Puarangi – Native Hibiscus Hibiscus trionum Puarangi, a short lived perennial, was considered to be a native plant but more recently considered to be of African origin, possible brought here by the Maori. Here in the cool South Island it is better treated as an annual. H. trionum grows to 50 – 80 cms high … Read More
June has been a very frustrating month in the garden with little sun and plenty of rain and drizzle. Because of these conditions I have done little in the outside garden but have spent time in the greenhouses doing maintenance and sorting out plants that are past their best.
This weather pattern looks as though it may continue for some time so we will have to wait until we get some good sunny days for that outside work. There is no need to worry as there is still plenty of Winter to come to get those outside tasks completed.
June has been a very frustrating month in the garden with little sun and plenty of rain and drizzle. Because of these conditions I have done little in the outside garden but have spent time in the greenhouses doing maintenance and sorting out plants that are past their best.
This weather pattern looks as though it may continue for some time so we will have to wait until we get some good sunny days for that outside work. There is no need to worry as there is still plenty of Winter to come to get those outside tasks completed.
In May we are well into Autumn and Winter is about to start. This means that we will slow down on what we need to do around the garden.
Most of the work involves general maintenance and cleaning up, in and around the garden by removing weeds, crop residues, lifting Summer perennials and bulbs and preparing ground for new plantings later in the Spring.
T-Rex Begonia Ruby Slippers What a great show again this year for the Oderings School Garden Competition. We love having the opportunity to help encourage the gardeners of our future, and what a stella job they did again this year. Say goodbye to a muted space of green houseplants and say hello to colour with … Read More
Kowhai Thompson’s first landscape design instalment Mass Planting One way to create a ‘tied together’ look in your home garden is to add areas of mass plantings. This works both for brand new gardens and for established gardens. Think of purchasing 5 or 10 identical plants at a time of the same variety/colour at a … Read More
From Michael Coulter January has been a month of real challenges in the garden this Summer with winds, hot days followed by cool days and some rain. Despite this I have had plenty of good growth and fruit to harvest although some plants are running a little later than usual. Much of the work to … Read More
Swan plants are in hot demand this Summer, everyone wants the happiness of watching a caterpillar turning into a beautiful butterfly especially children, there’s something so fascinating about it and not to mention is very educational as well.
From Michael Coulter December is the start of the Summer weather and plants are now well into their rapid growth with many of the Spring-planted crops ready for harvest. Many of the pest and diseases that attack our plants will also begin to appear so we will need to take action to mitigate the damage … Read More
From Michael Coulter Spring weather has at last given us some rain so the top soil now has some good moisture but the sub soil is still dry, this means that we will still have to water our gardens to keep the moisture up where the plants are growing. The warmer temperatures plus humidity from … Read More