March
By the calendar its the start of Autumn, but the weather does its own thing and the garden has to adapt. I hope you are enjoying the Summer colours of your petunias or marigolds and being able to pick your own apples, plums or perhaps peaches.
Read on to find out whats New In Store this month and what to plant next in your vegetable and or flower garden. See you in store for supplies soon!! Kelvin
Climbing Beauties…….
Snail Vine (Phaseolus), Wedding Flower (Stephanotis), Sandpaper Vine (Petrea), Red Banana Passionfruit (Passiflora), Schuyler Grape, and Bower Vines (Pandorea).
Climbers can be used to give shade on overhead pergolas, create living screens that can be kept narrower than traditional hedges, or trained to become stunning features in a container or the garden.
Spring Bulbs……. DAFFODILS, BLUEBELLS, HYACINTH, JONQUILS, RANUNCULUS, ANEMONES, FREESIAS, NERINES and more…….
Plant today in pots or garden bed and enjoy the anticipation come Spring of the huge colour burst bulbs always give.
For best results feed with bulb food at the end of Winter and again after flowering so they have extra nutrient to put into next years bulb. Never cut back dying foliage as this will adversely affect next year.
For more info go to fiestabulbs.co.nz. If we haven’t got what you want we may still be able to order one for you depending on stock availability. (Courier charge may apply)
Camellias are back……
Tea anyone?
It may not be the prettiest of the Camellia flowers, but Camellia sinensis makes a great hedge (or specimen), and if you plant enough, you too could produce your own tea and serve to your guests!!! Oh yes we do have the pretty varieties as well!!
Whats To Do In Your Garden This Month…….
IN THE FLOWER GARDEN
We hope your flower garden is in full colour still, though keep dead-heading and watch out for powdery mildew in humid conditions. Spray with Fungus Fighter.
Once your Summer colour has passed its best, Pansies, Violas, Polyanthus, Stock, Calendulas, Primulas, will all be coming into store to plant out your Winter garden.
For a fantastic show, dig in more compost and blood and bone, plus a good General garden fertiliser such as Novatec.
Sweet peas are also available to sow either directly into the garden or we like to use Jiffy pots to germinate and then plant the seedling without disturbing the roots. Remember you will need something for them to grow up.
SPRING BULBS!!
What more to say. Just remember where you have planted them so other gardeners do not “disturb” them while digging in the garden. Daffs, hyacinth, ranunculus, bluebells, and many more are now in store.
IN THE ORCHARD
You will hopefully be busy harvesting delicious apples or peaches, cape gooseberries or perhaps Chilean guavas.
Feed Citrus and passionfruit with Burnets Gold Citrus and Fruit.
Continue to spray Yates Success Ultra for codling moth on apples and Fungus Fighter on your stonefruit to protect against brown rot.
IN THE VEGE PATCH
While there may still be crops to harvest, by the end of the month it will be time to prepare the soil for your Winter crops including Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Cauliflower, Silver beet and Spinach. Up here in Auckland, keep up plantings of Lettuce and Sugar Snap peas to.
Soil preparation is all about adding more Compost, blood and bone or sheep pellets and also lime.
If you have an area you are wanting to “rest”, sow your green crops of Lupin or Mustard to dig in, in Spring.
ON THE LAWN
Depending on the amount of rain (or amount of irrigation you are prepared to do) this month is ideal for sowing new and patching lawns.
Old lawns should be raked vigorously and any dips and hollows filled with Tui Lawn Preparation Mix.
EVERYWHERE ELSE
Trim hedges to allow some growth before Winter.
New Season Camellias will be coming into store. Good for pots, hedges or as specimen trees.
Stock up on garden bags and oil your wheelbarrow before Autumn leaf fall hits.