What to Do
Episode: # 13 07/07/07
Presenter: Sue McDougall
The number one job in the garden is weeding and Sue just hates it because it takes over her whole life in winter. It is the downside of having so much beautiful winter rain. One little tip to stop the amount of weeds in your garden is to plant ground covers so thick that the weeds don’t have a chance to germinate through them!
Sue has one great idea that has a dual benefit. Allysum (Lobularia maritima) is such an easy to grow plant and if allowed to self seed will spread all over the garden bed. It gives such great colour in winter and there is nothing like a cheery flower on those cold days.
The benefit that Sue thinks is the most important is to do with pollination because bees will increase the fruit set of all your fruiting plants. This means, more pumpkins in the vegetable patch and more passionfruit on the vines.
If your hydrangeas are looking a little sad at the moment the Sue has some advice. They grow best in the shady part of the garden and at this time of the year slow down their growth and are susceptible to powdery mildew.
This fungus will cause a powdery, white growth on the leaves and you can spray with a fungicide like Yates Fungus Gun if you want to but one of the best things to do is to give it a prune and remove all the leaves.
Another plant that is ideal for the shady part of the garden is fuchsia’s (Fuchsia, Hybrid Cultivar). The smaller flowered varieties are the ideal plant for the morning sun or afternoon shaded position in the garden. They can also be pruned back to ground level if they get straggly. They will also flower for many months.
Citrus are in full fruit and one of the problems that is showing up this year is split fruit. It is caused by the plant taking up too much water all at once and the cells expand with extra water, there is no where for it to go but to split the skin.
There is nothing you can do about it this year and usually happens because of a heavy shower of rain. If the skin on your oranges is extra hard the flesh inside grows to fast and the skin doesn’t stretch. This is caused by severe copper deficiency symptoms can be reduced by an application of trace elements over the foliage twice a year.
Gardening is all about pushing the boundaries and trying something different. Sue would never have thought of planting Dwarf Apricot Oleander with Red Ivy Geranium but the effect is simply stunning. The added bonus is that it is waterwise and it looks good for most of the year.
Featured Products
Yates Fungus Gun
Presenter: Sue McDougall
The number one job in the garden is weeding and Sue just hates it because it takes over her whole life in winter. It is the downside of having so much beautiful winter rain. One little tip to stop the amount of weeds in your garden is to plant ground covers so thick that the weeds don’t have a chance to germinate through them!
Sue has one great idea that has a dual benefit. Allysum (Lobularia maritima) is such an easy to grow plant and if allowed to self seed will spread all over the garden bed. It gives such great colour in winter and there is nothing like a cheery flower on those cold days.
The benefit that Sue thinks is the most important is to do with pollination because bees will increase the fruit set of all your fruiting plants. This means, more pumpkins in the vegetable patch and more passionfruit on the vines.
If your hydrangeas are looking a little sad at the moment the Sue has some advice. They grow best in the shady part of the garden and at this time of the year slow down their growth and are susceptible to powdery mildew.
This fungus will cause a powdery, white growth on the leaves and you can spray with a fungicide like Yates Fungus Gun if you want to but one of the best things to do is to give it a prune and remove all the leaves.
Another plant that is ideal for the shady part of the garden is fuchsia’s (Fuchsia, Hybrid Cultivar). The smaller flowered varieties are the ideal plant for the morning sun or afternoon shaded position in the garden. They can also be pruned back to ground level if they get straggly. They will also flower for many months.
Citrus are in full fruit and one of the problems that is showing up this year is split fruit. It is caused by the plant taking up too much water all at once and the cells expand with extra water, there is no where for it to go but to split the skin.
There is nothing you can do about it this year and usually happens because of a heavy shower of rain. If the skin on your oranges is extra hard the flesh inside grows to fast and the skin doesn’t stretch. This is caused by severe copper deficiency symptoms can be reduced by an application of trace elements over the foliage twice a year.
Gardening is all about pushing the boundaries and trying something different. Sue would never have thought of planting Dwarf Apricot Oleander with Red Ivy Geranium but the effect is simply stunning. The added bonus is that it is waterwise and it looks good for most of the year.
Featured Products
Yates Fungus Gun
- Systemic control of fungal diseases on roses & ornamentals
- Contains a systemic fungicide that travels through the plant to control black spot, powdery mildew & rust - works from the inside out.
- Controls black spot, rust and powdery mildew on ornamentals and roses.
- New addition to the popular Yates Ready to use range.
- Safe to use on all ornamentals.
- Easy-to-use trigger pack - no mixing required, no measuring, no mess
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