The very changeable Spring weather of the last month will hopefully change to the more settled warmer weather that we expect this month.
We are now in the month which we do most of our planting and sowing.
In the vegetable garden it is time to plant and sowing of all the warmer loving plants.
Many of the earlier planted crops will begin to grow faster and be ready for harvesting. Weeding and watering will be needed as the temperatures increase and the days are longer.
Fruit trees will be getting to end of their flowering so the time for treatment for codling moth, caterpillars and aphids will be here. Soft fruits will be starting ripen so will need to be covered to protect them from the birds.
Potatoes should be moulded and the earlies not far from harvest, the main crop preventative treatments should be made to stop the psyllid from infecting the plants, this also applies to tomatoes.
Lawns will continue to grow fast and will benefit from fertiliser and weed treatments.
The pruning of Spring flowering shrubs and trees should be done as soon as the flowering finishes.
Summer annuals and other perennials may be planted now. Chrysanthemums, Dahlias, Gladiola and tuberous Begonias can all be planted; be certain to give them enough room to grow.
Now is a good time to check over the watering systems, hoses and sprinklers before the hot dry weather arrives in the much hotter Summer to come.
Happy gardening, Michael Coulter
We want your problems!
Have a gritty garden problem you can’t solve — or just need some general advice? Bring your questions to our monthly AAG meeting, post them on HortTalk or email Michael directly a day or 2 before the meeting. coultchrys@xtra.co.nz
There are plenty of other tasks that need to be done so come to All About Gardening were we can answer your questions or consult our online facebook group