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- The recent rain and the onset of real autumn nights signals that it’s
now time to plant Pansies and Violas. The ‘Moonface™’ pansies named
after Bert Newton, with his endorsement, looks a bright addition to Annie’s
cottage garden already and I’m told that it flowers into the warmer end of
the year, when others have given up and it forms a short squat plant, so the
flowers look prolific.
- For shaded areas try a few punnets of the old fashioned ‘Johnny Jump Up’
Viola. They need to be planted quite closely at 15cm spaces, but will flower
almost from the day they are planted until Christmas. They also self-seed on
my verge garden and that means withstanding the regular incursion of
skateboards etc.
- Plant stocks now in your warmest sunny patch of the garden. The ‘Scented
Dwarf’ is an honest name for a plant that is notoriously unreliable as a
double flower. Seldom do we get more than 45% doubles from a punnet of
doubles and even less from seed, but even the singles have that seductive
sweet fragrance.
- Snip the long tendrils of your climbing plants now and they will make
short side growths that in spring will flower earlier than others. This is
particularly good for Jasmine, Wisteria and your Passion Vines. Then foliar
spray them with a concoction of seaweed extract and any of those ‘Flower
and Fruit Set Improvers’ all of which have high levels of potassium in
them that aids strong healthy flowers.
- The rows of Box hedges all need a prune now and will bounce back with the
cool nights. In fact most hedges can be pruned now and they will recover to
grow slowly over winter. Even Plumbago is mostly past its best now as is
Tecoma and Campsis. I’d even prune Coprosma now but leave the Lauristinus,
as it will be flowering in 6-8 weeks and if you prune it, there go this year’s
flowers.
- Plant fresh lettuce seedlings now by all means but be careful to locate
them in the sunniest aspect you have. It’s not that critical in mid summer
when there is plenty of sunlight, but it is already sinking lower in the
horizon and lettuce need bright sunlight or they grow to taste bitter and
get mildew all too easily.
- The Bottlebrush bushes or Callistemon species and cultivars thrive on
these northern plains and right now is the ideal time to fertilize them. I
hear you say ‘but they’re natives’. Yes they are and they grow in
creek beds that get flooded most years with a rich alluvial load, so that
makes them big feeders unlike many native plants.
- Plant fresh lettuce seedlings now by all means but be careful to locate
them in the sunniest aspect you have. It’s not that critical in mid summer
when there is plenty of sunlight, but it is already sinking lower in the
horizon and lettuce need bright sunlight or they grow to taste bitter and
get mildew all too easily.
- The native Bottlebrush, Honey Myrtle and Tea Tree bushes thrive in the
hills and right now is the ideal time to fertilize them. I hear you say ‘but
they’re natives’. Yes they are but our best cultivars of these
bottlebrush type flowers grow in creek beds that get flooded most years with
a rich alluvial load, so that makes them big feeders unlike many other
native plants.
- Apply a foliar spray of a ‘Flower and Fruit Set Improver’ with some
Seaweed extract and wait until spring! The ‘flower set’ is as a result
of the high levels of potassium in such products, that makes strong flowers
and lots of them. Hills soils are pretty deficient in this nutrient and they
certainly benefit from it being applied as a foliar spray in clear weather
and in the soil too, but often it leaches too fast from the soil after heavy
rain.
- Plant the new ‘Madame Butterfly’ Pansies and Viola now, but don’t
forget to apply some snail and slug bait or patrol at night with a torch to
despatch the hungry critters. If you have some shaded areas plant a few
punnets of the tiny ‘Johnny jump Up’ viola at 15cm centres. They will be
in flower before you put the garden tools away!
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