Gardening in North Otago September 20th 2016

Well into Spring now with buds bursting into beauty daily, we had the first wedding in our Garden last Saturday, no going back now!!
Because rain is limited watering is needed to help spring gardens along, moisture is not far down but top soil holding new plantings will dry daily. Plant cells that are plump with water will be stronger against cold night damage in early Spring so early watering is best allowing time for plants to absorb moisture. However, slight drying out before watering promotes root growth of plants so water is not needed everyday.

Spring is the time to choose the type of blossom tree you want, take a photo along to a garden center to be identified. Blossom is only on the tree for a short time so it should not be the only reason for choice. Height and spread should be thought about as some prunus grow very large and spread wide and low. Fortunately today we have choice, thanks to the grafting done by growers we can purchase trees on a short, or a taller graft to suit a situation. A 1.8 mtr trunk before branching will allow clearance along a drive or walk way right from planting. Large spreading trees have large spreading roots! keep this in mind when planting near concrete and the house. Also the leaf and blossom drop should be taken into consideration, thick blossom on paved walking areas is a slippery problem, it sticks to feet and is tracked inside. Leaf drop near pathways and roof guttering is a pain as well, but a spreading tree over grass is lovely and everything dropped can be taken up with the lawn mower. Ask the right people about the right trees because there is a tree for every spot, to create the over grown look without the problems.

I have been busy with the hoe moving the small weeds around before they get a hold, you will only have to blink from now on and they will be up around the ankles! pull them now before they make seed.  Plant pretty annuals in exposed soil now to beat the weeds,
Seeds: sow directly into the ground or into trays, they will be up in no time to prick out and plant on into punnets to form strong roots. Be sure to leave punnets of newly bought bedding plants outside for a few nights in a sheltered place to harden off before planting out. I use my own mix with a layer of seed raising mix on top which makes the seed raising mix go a lot further.

Lavenders are starting to make new growth, they like a dressing of lime and some liquid or slow release fertiliser to help them along. If they look a bit scruffy you can trim them now and they will soon grow back and bud up. If a lavender is looking really woody with new growth yellowing dig it out and put in another one, they do not go on for ever.

We are lucky enough to have a mature bourgainville growing, it was effected badly last year and this winter with frost even though it has been covered with frost cloth. New growth is happening now below the damage so I trimmed the dead wood off and will flood it at the beginning of next month to simulate the rainy season of it's origins. Then leave it alone from then on. If feed and water through summer they will produce more leaf than flowers, Bourgainvillea needs to be stressed to flower their best.

Put in stakes for delphiniums, peony roses, asters and tall phlox now before they shoot up anymore.

Vegetable garden:
Keep planting your veg before the end of September, they should then be ready for Christmas. Corn and the pumpkin varieties need a long growing season, I planted both into punnets this week, protection will be needed when germinated until days are warmer.
Fruit: If you have not pruned your currant bushes yet do it asap because they are coming into leaf.
blackcurrants. Fruit forms on young wood, remove older wood, leaving the young shoots,remove weak, wispy shoots, retaining a basic structure of 6 to 10 healthy shoots.
Red and white currants bear their fruit on old wood. prune bushes by removing diseased or very old branches, then prune new growth back to two buds in early summer to keep plants compact.
Cheers, Linda.

Gardening in North Otago 15th September 2016

A lovely weekend just past as I write this and with the warmth it's all happening in gardens, a warm wind was experienced so the hoses are out once again to keep moisture up to all the new annual plantings going in. 
Hydrangeas are budding to leaf, the perfect time to feed and give a good soak, a dressing of lime for pink and alum sulphate for blue, coffee grinds and pine needles will also acidify soil.

Roses are top priority right now,Things to watch out for are die back after frost damage, not all branches make the grade, if they have been affected cut them right back to new growth, also watch for growth below the graft, it comes up from the root stock, is usually a different colour and leaf to the grafted branches, cut right out. All roses are grafted onto a strong root stock. 

If you were given a cyclamen in flower back in May it is time to plant it outside in a cool shady spot to finish the growing year. Pot up again just before Winter for indoor flowering.

Perennials are pushing up through the pea straw now, hosta's are making a move but there is still time to put the spade through clumps big enough to divide, slice cleanly through and transplant where needed.

Peony roses are pushing up fast, carefully clear around them to let sun in.

Lawns: are looking for food, have a bag ready for the next rain. Sulphate of iron is great for getting rid of moss in lawns, buy from a garden centre, quantities for a watering can will be on the bag, once watered on effected areas leave until moss turns black then rake out.

Potato info (Tui)

Rocket* Round White White Waxy Fastest producing of early varieties and provides a good yield. Good boiling potato with waxy texture.Very early variety, approx 90 days.
Swift* Oval Smooth & White Creamy yellow Waxy Fast growing with exceptional taste. Great for growing in containers.Will not discolour or disintegrate on steaming.Very early variety, approx 90 days
Cliff Kidney* Kidney Slight pink tinge White Firm, waxy Performs best in soils that contain peat. An excellent, firm boiling potato for early cropping. Best for boiling. Early variety, approx 100 days
Jersey Benne* Oval White White Waxy A medium cropper that can be grown in most soils. Great for growing in containers. One of the most popular varieties for mashing or boiling. Early variety, approx 100 days
Moemoe Maori Potato Round-Oval Purple with deep eyes Creamy white
Waxy Plant from September – November. Will grow in all soil conditions. Reasonable
drought and wind tolerance. Best eaten shortly after harvest. Good for boiling and steaming. Good tasting. Early-main variety, approx 100 days
Maris Anchorr* Oval White White Waxy Yields well in most soil types but likes shelter. Keeps well with excellent cooking qualities. General cooking. Early-main variety, approx 110days
Agria* Long oval Cream Yellow All Purpose High yielder. Stores well. Very versatile cooking qualities. Great for French fries. Best for boiling. Main variety, approx 130 days
Heather Long oval Smooth & Purple White All Purpose Reliable, steady cropper. Good for all general cooking, boils, mashes and roast (no discolouration or disintegration). Main variety, approx 130 days
Ilam Hardy* Oval to round White White Waxy. All Purpose When mature. Very adaptable and will give a good yield over a wide variety of conditions. Light blight resistance. Excellent for boiling for frying. Good all round cooker. Early-main variety, approx 130 days.

Fruit:

Apricot is in blossom looking for bee's and raspberries / gooseberries are showing leaf, still time to thin out a gooseberry bush for easier picking.

Cheers, Linda.

Gardening in North Otago 6th September 2016

Some beautiful early spring days experienced here in North Otago over the last week after the gentle rain, encouraging buds to swell and burst, birds get busy buildings nests and new born lambs enjoy a warm welcome.

Now growth is moving I have been re potting cuttings that have been making roots during winter, fresh potting mix to sustain the explosion of 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 daily to being feed 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 if you have a glass or tunnel house. Germination is fast when days are bright, warm and lengthening so we are off to a good start this spring. 

Baskets and pots will need freshening up as well with new potting mix, slow release fertilizer and water crystals,  use only shallow rooted plants for baskets, pansy, lobelia, small type petunias, nemesia, and trailers like Virginia stock and dwarf sweet pea. To get best results the roots of what you want to plant will determine the size and depth of a pot or basket, they have a long growing season so need depth for roots.

Old woolen blankets cut to size and slit where plants are to be poked in are an economical alternative to bought basket liners, 

The width of a flower garden can be cut down by planting a front boarder to spread together, a front boarder of the same plant will also formalise a busy mixed garden and cut down on weeding. Some boarder... plants, lambs ear, purple sage, aubretia, dwarf agapantha, catmint, 

ground cover erica's will cover a meter in time and add colour during winter.

I looked around the garden for plants to make an edge to take place of where a row of lavender had been, I have new lavender plants now in the spot but they are as yet tiny so felt they needed something in front, I found just the thing, a large clump of lambs ear growing in my rockery which had doubled in size so dug half of it out and broke it up into single plants. Silver is a perfect shade to use as a break between strong and soft shades and will grow in sun or semi shade, lambs ear also has the added bonus of being an interesting texture.

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, too 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.

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. 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, my board beans are flowering, 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. 

Leaf curl 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 Champion copper or liquid copper and once again after petal fall. 

Cheers, Linda.

Gardening in North Otago August 25th 2016

September: Spring is here after a start stop winter.

So far magnolias, camellias, daffodil and jonquil bulbs confirm the above and after those lovely spring days last week blossom will be not far behind along with weeds! Now it begins, address those weeds with a hoe while small and the spray unit can stay in the shed for a while yet. For paved areas and drive ways that have been cleaned of small weeds there is a product call Ronstar that can be used to stop new seeds germinating, it comes in a granulated form and you sprinkle it on like salt, it will have no effect growing leaves (hence applying weed free ground) it makes the ground sterile stopping seed germination.

Roses are budding and leafing now, wait until leaves are fully out and not too soft before starting folia feeding and a fortnightly spray program. The most important component for roses right now is food, rose fertiliser, old manure or manure enriched compost 

around the drip line and watered in will get you wonderful results further into the growing season. 

Hydrangeas here are all pruned and fed now with buds swelling, they have come through the winter well.

Enjoy the spring blooms but start thinking summer colour now... this is where you can paint your own garden canvas, hot colours to zaz up an area or whites silvers and greens to tone down harsh background colours and blues to pull them all together.

Where there is dirt filling with flowers will leave no room for weeds, for low maintenance gardens with trees, shrubs and mulch cover you can create pockets of colour with annuals between the shrubs, If you have weed mat to deal with just scrape away the mulch and with a craft knife cut a section of weed mat on 3 sides, fold it under at the point edge and fill the dirt gap with annuals then replace the mulch around them. Once they have finished flowering for the year just remove before they seed and pull the folded flap of weed mat back over the area and re-mulch, a splash of colour among green shrubberies makes all the difference to a summer garden.

Vegetables:

Veg plots need attention now, weeds gone and compost dug in ready for seeds and seedlings, best not to sow or plant straight into mulch containing animal offal, this proves to be too strong but fine to spread around when new plantings have developed strong roots. Soil containing organic matter is best for new plantings and seed raising mix along rows when sowing seeds will gain good results.

I have sown corn and pumpkin seeds early and will nurse with cover for as long as it takes to give them a long growing season.

I also have sprouted potatoes going in early and these will need protecting from late frosts as well, covered at night once through the ground.  

Fruit:

Berries are budding up to flower, they would appreciate organic mulch and a dressing of feriliser high in potash. Strawberry plants are beginning to move into budding as well, my plot needs a lot of attention and building up with manure enriched compost and I am hoping I can find some plants remaining after the winter under all the chic weed.

Cheers, Linda

Gardening in North Otago August 16th 2016

With the days drawing out, birds building nests and fat furry magnolia buds opening we are moving out of winter and into spring!
English lavenders can be cut back now because I see them starting to put out new growth. Really old woody lavender bushes can be cut back hard to encourage new lower growth, time to replace them if they do not respond. Newly planted lavenders just need a hair cut. Feed them manure enriched compost and a little lime. Also catmint and purple sage has had all the winter protection cut off here.
Softer shrubs that are encroaching on drives and walkways can be trimmed back , they will soon recover with new spring growth. I have been reducing the height on some of my taller shrubs like phebaliums, pittosporums, psudopanax . You can do this if height is a problem without spoiling the shape.What I do is cut out the center branch down to where the other branches bush out, this removes the natural point at the top of the shrub and will sometimes reduce the height by 2 or more meters. Shrubs will soon send up a new leader. This sort of control at the start of the growing season works well because plants heal quickly, leave doing this for another month further inland.
A lot of climbers are in bud now ready to do their thing so when trimming watch you are not cutting off new buds. Hardenbergia ( happy wanderer) flowered in early winter so that is one that can be cut back, honey suckle can also be trimmed now, jasmines have been knocked by frosts in my garden, I will leave them a bit longer.

If you have still not pruned and feed your roses do it as soon as possible! they are moving fast now and need food kept up to them if you want them to stay healthy. The bags of pig manure I ordered last month arrived in the weekend, such a bonus for our garden.
If you have no time to do anything else in the garden now feeding plants is a must for health and vigour to take them right through to autumn, it is well worth the effort and will minimize disease. Slow release fertilisers are a safe bet for continual feeding over a long period. They are very clean and easy to apply, and now days formulated to feed specific plants.
Now would be a good time to mention plants that resent being fed. Many South African plants 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, also no food for tulips it will encourage more leaf than flower.

Keep an eye out for flowering camellias and rhododendrons now in the garden centers, most are showing buds and flowers, this is the time to choose the right shades for your garden, they thrive in semi shade or afternoon shaded areas of the garden.

It's the perfect time to sow seeds under cover as I mentioned last week, the seeds I planted two weeks ago are up already, Any seeds that say spring sowing on the back of the packet can be planted now, I use a tray of compost / soil with a layer of seed raising mix on the top.This way your seed raising mix goes further. Once planted cover the trays with plastic or glass, but use spacers to let air circulate between the plastic / glass and tray.

Fruit and Vegetables
This is also the time to give fruiting shrubs and trees a dressing of pot ash, to help with fruiting.
If you plan to grow vegetables this year get the garden ready now, dig in some weed free compost and let the soil settle again.
In area's not be planting out for a while why not sow a green crop to add humus to tired soils, mustard, blue lupine, barley or wheat, dig in when lush, soft and green.
Deciduous fruit trees should be planted in August at the latest along with all small fruits and now is a good time to shift citrus trees.

Cheers, Linda. 

Gardening in North Otago August 9th 2016

Snow, frozen ground and cold hands in the past week, proper winter weather at last.
Birds are hungry and beginning to nest, with the help of Poppy and Maggie (Grandies) I melted dripping and stirred in bird seed, while it was firming we pressed into three balls. The Girls climbed trees and pushed them into v branches for the birds to enjoy instead of stripping my veg.
Morning frozen ground makes it impossible to work in soil so Garden design is what I can concentrate on with never being short of clients. But usually with frosts come brilliant blue sky and sun, well worth cold fingers and here on the coast the afternoon thaw allows me to get out and do what needs to be done.
 I am full on thinking about spring and what I would like happening in our garden, now is the the time to hatch plans for planting, dividing and shifting. I planted a standard weeping mulberry two years ago which had an under planting of acanthus mollis (oyster plant) which had taken over. After many weeks of digging it out ( with help) I think we have finally got rid. I visualized a mass planting of Russell lupin in its place so set about digging up random lupin plants growing here and there and have now filled the space which should be very colourful come spring, and once finished flowering will cut back and plant cosmos amongst to take that garden right through until winter.
If something does well in a garden bed why not fill with the same plant to make a colourful impact, I have done this with hydrangeas, ranunculus, nandina, same shade roses, hellebore's and same shade dahlias. A planting as this fills a space and if mulched allows no room for weeds. Spring bulbs planted this way always give the best show rather than different varieties planted together.

A few more hydrangeas have been pruned as nice fat buds are swelling on the stems and cuttings taken and bedded in 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. Some times I get good results by covering the cuttings with a box keeping the light out to hold the buds back to encourage roots.
Old wood can be cut out of  wigelias and spirea bushes, you can tell which branches they are because the wood looks old and spent compared to the new fresh wood.

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 and if large, bushes can be trimmed with a hedge trimmer. If newly planted and small prune back to hard wood at an outward facing bud. Feeding and spraying my roses is next, copper oxychloride and winter oil, they can be mixed and applied together as the oil helps the copper to stick and copper helps protect new growth from frosts that occur in late spring. Best not to be applied to fresh new growth when burning may occur,
Vegetables and fruit
Fruit Trees are still available in Garden Centres. If you think your garden is too small for fruit trees, I mentioned dwarf peach and nectarine trees last week and will mention Ballerina apples this week. A very slim non branching variety of apple with Medium to large, red skin on areas exposed to the sun. Crisp and juicy, nice eating and cooking, similar in flavour to ‘Jonathan, growing to 3-4m tall by 30cm wide perfect for adding height to a small garden.
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 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.
 Vegetable gardens are enjoying frosts breaking down the soil, I am still digging carrots, the parsnips are still growing regardless of such cold conditions. I have had to cover leaf veg from the birds with shade cloth. Time for sowing seeds to germinate in a warm place to be ready for planting out in a warm spring garden.
Cheers, Linda.

Gardening in North Otago August 2nd 2016

Brrrrr, now because of the snow falls needed by skiers we are getting the frosts and best of all for North Otago we were blessed with another soaking rain this week. Bulbs that shot up during those warmer days will continue to head for an early spring display but the cold temperatures now will hold buds and have a noticeable effect on soft new growth. However rhododendron Christmas cheer and prunus autumnalis are in full flower and the fragrance from winter sweet, witch hazel, Daphne, boronia and violets wafting about our garden make it a joy to work in, cold fingers and all.   

Pruning has started here, as well as humping straw bales and barrows of gravel in readiness for the spring explosion and this is time for me to create and dress the garden by planting out, shifting and feeding. I am liquid feeding annuals and perennials that have been nursed through winter, folia feeding will help all new leaf, budding and flowering plants from now on, roots are starting to take in nutrients to plump up buds. This week I have noticed nice fat buds swelling on the stems of my hydrangeas, I have started pruning the more sheltered bushes but still leaving the more exposed a little longer. Prune only those stems that have flowered, cut at an outward facing bud second bud from the bottom, leave all other stems because these are the flowers for this year. Spread old stable manure around the drip line and once again a reminder, it is a dressing of lime for pink flowers and aluminum sulphate for blue, White never changes, but are best planted in light shade. The use of coffee grinds, grass clippings or pine needles spread around the drip line can help to lower the PH of pink hydrangeas and encourage them into shades of purple. I have found I can pull rooted branches from the base of big old gnarly hydrangea bushes, these take a few years to bush up but it is a sure way to replicate a special variety that. 

While raking out the last of autumns leaves that had blown under shrubs I come across branches from shrubs laid down in soil forming roots, viburnum, choysia, camellia and hydrangeas. Most shrubs growing low to the ground can sometimes drop a branch into the soil and form roots, this can also be purposely done at the beginning of spring by pegging branches down into a hole in the soil, roots should develop at the point covered with soil. Making a small wound on the portion of the stem that is to be buried will help to stimulate root development

Cut the old growth from peony roses now and destroy, disease can winter over on last years stems but be careful not to knock the new pink shoots emerging from the tubers. Cut the old growth from dahlias now as well, if thick and tubular bend the cut stalk over to prevent rain water building up inside which will lead to rot in a tuber.

Remove soil from bearded iris rhizomes, they need to be partially exposed to give the best flowering. 

With roses making a move to bud up they will be taking in food, powdered rose food needs watered in around the drip line, slow release fertiliser will work each time it rains and manure out from the crown. Trees and Roses are still available in Garden Centres, If you think your garden is too small for trees, I have seen dwarf Peach and Nectarine Trees on offer,if you need a tittle tree growing to a width and height of 1.5 metres. to add height in a part of your garden why not have one that blossoms beautifully and then gives you fruit. 

Vegetables: The veg I have in are holding well despite the weather extremes, frosty areas inland can make a start now by adding some compost and a little lime in readiness for when you plant out later this month. 

Fruit: Prune newly planted fruit trees, this is probably the hardest cut you’ll make, but the most important. Cut a new tree at about hip height, do this whether your wanting a vase shape or a single leader. If the main branches start here they’ll be reachable when fully grown. 

Lets hope we don't get too many dull overcast days by the time fruit trees blossom, we need those wonderful bee's to come out and set to work pollinating.

Cheers, Linda