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Welcome to the August newsletter from Meredith Nursery we hope you enjoy it...please let us know if you would like to see any particular areas covered or any comments you have.
August.
The last month of Winter and the rain continues to fall giving us a sense of optimism and hope for the months ahead, signs of Spring are beginning to appear, with the buds beginning to swell, jonquils are a splash of light and colour in the winter landscape and the scent of daphne odora, delights us. The promise of Spring in a few short weeks means that there is much for the gardener to do as always.
In the August vegetable patch plant out seedlings of cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, spinach, lettuce, snowpeas and onions.
Keep vegies growing strongly with fortnightly doses of liquid fertiliser. Early morning or evening is the best time to apply.
Start to bank up soil around potatoes to encourage growth and prevent greening of tubers. Continue to do this as your crop grows.
There is still time to plant rhubarb in soil which has been enriched with manure and compost.
Annual weeds should be removed before they begin to seed, throw non-invasive varieties in the compost bin.
Manure, such as cow, sheep or poultry, can be spread on beds prior to spring planting of leaf crops.
Do not do this on beds where you plan to plant root crops, as this will cause forking and distortion of the roots.
Sow these in a bed which was manured for a previous leaf crop.
In the home orchard there is still time to get in bare rooted plants, such as apple, pear, nectarine, plum, peach, cherry and apricot and chestnuts and almonds.
Ensure soil has been enriched with organic matter such as compost or aged manure to give your trees a good start.
Be sure to prune your tree to compensate for root loss and trim any damaged roots. Water in with a seaweed based fertiliser.
Feed citrus with an organic fertiliser around the dripline of your tree.
Water in well.
Spray stone fruit with Bordeaux mix before buds begin to break to control leaf curl.
Feijoa
An all purpose plant worth considering is Feijoa sellowiana, often referred to as the pineapple guava, this is an attractive evergreen shrub with white felted shoots and glossy green leaves. The flowers are grey-mauve and red and are beautiful.
The feijoa will grow in almost any soil, prefers a warm site and makes a most attractive hedge.
The fruit is about 5cm long, green when ripe and has a rich guava-like flavour with a hint of strawberry and pineapple, they can be eaten cooked or raw and jam made from the feijoa is delicious, particularly with cream.
Stuffed with cream cheese they are a great addition to a green salad.
Growing Berries.
A berry patch is a wonderful addition to the home orchard and with a little attention to their needs these plants will reward you with kilos of juicy berries for a fraction of their cost on the supermarket shelves.
.As with rhubarb, no soil is too rich for these plants and a moist soil which has been enriched with plenty of organic matter suits them best, it should be well drained and in a sunny position.
Select a site which is protected from hot north winds.
Mulching deeply is very beneficial as most berries are shallow rooting and soil needs to be kept cool over the roots.
Blackberries, raspberries, loganberries, boysenberries, gooseberries and black, red, and white currants will all respond to these conditions with plentiful supplies of delicious summer fruits.
Blueberries require acid soil and it is advisable to check the pH of the soil each year.
If it is too high, (above 5.5, apply ground sulphur at the rate of 25g per plant and water in.
Plants need an adequate supply of water`from flowering until fruit harvest.
Gooseberries are particularly susceptible to potash deficiency and to keep plants productive it is recommended that ½ cup of sulphate of potash to the square m. should be applied to the soil in late winter each year.
Pepino
Another small soft fruit which is worth considering is the Pepino (Solanum muricatum) This is a hardy little plant to 1m, with small golden fruit with purple stripes.
The fruit has a melon-like flavour and is produced on a low growing shrub.
The pepino prefers a warm moist well drained soil rich in organic matter, water regularly after planting, mulch well and fertilise in spring.
Protect from frost.
This is a great fruit for those with limited space as it can be grown in a pot or against a warm patio wall.
Kiwi Fruit
(Actinidia chinensis) or chinese gooseberry is a vigorous, deciduous climber which will reach 10m in length, climbing by twining around its supports and not by means of tendrils.
The leaves are heart shaped, 13-20cm long and almost as wide on non fruiting shoots, less wide on the others.
Male and female flowers are borne on separate plants so it is essential to grow one of each. Several females can be grown with one male.
The root system of the kiwi fruit is fibrous and shallow, so soil should be well prepared with plenty of organic matter so that it is constantly moist, yet well drained. Mulching is also beneficial as every care should be taken to ensure roots do not dry out in summer.
Choose a position which is not too hot, preferably a frost free sheltered site.
Being deciduous the Kiwi fruit is best planted when dormant.
The young vine should be cut back to leave about six buds when planted, to encourage good leaders. A pergola is the best form of support.
In the perennial garden Penstemon “Thorn” which has white flowers flushed with pink, P. “Hidcote”, salmon pink with a paler throat and P. “Blackbird”, purple/plum are hardy and long flowering.
A good groundcover which will be quite happy in tough situations under trees is Stachys Lanata or lambs ear, this plant beloved in colonial gardens has come into favour again as it is hardy and drought tolerant.
Another plant for that tough spot in your garden is Dietes Grandiflora (wild iris), Dietes Bicolour (wild yellow iris and Dietes Iridioides (butterfly iris) all with delicate flowers in pastel colours.
Annuals to plant for spring and early summer include lobelia, primula, poppy, pansy, bellis perennis, petunia, and of course foxgloves which look fantastic wherever they are placed in the garden.
August is the last chance to plant bare root roses and those of us who love our roses were heartened to see how well they withstood the drought.
We have many beautiful roses at the moment, Seduction, Augusta Louise, Princess de Monaco and the incomparable Stainless Steel, are just a few of our bush roses.
Among our standards the beautiful milk coffee coloured Julia’s Rose, Just Joey, Bonica, and the Austin roses Troilus,(cream/apricot, fragrant and sturdy) and Cymbaline,(gray-pink, myrrh fragrance, and arching growth) are worth consideration.
In the native garden there is much to choose from, Dianella Prunina “Utopia” which has blue/purple foliage with a silvery tint, looks superb in a silver pot, a great plant for a modern garden.
For a moist spot in semi shade try Boronia Heterophylla “Pixie” which has pale pink bell flowers in spring, or B. Purple Jarod, with striking purple/plum flowers and of course B.Megastigma, the sweetly scented brown boronia.
Thryptomene “Gold Tips” new foliage tipped gold, has pink flowers in winter and spring and looks great with Hypocalymma Augustifolium which has white to pink flowers in pairs along the stem in winter/spring. Both these plants like well drained soil.
For a feature tree try Eucalyptus Mannifera “Little Spotty” which has a smooth trunk spotted in patches with cream or red or grey/green, it has creamy flowers and is drought tolerant and frost hardy.
August is the last chance to plant deciduous bare rooted trees and the ornamental pear Pyrus C. “Bradford is a good choice with showy masses of white flowers and reliable autumn colour, likes full sun and tolerates dryness and air pollution.
Pyrus C. “Red Spire” has yellow/purple autumn colour and white flowers and is also good for urban conditions.
Quercus Palustris the pin oak is one to seek out if your preference is for rich scarlet autumn colour.
Now is a good time to fertilise your garden so that nutrients will be available to your plants when spring growth commences. Use blood and bone with some potash added, pelletised chicken manure, compost and aged animal manures. For native plants use a fertiliser low in phosphorus.
Lawns can become compacted over time and aerating the soil with a garden fork invigorates your lawn and encourages new root growth Follow with a good lawn fertiliser in early spring.
If your garden is disappearing under an infestation of Oxalis the best results are obtained by spraying when the yellow flowers appear from now until early spring.
Use a glyphosate spray but beware of nearby plants.
Enjoy the garden as the winter flowering plants brighten our days,
Marg and the Team at Meredith Nursery.
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