Get growing - COOL VEGES Best crops for winter gardens - Neighbourly
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get growing 22 May 2020
top tasks
• Turn the compost heap
• Leave ferns on asparagus
• Winter homes for wildlife
• Dig up dahlia tubers
• Tidy up scruffy bromeliads
COOL VEGES make your own
Best crops for winter gardens Upcycled hanging planter box
know your flowers
How to be a plant spotter
win
Thrive Plant Food Spikes from
Yates and NZ Gardener’s
365 Days of FlowersMy mini greenhouse is assembled at last and I've filled it with punnets of microgreens, spinach and spring onion seedlings, lemongrass divisions and potted up cuttings. It sits open all day and I zip it closed overnight – at least that's the theory – but I haven't quite trained myself into the new routine. One chilly night I had to venture out in the middle of the night in my pyjamas to close the door.
feedback
Share your best crops, photos
and feedback by emailing us here
Tulips and more
Your readers might enjoy looking
up the beautiful photos of the
Keukenhof tulip gardens in the
Netherlands. They are extraordinary.
Cathy Fraser, Devonport
Keukenhof was closed to the public
during the northern spring but seven
million bulbs didn’t bloom unseen.
See the videos including a 360
virtual tour here.
Chimera rose
My ‘Amber Light’ rose put out this
one rose perfect half and half.
Jacquie Holcomb, Christchurch
Left: The Keukenhof tulips and
right, Jacquie's perfect rose
TULIP PHOTO: NEWS.CISION.COM/KEUKENHOFWe heart rhubarb
My family love these rhubarb
scones.
Put two or three finely chopped
rhubarb stalks in a small bowl and
sprinkle with two tablespoons
sugar. Add a little finely chopped
crystalised ginger. Leave to draw
Whitefly remedies out the rhubarb juice while you
I have heaps of whitefly in my tunnel mix the scone dough. Sift four cups
house. Does anyone have any of self-raising flour and ¼ teaspoon
natural remedies to get rid of them? salt into a big bowl. Add 300ml
Sheryl Lee, Prebbleton cream and 300ml of lemonade.
Mix into a soft dough. Pat out
Over the years readers have onto a floured bench about 2cm
suggested using sticky yellow traps thick. Spread the rhubarb mixture
or yellow plastic smeared with over one half of the dough and
Vaseline to tackle whitefly. Shoo- fold the other side over the top
fly plants, Nicandra physalodes, to cover the rhubarb. Pat down
are also said to repel whitefly in gently to seal the top and bottom
greenhouses. Spraying with soapy together. Cut into 10 to 12 pieces
water or cooking oil (the sort in and put on a tray lined with baking
pressurised cans used to grease paper. Brush the tops with the last
baking trays) have also been dribbles of the cream and sprinkle
suggested. Have you tried these with finely chopped crystalised
methods? Did they work for you? ginger or crunchy demarara sugar.
Have you tried anything else? Email Cook for 10-12 minutes at 220°C
inbox@getgrowing.co.nz to share fanbake until golden brown.
your tips. Marie Henderson, Tauranga
PHOTO: DEAN KOZANICtop tasks GARDENING
by the moon
On Friday prune
and spray if
necessary. Tidy
By Barbara Smith up and do odd
jobs from May
23-26. From
May 27-30, sow
and transplant Asian
turn the
1 compost
heap
greens and other leafy
vegetables and sow
coriander direct.
If your heap is more than three
months old it's likely that there'll be
some usable compost at the bottom
as plant materials break down faster
in warm weather.
I make "cold" compost in a plastic as composting microorganisms
bin as I don't have enough material need oxygen. If your heap is smelly
all at once to make a "hot" heap. it’s likely to be decomposing
Read more about hot and cold anaerobically (without oxygen).
composting here. Take out any lovely, crumbly
Turning the pile every month or finished compost. Layer the rest
so gives the uncomposted bits on back into the bin along with more
the edges a chance to catch up plant material and a sprinkling of
with the material from the middle, lime, manure, sheep pellets or blood
which breaks down more quickly. and bone as an activator to get the
Turning also keeps the pile aerated, heap going again.
PHOTO: BARBARA SMITHtop tasks
leave
2 ferns on
asparagus
If your asparagus bed resembles rotted manure, seaweed or blood
a fernery, never fear! These tall, and bone, compost and pea straw.
wispy ferns are formed from Let it break down until planting time
unpicked spears and their purpose in spring.
is to provide the crowns in the You can buy dormant two-year-old
soil below with energy (through asparagus crowns in winter, but the
photosynthesis) for the following best time for planting in the garden
season’s spear production. While the is when the soil temperature reaches
ferns are not particularly pretty, they 12°C in early spring. Instead, bed
have a vital function so don’t be these crowns into a tray of potting
tempted to cut them back until they mix to save risking them rotting in
have turned brown and dried off the wet, cold winter soil and plant
around mid winter. When it’s time, once conditions are more suitable.
cut the ferns back at ground level Crowns are fairly expensive but
and add to your compost heap. they will save you several years of
This is also a great time to lay waiting until you can harvest.
down thick mulch to help suppress However, if you’re patient and have
weeds. There’s no need to feed time, asparagus grown from seed
asparagus during winter – wait until can provide many more plants for a
it bursts back into action in spring, fraction of the cost.
when the spears start emerging. Asparagus is slow to establish, but
If you want to start an asparagus once it is, a well-nourished bed will
bed, now is the time to start building keep you in tender spring spears for
up the soil. Dig in loads of well- at least 20 years.
PHOTO: BARBARA SMITHtop tasks
winter dig up
3 4
holes, or a compost bin to spend keeping some of the crown as a
homes for the winter. In early spring, the queen dahlia part of each section as this is where
wildlife goes on the lookout for a more tubers new shoots arise in spring. Rinse
permanent position for her nest, so the tubers off and after drying,
Winter is a tough time for the get a bumblebee hotel (above) ready. Decreasing day length in autumn store them in a cool, airy place until
insects that pollinate our crops, Wētā are gobbled up by rats and triggers dahlias to store energy replanting in spring. Label them by
eat pests and bring interest to our hedgehogs and need safe retreats. in underground tubers which lie colour and height so you can plan
gardens. Some avoid the issue by Here’s how to make a wētā motel. dormant over winter ready to grow your garden layout in spring.
hibernating or pass the winter as an Bees and pollinators are still about again next spring. In warm frost-free gardens with
egg or a pupa. Others require a cosy in winter. Include flowering trees In colder areas it's best to dig good drainage, dahlias can be left in
place to hunker down and also need and shrubs in your garden to supply up the tubers after the first frosts the ground for several years. Now
food and water. nectar. Tree fuchsia, five-finger, have blackened the leaves so the is a good time to move plants or lift
Bumblebee queens look for a cosy wattle and sasanqua camellias cover tubers don't rot in cold, wet soil and divide crowded clumps. Replant
spot under leaf litter, in old mouse the winter hunger gap. over winter. Split large clumps up, or store over winter as above.
PHOTOS FROM LEFT: JASON CREAGHAN; BARBARA SMITHtop tasks GIFTS FOR GARDENERS
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give scruffy
5
are about a third the height of the
bromeliads mother plant, remove a couple of
a tidy up outer leaves to expose the stem
and replant. For plants in pots, make
Spruce up outdoor plants shrouded a very free-draining mix by adding
in spider webs or clogged up with pumice, bark, gravel or scoria to
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PHOTO: BARBARA SMITHIt might sound obvious, but a good
place to start is thinking about the
vegetables you and your family like
to eat. There’s no point in cultivating
a flourishing crop of kale, say, if
you detest the taste. Another thing
worth considering, especially if you
are short of space, is whether you
should grow edible crops that are
both cheap and easy to buy from
your supermarket or greengrocer
when they are in season – which
is precisely when they will be
abundant in your garden.
In small gardens it’s also worth
focusing on crops that deliver the
maximum yield for the space they
occupy. You might love broccoli, but
broccoli, like all brassicas, takes up
lot of space, needs to grow for
cool veges months to head up and yet may
yield only a single meal. Whereas
Our pick of the best edible crops to
growing cut-and-come-again
grow over winter when the days are silverbeet in that spot could
short and the weather is chilly contribute to dozens of meals.Brassicas broccoli and Brussels sprouts, are Spinach & silverbeet Broad beans In winter, brassicas are almost plagued by whitefly and white Sow spinach in autumn or spring Broad beans like the cold and will trouble-free, growing slowly but cabbage butterfly caterpillars. Either or plant seedlings. Silverbeet is germinate well in temperatures demanding little or no attention. avoid growing them when these basically indestructible and needs ranging from 7 to 10°C. Sow seeds Give these plants plenty of room – pests are active or protect your little attention but spinach has a from April to October in warmer space them at least 30cm apart – so plants with a physical barrier such habit of bolting to seed quickly in areas. Down south, sow from April to they spread out their leaves and as an old net curtain or horticultural warm weather. June or from September to October. absorb as much winter sunlight as mesh. • Spinach is prone to various Plant directly in the garden 4cm possible. Without enough light they • Dig through a little lime before diseases especially if it is growing deep and 15cm apart. will be small and leggy. planting to reduce the risk of club in crowded conditions with poor • Most varieties grow to at least 1m • In summer (and autumn and spring root, a soil-borne disease that leads air circulation. Look out for hybrid high so will require staking. in warmer regions) all brassica crops, to swollen and distorted roots and varieties bred for resistance to • Pinch out (and eat) the growing such as cabbages, kale, cauliflower, retarded growth. fungal infections. tips to keep plants compact. PHOTOS : PREVIOUS PAGE: NEIL ROSS. THIS PAGE FROM LEFT: BARBARA SMITH; SALLY TAGG
Garlic well-rotted manure, or store bought Carrots seedlings, or mix the carrot seed Traditionally you plant garlic on the sheep pellets, and organic fertiliser. Always sow carrots direct. In warm with fine sand to better space the shortest day, but you can plant it at Prepare the soil to a depth of 20cm. regions sow any time between July crop. any stage from May to July. Don’t • Space the cloves out at least 20cm and March; in cooler areas, between • Carrot fly is a serious problem – leave it too late though as garlic apart, as the more space they have, August and February. the adults will lay their eggs near needs a cold spell in order to form the bigger the bulbs will be. Healthy • Good soil is the key if you want the roots and the larvae then tunnel fat bulbs. Spring-planted garlic will garlic plants can grow as fat as long, straight roots. If a baby carrot through the edible root to feed. be spindly. leeks. hits a rock or some other obstacle, it Mound up the soil around the base • Your crop will only be as good as • Don’t bury the cloves too deep. will bifurcate or fork. A soil to which of carrots as they grow to make it the seed you start with. Buy organic Press into the soil, with the pointy too-fresh compost has recently been harder for the larvae to reach the bulbs and split them up, keeping end facing up, and cover with applied will also cause carrots to carrot root and stop the shoulder only the fat, outer cloves to plant. 2-3cm of soil. You can always add fork. from turning green. You can also Eat the rest. more compost and mulch later in • Carrots have tiny seed, which protect carrots with a mesh cover • Soil preparation matters. Garlic is a the season if the bulbs end up too is almost impossible to space from Lincoln University’s BHU Future root crop and a hungry feeder. Dig in shallow. accurately. Either thin out your Farming Centre. PHOTOS: SALLY TAGG
Onions Peas Leeks Onions are easy to raise from seed Peas grow best over late winter While best grown as a winter crop, sown from February to May (up and early spring. They cannot take leeks can also be grown into early North), March to July (temperate the heat of summer and succumb summer but the longer days mean regions) and April to September to powdery mildew as soon as they are more likely to bolt to seed. (colder regions). temperatures rise. • Plant 15cm apart into well-drained • Give onions firm soil and good • After sowing, cover rows with soil enriched with compost and drainage – in waterlogged soil bird netting draped over sticks or a sheep pellets. Eat thinnings as baby they can be prone to rot. Keep chicken wire bent into a row cover. leeks and start harvesting alternate well watered, especially during dry Otherwise the seeds could be eaten plants at 2.5cm in diameter, leaving periods. Mulching around your plants by birds. more room for the rest to expand. will help keep water in the soil but • Pick peas when they’re a little • Most leek varieties (like Kings don’t let mulch touch the bulbs as immature to ensure they are tender Seeds’ ‘Winter Giant’) mature 120 that, too, can cause rot. and sweet. days after direct sowing. PHOTOS: SALLY TAGG
DIY upcycled crate What colour should
Rose Hughes’ latest project
PROUDLY SUPPLIED BY gives an old wooden crate a
charming second life
What paint is best
for terracotta pots?
o
H wdo Iprep ym deck
eb fore staining it?
Can Iprotect colour
fromsun damage?
Materials sI there aa special
specialpaint
paint
• Old wooden box or crate for swiimng pools?
• Nails
• Handsaw
• Drill / drill bits
• Fine sandpaper
• 4 x 22mm (or similar) hooks
• 2.5m x 16mm chain
• Black polythene
For helpful advice on your paint, stain and
• Staple gun and staples decorating projects, see your local Resene
• Potting mix and plants ColorShop or ask an expert free online:
Ask a Tech Expert resene.co.nz/technicalexpert
• Resene test pots Ask a Colour Expert resene.co.nz/colourexpert
• Paintbrushes
Cost: $20 excluding crate, paint
and plants
PHOTOS: ROSE HUGHES www.resene.co.nz/colorshopsStep by step
1. Mark and cut the box
down to size if required. I had
an old wooden nail box and
cut it down to 120mm high
using a handsaw. I used spare
timber from the sides to
repair the bottom boards. Drill
drainage holes in the base.
2. You can leave the box as it
is or paint it. I found an image
online and traced it onto one 1 2
side of the box. I used Resene
Half Spanish White for the
background and Dynamite,
Waiouru and Black for the
detail. Allow to dry thoroughly
and sand to recreate a
vintage look.
3. Attach a hook in each
corner making sure they are
screwed into solid timber. Cut
the chain to length and attach
to the hooks.
4. Line with polythene,
poking holes for drainage.
Plant up and hang.
3 4know your flowers
Identifying different flower
shapes is the first step to
grouping and classifying
plant families
Campanulate Capitulum Cruciform
Petals form a bell-shaped A raceme consisting of a tightly Four petals growing opposite No experience is required to become
corolla, usually hanging packed head of almost stalkless to each other in a cross shape a flower spotter. All you need to do
downwards like this abutilon. flowers like this centaurea. such as this clematis. is notice the many different ways
parts of flowers are put together.
Flowers may be as simple as a
single ring of petals at the end of a
stem. Many flowers can be joined to
a stem in different ways to form an
inflorescence.
Together, all of the petals of a
flower are called the corolla. Petals
can be separate or fused together
into tube or cup shapes.
Related plant families can be
Cluster Corymb Catkin identified by the shapes of their
Inflorescence made A flat-topped cluster of flower Spike-like, often pendulous, flowers. For example, the Cruciferae
up of a cluster of flowers stalks growing from the main stem inflorescence of petalless family (including mustard, cabbages
such as cherry blossom. to the same height like achillea. unisexual flowers like silver birch. and other brassicas) all have
cruciform (cross-shaped) flowers.
PHOTOS: 123RFCup-shaped Double Pompom Stellate
Petals grouped to form a cup- Flowers with extra petals Compact, globe-shaped Starlike, with radiating petals,
shaped corolla like this tulip. or multiple flowers within flower head of rolled petals like this daylily.
flowers like this camellia. such as this dahlia.
Raceme Spike Trumpet-shaped Spathe
An elongate, unbranched Unbranched inflorescence, The corolla is a slim tube of A large bract (specialised leaf)
inflorescence with flowers on similar to a raceme, but flowers fused petals that expands to a or pair of bracts partially
stalks up the main stem like are attached directly, without flaring bell at the opening such enclosing an inflorescence like
salvia. stalks, like kniphofia. as trumpet vine. calla lilies.
PHOTOS: 123RFIn the Asteraceae family (including
daisies, sunflowers, centaurea,
chrysanthemums and marigolds) the
flower is actually a composite of
Salverform many small florets fused together.
A slender tube topped This family was once called the
with a flat, circular corolla Compositae for this reason. The
such as morning glory. fused flower head works together as JUNE
one bloom maximising the appeal to ISSUE
pollinators. ON SALE
Closely observing how flowers are
formed gives gardeners clues to the
SOON
families they belong to which in turn
is helpful when trying to identify a
mystery plant.
Flower shapes give clues about
how they are pollinated too. A flat-
topped corymb is the perfect landing
pad for a butterfly but slim trumpets
Umbel need birds with long beaks and
An inflorescence in which the tongues to reach their nectar.
flower stalks arise from
a common point such as Take a walk around your garden After 25 years, we’re still here, showcasing
agapanthus. or local park and see how many of beautiful Kiwi houses and gardens and telling the
these shapes you can identify. stories of the people who live there
PHOTOS: 123RFGet Growing gardeners´ shopping guide
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Email your questions here
with “Q&A” as the subject
Q
save my
sickly
avocado
We have an avocado tree that had and that in combination with your is typical of calcium deficiency. This that. While it can be a bit unsightly,
heaps of yummy crops but now the free-draining Papamoa beach soil will also be contributing to the fruit it's not really a big concern for the
tree doesn’t look good. Only some would have put stress on the tree. drop, and often leads to increased overall health of the tree, so you can
parts of the tree are like this and other The wilting leaves and dropping of mite pressure so for the overall ignore the leaf damage.
parts are fine and look healthy. Some fruit can be attributed to water health of the plant, you'll need to As a final note, a tree that has had
fruits are dropping and something is stress. The best remedy for that, add some calcium. You are likely to loads of yummy fruit for a number
eating the leaves. other than regular deep watering, is already have a high pH in your soil, of years will need a bit of a break, so
Minako Greet, Papamoa Beach to increase the levels of organic so go for a Cal/mag dolomite rather consider pruning this winter, thinning
matter. So gather up what compost, than straight lime as a calcium the bunches of fruit to just a few per
A There are a few factors in play
with your avocado tree, but the
good news is they are all fixable. Yes,
seaweed and mulch that you can and
pile it on thickly around the drip zone.
The next factor is the yellowing of
source.
And something has been eating
the leaves. It is most likely to be
branch and feeding it up a bit.
Kazel Cass,
Tutor and Avocado Consultant,
we have just experienced a drought the leaves – with the brown tips this fullers rose weevil doing damage like www.plentypermaculture.co.nzQ&A
Q when should
I spray
my roses?
Can you tell me what to spray roses
with black spots on the leaves before I
prune them? What sprays should I use
after the roses are pruned?
Jim Fitzgerald, Temuka
A Don’t bother spraying now.
Remove the infected foliage
if you like (don't compost it) but
kill any over-wintering fungi.
Build up the resilience and health
of your roses as prevention is better
you can also leave it to drop off. than cure for black spot. When
Rake up and remove the dropped pruning remove canes that cross in
leaves. Fungal diseases such as the centre of the plant, to improve
black spot, rust and mildew can air flow. At the end of winter, after
be kept to a minimum by spraying pruning, feed with sheep pellets and
roses in winter. Spray two or three side dress with a rose fertiliser and
times, several weeks apart (check spread mulch.
instructions on the spray packaging), During the growing season from
with a copper-based spray, mixed October to February, foliar feed
with horticultural oil. The oil helps every fortnight. Remember to water
the copper to stick to the roses. the base of the plant rather than the
Cover the whole bush – as well as foliage as fungal diseases thrive in
the soil underneath – with spray to damp conditions.noticeboard
Noticeboard requests
Email your requests for hard-to-find CONGRATULATIONS
seeds, plants or projects or recipes to TO OUR PRIZE WINNERS
inbox@getgrowing.co.nz with
“Noticeboard” in the subject line. Palmers Gift Card: Annabelle
Vaughn, Auckland; Lyn Emmens,
Lower Hutt; Jan Williams,
‘Senshyu Yellow’ onion seed Hamilton; Jan Gibbs, Papamoa.
Is anyone growing the Japanese May issue of NZ House &
onion ‘Senshyu Yellow’? It grows Garden: Nicola Deerness,
through the winter and fills the Auckland; Kenneth Hogan,
gap when those in storage start Auckland; Allan Ching, Napier;
to sprout. It was a favourite of the Dianne Shaw, Tauranga; Victoria
late Prof. T Walker who selected Hay, Christchurch; Kate Ball,
and saved seeds for a decade. I Auckland; Pam Guthrie, Temuka;
can’t find any seed in New Zealand, Vicki Smith, Invercargill; Lori
has anyone saved any seed from Heine, Upper Moutere; Susan
this onion? Tony Baker, Blenheim, Visitors viewing displays in the Grand Marquee at the Royal Johnstone, Ashburton.
tonybaker@snap.net.nz Horticultural Society’s Chelsea Flower Show in 2017.
Onion breeder, Martyn Callaghan,
says seed can be bought on ebay or
from Kings Seeds in the UK. A small Virtual Chelsea There’s a lot to see but as non-
packet of seed for home garden The Royal Horticultural Society’s members from the other side of the
use doesn’t require a phytosanitary Chelsea Flower Show went digital world a little patience is required.
certificate, provided the botanical for the first time this week. Each Each page starts with a request to
name Allium cepa is printed on the day growers and designers who sign up. Wait for a few seconds then Sign up to Get Growing
seed packet. Onion seed needs to be would usually exhibit at Chelsea the video or other content appears. If a friend or family member would
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on arrival. techniques. day of the show.
PHOTO:123RFcontact us editor Barbara Smith designer Susan Thomas advertising manager Bev Drake bev.drake@stuff.co.nz advertising coordinator Shona Cribb send feedback to inbox@getgrowing.co.nz conditions of entry for get growing competitions Prizes cannot be redeemed for cash, exchanged or transferred. Employees of Stuff Limited, associated sponsor(s), and their immediate families and agencies are not permitted to enter. The decision of the general manager of Stuff Limited is final. Competitions are open to readers resident in NZ only. Entries are the property of Get Growing and may be used for promotional purposes by Stuff Limited and/or by the supplier(s) of the prizes. © 2020 Get Growing is published by Stuff Limited. No part of this e-zine may be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. All rights reserved. Advertising within this publication is subject to Stuff Limited’s standard terms and conditions. ISSN No. 2324-1489 have a great week in your garden next issue: friday, may 29
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