Your Garden Questions Answered
Episode: # 11 16/06/07
Presenter: Kim Syrus
Having a sharp pair of secateurs always makes pruning so much easier. Leanne of Burton has deadly dull snips and a mountain of cutting to do and she wants to know how to sharpen them. A sharpening file will get you started.
There are many different ways of holding snips to sharpen but usually with the handles facing away is the most comfortable. Only work on the cutting edge, the bevelled or sloped side. The thin bright edge is the part of the blade the file should touch.
Hold the file at a 20-degree angle to the blade. Put your thumb under the blade base and hold the file, as if it were a potato peeler. Keep your fingers well away. Start at the back, apply light pressure and in one smooth stroke run the file all the way along the blade.
Repeat a few times until it is sharp. Then, to remove any burrs from the back edge, lay the file flat and run it once along the blade’s reverse.
You can do the same with your loppers and shears, although you might find a vice useful for holding them steady. With your snips nice and sharp, you’re ready to get outside and tackle the yard.
Many Garden Gurus Club members are asking “what’s the advantage of adding water crystals when planting”. Kim has a great example to show you the answer.
Kim has two pots, one has water crystals added to the mix and the other has just plain potting mix. Kim pours 3 litres of water into each pot and measures if one absorbs more water than the other.
After 30 minutes, all the free water has drained through and you can see the pot with the crystals has absorbed much more water the one without.
Water crystals are special polymers, able to absorb up to 400 times their own weight. They are fantastic at holding onto valuable moisture.
If potting mix or soil ever dries out, the crystals will release moisture directly to the roots, keeping the plant alive. Another way of looking at them is that they are like insurance. So next time you are planting out, don’t forget them
Kim was recently asked whether the Moreton Bay fig and common fig are related. They are both from the genus- the Ficus and they are very closely related.
Just like the common fig, The Moreton Bay produces an abundance of edible fruit, that turn reddish brown when ripe, providing a great food source for native fauna.
Featured Product
Waterwise Water Storage Crystals
Presenter: Kim Syrus
Having a sharp pair of secateurs always makes pruning so much easier. Leanne of Burton has deadly dull snips and a mountain of cutting to do and she wants to know how to sharpen them. A sharpening file will get you started.
There are many different ways of holding snips to sharpen but usually with the handles facing away is the most comfortable. Only work on the cutting edge, the bevelled or sloped side. The thin bright edge is the part of the blade the file should touch.
Hold the file at a 20-degree angle to the blade. Put your thumb under the blade base and hold the file, as if it were a potato peeler. Keep your fingers well away. Start at the back, apply light pressure and in one smooth stroke run the file all the way along the blade.
Repeat a few times until it is sharp. Then, to remove any burrs from the back edge, lay the file flat and run it once along the blade’s reverse.
You can do the same with your loppers and shears, although you might find a vice useful for holding them steady. With your snips nice and sharp, you’re ready to get outside and tackle the yard.
Many Garden Gurus Club members are asking “what’s the advantage of adding water crystals when planting”. Kim has a great example to show you the answer.
Kim has two pots, one has water crystals added to the mix and the other has just plain potting mix. Kim pours 3 litres of water into each pot and measures if one absorbs more water than the other.
After 30 minutes, all the free water has drained through and you can see the pot with the crystals has absorbed much more water the one without.
Water crystals are special polymers, able to absorb up to 400 times their own weight. They are fantastic at holding onto valuable moisture.
If potting mix or soil ever dries out, the crystals will release moisture directly to the roots, keeping the plant alive. Another way of looking at them is that they are like insurance. So next time you are planting out, don’t forget them
Kim was recently asked whether the Moreton Bay fig and common fig are related. They are both from the genus- the Ficus and they are very closely related.
Just like the common fig, The Moreton Bay produces an abundance of edible fruit, that turn reddish brown when ripe, providing a great food source for native fauna.
Featured Product
Waterwise Water Storage Crystals
- When added to potting mix or garden soil, the crystals absorb up to 500 times their own weight in water.
- The water is released over a period of time as the plants require it.
- Reduce water usage and increase the times between watering.
- Effective for up to five years and biodegrade harmlessly.
- Prevents the soil from drying out, improves soil aeration and drainage.
- Potassium based.
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