earlier.
Raised beds drain better.
The soil in raised beds doesn't get compacted, because they are constructed with accessibility in mind.
It's easy to tailor the soil for your raised bed to the plants you plant.
Contained raised beds are not difficult to construct using wood or (here in North Otago) Oamaru stone seconds as a surround. If you need time to think about a permanent position for a raised beds you could make some using straw bales as surrounds for a year. Once in place to the size required fill them with soil and compost and plant out.
A sunny location is a must for growing vegetables and herbs, and access around all sides with a wheel barrow is recommended for ease of maintenance, keep the garden around four feet wide, this way you can access the middle.
Access to water is essential,with drainage being greater raised gardens need good soakings.
A raised bed of six inches above the soil is enough to grow leaf vegetables and herbs and at least ten inches for root veg but I don't see the sense in not raising it to a height that will benefit the amount of digging and bending you do.
keep an eye on what is on offer for planting now, this is the very best time for choice when buying deciduous tree's and shrubs.
Cheers, Linda.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Gardening in North Otago 12th July 2011
Brrrrrrr there was no doubting this week that winter has arrived in North Otago to kill the bugs around the garden that thought they could just cruise into spring. With the mild weather we had been getting there are definite signs of spring around coastal gardens once plants have moved into the first stages of budding they should continue to bud up during the sunny winter days, camellias and rhododendrons have had a head start and spring bulbs are well on which may mean we are in for an early spring
Daphne’s are in flower now along with hellebore's, primroses and
polyanthus. Primroses are so pretty and clump up well and in time can be broken up spread around to add colour to a winter garden.If you are at the stage to break up clumps remove quite a few leaves on transplanting, they will soon grow more along with new roots to support them. Polyanthus and primulas will benefit from an application of Dried Blood to increase plant vigour and flowering
Under glass sow seeds of antirrhinum, carnation, calendula, sweet peas, verbena and viola for planting out in Spring.
Dahlias, gladioli, and peonies are also coming in this month and can be planted from now in good draining soil, if you think there is a chance they would sit in wet soggy soil over winter they may rot, planting can continue until September
.If young trees or shrubs need transplanting now is a good time to do it whilst they are at their most dormant stage.
Remember to continue protecting plants like Margarete daisies and pelargoniums from frosts with Frost Cloth.
Turn over compost now if you have not already done so and add some moisture if the pile is dry. Cover with plastic or straw to hold any heat which has accumulated in the center.
If you still have leaves to Rake up why not fill large black rubbish bags,add a little water and leave to rot. Leaf mulch is such natural benefit to soil which we tend to remove at leaf fall stage because it looks untidy.Rotting it down this way you can then add it to the soil and it will not be noticed
Rose pruning is still going on here in my garden, just in case you need reminding on how to tackle pruning.... make a slanted cut just above a strong outward facing bud.
Standard roses should be pruned to about 25cm above the main stem and bush roses can be cut back about two-thirds, leaving 3-4 buds on each branch. Climbers can go back leaving 5-6 strong canes. Secateurs must be sharp to avoid damage by ripping branches which leads to die back.
Turn over compost now if you have not already done so and add some moisture if the pile is dry. Cover with plastic or straw to hold any heat which has accumulated in the center.
If you still have leaves to Rake up why not fill large black rubbish bags,add a little water and leave to rot. Leaf mulch is such natural benefit to soil which we tend to remove at leaf fall stage because it looks untidy.Rotting it down this way you can then add it to the soil and it will not be noticed.
At this time of the year I make a few trips to the Waireaka sale yards to the Waireaka Valley Lions Club sawdust and sheep manure stand, volunteers clean out calving sheds and under shearing sheds to keep the stand topped up for keen gardeners. I use the calving shed sawdust on garden pathways and the sheep manure on the compost heaps, on the vegetable garden and around the roses when horse manure is not at hand. Sawdust can be used on wet gardens as a weed suppressant and it helps to absorb excess moisture, but on dry gardens it will dry out soil already not retaining moisture.
Vegetables
In land start raising vegetable seeds for spring planting in glass houses or under glass or plastic with ventilation spaces to circulate air and stop seeds going mouldy.
On the coast plant seedling plants that are now on offer along with garlic cloves.
Comfrey
I have long known the advantages of growing comfrey but have lately been reading up on it again, it is such a useful plant and if you can get your hands on some I suggest you plant some root sections in an area of your garden where it can spread. Comfrey needs to be planted where it can send it's roots very deep down into the soil so it can tap into much needed nutrients. It is fast growing, high in potassium and can be cut back again and again. I have listed below some uses for comfrey around the garden.
Compost activator, add to your compost bin to heat up the decomposing materials and enriches the compost.
Put a handful of comfrey leaves into a bucket of rainwater and let them rot down for around 6 weeks to give you a rich liquid fertilizer for plants. Lay comfrey leaves in a potato trench and leave for 3 days prior to planting the tubers to give them a potassium rich boost of fertiliser.
Use as a Comfrey leaf mulch around plants, by layering leaves around the stems of plants. Potassium will slowly be released to the plants as the leaves break down – Great for tomatoes, beans and fruit bushes.
Use wilted leaves as a nutrient rich Chicken feed
Cheers, Linda
Daphne’s are in flower now along with hellebore's, primroses and
polyanthus. Primroses are so pretty and clump up well and in time can be broken up spread around to add colour to a winter garden.If you are at the stage to break up clumps remove quite a few leaves on transplanting, they will soon grow more along with new roots to support them. Polyanthus and primulas will benefit from an application of Dried Blood to increase plant vigour and flowering
Under glass sow seeds of antirrhinum, carnation, calendula, sweet peas, verbena and viola for planting out in Spring.
Dahlias, gladioli, and peonies are also coming in this month and can be planted from now in good draining soil, if you think there is a chance they would sit in wet soggy soil over winter they may rot, planting can continue until September
.If young trees or shrubs need transplanting now is a good time to do it whilst they are at their most dormant stage.
Remember to continue protecting plants like Margarete daisies and pelargoniums from frosts with Frost Cloth.
Turn over compost now if you have not already done so and add some moisture if the pile is dry. Cover with plastic or straw to hold any heat which has accumulated in the center.
If you still have leaves to Rake up why not fill large black rubbish bags,add a little water and leave to rot. Leaf mulch is such natural benefit to soil which we tend to remove at leaf fall stage because it looks untidy.Rotting it down this way you can then add it to the soil and it will not be noticed
Rose pruning is still going on here in my garden, just in case you need reminding on how to tackle pruning.... make a slanted cut just above a strong outward facing bud.
Standard roses should be pruned to about 25cm above the main stem and bush roses can be cut back about two-thirds, leaving 3-4 buds on each branch. Climbers can go back leaving 5-6 strong canes. Secateurs must be sharp to avoid damage by ripping branches which leads to die back.
Turn over compost now if you have not already done so and add some moisture if the pile is dry. Cover with plastic or straw to hold any heat which has accumulated in the center.
If you still have leaves to Rake up why not fill large black rubbish bags,add a little water and leave to rot. Leaf mulch is such natural benefit to soil which we tend to remove at leaf fall stage because it looks untidy.Rotting it down this way you can then add it to the soil and it will not be noticed.
At this time of the year I make a few trips to the Waireaka sale yards to the Waireaka Valley Lions Club sawdust and sheep manure stand, volunteers clean out calving sheds and under shearing sheds to keep the stand topped up for keen gardeners. I use the calving shed sawdust on garden pathways and the sheep manure on the compost heaps, on the vegetable garden and around the roses when horse manure is not at hand. Sawdust can be used on wet gardens as a weed suppressant and it helps to absorb excess moisture, but on dry gardens it will dry out soil already not retaining moisture.
Vegetables
In land start raising vegetable seeds for spring planting in glass houses or under glass or plastic with ventilation spaces to circulate air and stop seeds going mouldy.
On the coast plant seedling plants that are now on offer along with garlic cloves.
Comfrey
I have long known the advantages of growing comfrey but have lately been reading up on it again, it is such a useful plant and if you can get your hands on some I suggest you plant some root sections in an area of your garden where it can spread. Comfrey needs to be planted where it can send it's roots very deep down into the soil so it can tap into much needed nutrients. It is fast growing, high in potassium and can be cut back again and again. I have listed below some uses for comfrey around the garden.
Compost activator, add to your compost bin to heat up the decomposing materials and enriches the compost.
Put a handful of comfrey leaves into a bucket of rainwater and let them rot down for around 6 weeks to give you a rich liquid fertilizer for plants. Lay comfrey leaves in a potato trench and leave for 3 days prior to planting the tubers to give them a potassium rich boost of fertiliser.
Use as a Comfrey leaf mulch around plants, by layering leaves around the stems of plants. Potassium will slowly be released to the plants as the leaves break down – Great for tomatoes, beans and fruit bushes.
Use wilted leaves as a nutrient rich Chicken feed
Cheers, Linda
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Gardening in North Otago 4 July 2011
Wow, how about these hard frosts we are now getting. The brilliant days that follow give us here on the coast at least half a day to work in the garden after the thaw. No such luck further inland with frozen ground, the perfect garden planning time to be a step ahead before spring.
Rose pruning continues here in my garden, still time to get this task done. The time by which rose pruning should be completed varies by several weeks from the warmest to coldest gardens. It should be done and dusted by the time buds break.
The bulk of new seasons bare rooted deciduous trees are arriving into retail shops now, continue planting but avoid times when the ground is frozen or excessively wet. Young deciduous trees and shrubs can also be moved at this time, trim damaged roots and cut back any that are inconveniently long.
Evergreen trees and shrubs are on offer as well, but don't be in a hurry to plant them. Keep in bags outside in a sheltered place to harden off, they can sit like this and be planted out at the end of winter. Choose now and plant later to give them a good start.
Make sure to read the labels to know how high and wide a shrub and tree will grow, some, like natives grow fast and when mature will throw considerable shade. When planting along side the house ask advice.
Compost heaps work much more slowly than in the summer but there is still some decomposing going on if there is adequate moisture and covered to keep warmer than cold winter nights. Old carpet underlay or straw are good for this
Boost bedding plants with fish based fertiliser or a little dried blood.to encourage buds during these sunny winter days.
Fruit & Veg.
Finish planting deciduous fruit trees and bushes in a sunny site, avoid frosty hollows for early starters such as plums and pears.
Frosty sites are no disadvantage for soft fruits as winter chills will stimulate fruit buds.
Continue to shelter citrus in frosty gardens, they should be offering a lot of fruit to pick now ( marmalade sounds good )
In cold areas start garlic off in containers and plant out later when the ground warms up.
Cheers, Linda
Rose pruning continues here in my garden, still time to get this task done. The time by which rose pruning should be completed varies by several weeks from the warmest to coldest gardens. It should be done and dusted by the time buds break.
The bulk of new seasons bare rooted deciduous trees are arriving into retail shops now, continue planting but avoid times when the ground is frozen or excessively wet. Young deciduous trees and shrubs can also be moved at this time, trim damaged roots and cut back any that are inconveniently long.
Evergreen trees and shrubs are on offer as well, but don't be in a hurry to plant them. Keep in bags outside in a sheltered place to harden off, they can sit like this and be planted out at the end of winter. Choose now and plant later to give them a good start.
Make sure to read the labels to know how high and wide a shrub and tree will grow, some, like natives grow fast and when mature will throw considerable shade. When planting along side the house ask advice.
Compost heaps work much more slowly than in the summer but there is still some decomposing going on if there is adequate moisture and covered to keep warmer than cold winter nights. Old carpet underlay or straw are good for this
Boost bedding plants with fish based fertiliser or a little dried blood.to encourage buds during these sunny winter days.
Fruit & Veg.
Finish planting deciduous fruit trees and bushes in a sunny site, avoid frosty hollows for early starters such as plums and pears.
Frosty sites are no disadvantage for soft fruits as winter chills will stimulate fruit buds.
Continue to shelter citrus in frosty gardens, they should be offering a lot of fruit to pick now ( marmalade sounds good )
In cold areas start garlic off in containers and plant out later when the ground warms up.
Cheers, Linda
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