Companions

October 16th, 2010

A visitor to my garden

Long ago our grandmothers in their cottage gardens planted a wide variety of flowers, herbs and vegetables, mixed together in a seemingly random fashion.  But over the generations gardeners have observed that some plants will grow better when planted close to another particular plant, or indeed that the reverse is true.  Some plants like other plants and grow better when planted nearby.  They are companions.  Good friends.

Many herbs can be used to repel pests, some are effective just grown in the garden, while others can be picked and used fresh or dried.

Companion planting and using pest-repellent herbs increased the health and resistance of plants.  For example, a well know one is basil with tomatoes, not only cooked, but grown together.

Nasturtiums will improve the strength and flavour of nearby plants, and are particularly good under apple trees, and near radishes to deter aphids and other bugs.  I have planted some under my roses to check this out.  Aparently aphids also don’t like parsley and our grandmothers quite often planted some in and around the roses to keep the aphids away.

nasturtiums -pretty and useful

nasturtiums - pretty and useful

Rosemary can be sprinkled, fresh or dried, around plants to repel snails and slugs.  It grows well with sage, beans and carrots, but should not be grown near potatoes or tomatoes.Thyme should be planted in odd corners of the garden as it attracts bees and generally benefits plants nearby.  It also repels the cabbage worm, so is a useful companion for cabbages.

rosemary

Our grandmothers would often keep a few Bay leaves in the flour as they prevent weevils from infesting.  If you place a few on shelves they will keep ants away, although some ants can be very determined.  The bay leaves can also be placed in books to protect them from silverfish.  In fact the whole tree is resistant to diseases and pests and will protect other plants in the area. 

Marigolds, as well as being cheerful plants, excrete chemicals from their roots which repel soil nematodes, and of course, grandmother would have never been without her Lavender plants which when used in sachets either on their own or in combination with other dried herbs keep moths and silverfish out of clothes as well as keeping them sweetly scented.

So, plants make good companions both for each other and for us.

Happy gardening!

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Tiptoe through the Tulips

October 13th, 2010

Makes you want to tiptoe right on through!

Last Sunday was a beautiful, spring day and I took myself off up into the Dandenongs, just outside of Melbourne for a drive.  There in the hills the annual Tulip Festival was in full swing.   I stopped to take a look and enjoy the sunshine & colour!

Windmills and blue, blue sky

The tulips were looking fantastic!  Colour that you would not believe!  The festival is on until the 17th October and a visit makes a great day out.  It is like drinking in colour and spring.  I had a lovely time looking at all the mass displays and thought I would share the colour with you all.  Colour temps us all out now that the sun is with us once again!

I think next year, in the autumn a pot of tulips might be just the thing!

But where will I fit the Windmill?

Cheers, and happy gardening!

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October Recipe

October 10th, 2010

Thai-Style Salad

Now that we are into Spring, it is time to get back into those yummy salads.  This is one I love that uses my home grown Sprouts.  It is very refreshing and like many Thai salads no oil is used in the dressing, making it a super fat free salad.

  • 2 cups shredded asian cabbage
  • 1 red pepper, sliced
  • 1 tablespoon fresh coriander
  • 1 tin baby corn, drained

Dressing:

  • 1/4 cup white vinegar
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed
  • ground black pepper – to taste
  • 2 teaspoons fish sauce

Combine all the salad ingredients in a bowl.  Whisk the dressing ingredients together in a small bown, then pour over the salad.  Toss and enjoy!

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October Jobs

October 7th, 2010

This is a good time for a visit to your favourite nursery

October is a very busy month and there is heaps to do out there in the sunny, pretty days to come.  If you plant some annuals in pots or hanging baskets now they can be looking quite beautiful for your Christmas time entertaining & they  make  super gifts.  I like to get some impatiens and put them in those dark, shady spots to cheer them up a bit.  You need to plant them around 15 centimetres apart, to get that nice full look.  Then when they get around 15 centimetres high, pinch out the centres of the plants to encourage bushiness. 

Petunias are great for hot spots

The azaleas, camellias and rhododendrons are all looking for a bit of a feed around now.  I also like to give them a bit of a prune to keep them in good shape and encourage bushiness.  Azaleas and rhododendrons are shallow-rooted and should be fed with natural fertilisers, such as blood and bone or cow manure, as chemical fertilisers can burn the roots.  It is best to feed them after they have flowered and always make sure that the soil is damp before applying the fertiliser. 

Because they are shallow-rooted, azaleas and rhododendrons should be mulched regularly.  This helps to keep the roots cool and moist over the summer months.

Weeds are rampant at this time of the year, so that is an ongoing task.  I always seem to be out there pulling them out – but they sneak back overnight.  Still, if you are ever to get on top of it – this is the month to get cracking!  I try to cheer myself up by popping in some plant or other in the spot where weeds once were.

Did you know that nasturtiums can help to keep the woolly aphids away?  I have planted some under my roses to check it out!  They are growing quite happily and are cheerfully flowering as we speak. 

Well, I am off to the nearest nursery to get som annuals to fill the little empty spaces.  Happy springtime gardening!

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Snip, snip, snip!

October 4th, 2010

I never head out into the garden empty-handed.  I always take my little 5 min. basket and in that basket is always a pair of secateurs.  I seldom wander through the garden without having found something in need of a bit of a prune.  It may be a broken branch, a shoot heading in the wrong direction or a dead flower wanting to be removed.  Sometimes I treat myself to a bunch of flowers to enjoy when I am inside. 

If you have plenty of space- you never need prune a rhododendron

It is possible, of course, to have a reasonable number of shrubs without having to do any regular pruning.  Providing they are given plenty of room to grow, camellias, rhodeodendrons and many other common shrubs can do without any cutting at all for years and years.  But I don’t think there is any garden at all that doesn’t need the use of a good pair of secateurs quite often.

When I am pruning anything at all I always remember the three D rule: get rid of all dead, diseased and damaged branches.  This makes sense.  After that I always remove branches that are growing towards the centre of the plant, for these cause congestion, block light, spoil the plant shape and make future pruning difficult.

I always try to look at where I am making the cut, and prune to a bud pointing in the direction I would like a new shoot to grow; the new shoot will head that way to fill a gap or replace an old branch that has been removed.  Or, at least, that is the plan. 

rhododendron flowers

I find, of all the garden tasks, pruning is very rewarding.  When the new growth starts to shoot you feel like you are working with the plant and helping it on its way.

Happy gardening.

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The October Garden

October 1st, 2010

Bearded Iris

The weather is getting warmer, and there is now no good excuse to stop getting out into the garden.  The nurseries look wonderful at this time of the year and are stuffed full of flowering plants to tempt one into impulse buying.  I try to avoid this by making a list, but find myself giving in and coming home with something I had not planned on at all.  Last weekend I come home with three beautiful flowering plants that require full sun, when the only spaces I have are in the shade! What was I thinking?

Broad beans

Out in the vege patch the broad bean plants are covered in flowers, which will soon turn into juicy broad beans.  Can hardly wait! This is probably the most important month for sowing or planting vegetables.  Ahead is at least six months growing weather, so it is important to get on out there and plant, plant plant!   The ducks are laying every day now and we can enjoy egg sandwiches, egg mcMuffins, cakes and all things eggy!

The soil is pretty much warmed up now and although we are still having some quite cold nights the threat of frosts are becoming a thing of the past.  The days are longer now too making it much easier to find a little time in the late afternoon for a bit of pottering about.  The roses I cut back have all got beautiful new growth and some even have tiny buds.  They look at me as I pass them in the driveway and call silently for some fertilizer such as blood and bone. 

camellia

Out the back it is all looking a bit the worse for wear.  I need to get busy and tidy it all up.  Pots tend to dry out with great speed during this time of the year and can be drooping before you know it, so it is back to a watering program to be fitted into my daily routine.  Other than that it is weed heaven out there, so I have to get on to them.

Well, the sun is calling me and I must be off and out and doing!

Happy gardening!

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Mini Salad Garden

September 28th, 2010

Seed Sprouts

Although there are many varieties of sprouts available in supermarkets, they can sometimes be a bit of a disappointment when you get them home if they are not fresh as can be.  Sprouts are the crop, if you are looking for an easy to grow salad ingredient and you can get no fresher than ones you grow yourself!  The sprouting method I use requires no specialised equipment and a crop can be harvested in as little as 3 days for some varieties.

You can use mung beans, alfalfa or  whole lentils, they are all delicious raw in salads or tossed into a stir fry at the last moment to add a little crispness to your meal.  Always buy seeds that are intended for sprouting as many garden seeds are treated with chemicals.

Here is how I do it:

  • Measure 1-2 tablespoons of seeds on to a sieve and give them a bit of a wash, picking out any that are cracked or broken.  Soak the seeds over night or around 9-12 hours.  I do this in a nice big jar with a wettex cloth over the top held in place with a rubber band.
  • After the seeds have had a nice long soak it is time to drain the seeds (if you tied the wettex cloth over the top you can just tip the water out to drain it).  Now the jar has to go into a cupboard or somewhere dark, so they can sprout.  Make sure it is a cupboard where they will not be forgotten :)
  • Now comes the ‘tending’ part of the deal:  At least twice a day rinse the sprouts by filling the jar with cold water and then draining off thoroughly.  In hot weather you will need to rinse at least 3 times a day.  Continue to rinse regularly until the sprouts are ready to harvest.

Growing sprouts is fun and only takes a couple of minutes a day.  You can use them in wraps, sandwiches, salads and they are very healthy and good for you!

Happy gardening!

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September Plant

September 25th, 2010

Christmas Cactus (Zygocactus truncatus)

Christmas Cactus -Schlumbergera Species

Of course, this should really be the plant of the month for December, but here in Melbourne it flowers towards the end of winter and into early spring.  In fact, it tells of the beginning of the spring and is a welcome patch of colour for the end of our winter months.  The Zygocactus is a Forest Cacti and in its home in Brazil are found attached to trees in woodlands and jungles.  So it is not surprising that they are so different in form and requirements form the spine-covered desert cacti.

Forest Cacti

Perfect for hanging baskets it has leaf-like stems and a trailing growth habit.  Flower colours include pink, mauve, purple, orange and red.  The plant needs short days and long nights to start flowering, a bit like me really.

Cuttings root easily.  After it has flowered you can take stem cuttings in the summer.  They really don’t mind if you forget to water them, in fact they prefer to be a little on the dry side and it is only once they begin to flower that they need a little more frequent water and a little liquid fertiliser, say worm poo, but at about half the strength of what you use for other plants. 

Forest cacti - perfect for adding to that enchanted corner in your garden.

Happy gardening!

 

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Enchanted corners

September 20th, 2010

Woodland magic

Once upon a time there was an enchanted forest alive with fairies and fireflies.  Magical creatures captured at dusk.  Romantic and adventurous, the woodland conjures an enchanted atmosphere of quiet walks and forest fairies.  In my garden I like to try to add little magical, enchanted corners where fairies might visit.  A sprinkle of magic fairy dust and the addition of a few pretty plants can create just the atmosphere you want.

Paths must meander and shady corners call for shade loving plants such as Clivia, Japanese windflowers or the strappy Oyster plant.  The Winter Rose (Helleborus orientalis) are another magical plant, with simple, openfaced flowers in purple, pink, green and white.  They flower in the depth of winter, cheering up the coldest day.  They seem so shy, hanging their dear little heads.  You can plant them in shady places and the flowers are perfect to cut and put in old fashioned float bowls as a flower arrangement.

Cyclamen

The cyclamen too seems to conjure the fairies to play in amongst their leaves and to sit up on their flowers, of course, each time you look at the flowers, you just miss seeing the fairies, who heard you comming and have slipped away to hide in amongst the leaves.  But, if you are quick you just might catch a glimpse.  Most gardeners think of cyclamen as a delicate indoor plant, however tiny miniatures can be growen outside.  Just perfect for that little fairy plot!  Indoors cyclamens need plenty of natural light, like near a window.  Do not put them near a heater or near the fire.  They like cool nights, and like being put outside with the cat before you go to bed!  Remove the spent flowers to promote further blooms.

Happy gardening!

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September Jobs

September 17th, 2010

It is spring & time for the ducks and me to get busy!

Well, spring is here and I have got the bug for growing things, so I plan to try and plant out some little seeds.  Can’t tell which ones as yet, because I haven’t bought any, but that is the plan.  I love looking at all the different little seed packets and dreaming just a bit, and why not?  Seeds are so cheap, it is worth giving it a bit of a go.

Rhododendron

I have some pot plants that are calling out to be repotted, so that is on the list for this month as well.  Sadly, my gardenia is looking a little sad and I might need to give her some TLC.  She seems to have some sort scale insect on her leaves and I will need to sit down beside her and give her a good wash with some water mixed with a few drops of detergent & vegetable oil.  This is time consuming but effective.  After that I will give her a special feed of slow release fertiliser, she just loves that.  We aim to make her happy, for a happy pot plant is one that will flower happily!

my potted bulbs are still looking pretty

Last summer I bought and planted a little baby, oh so cute, Oleander.  I will need to give the little thing a bit of a prune, even though it seems a little sad to do so, it needs all the length it can get.  But it has to be done if I want any flowers as they flower on new wood, and cutting it back just a little will make it grow some.

Apart from the above there is of course, the weeding and mulching.  An ongoing job.

Happy gardening!

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