Innholdsfortegnelse for March 2022 i The Gardener Magazine

So, it seems that one of the positive spinoffs of Covid is that more ‘under 35s’ are growing their own edibles, and finding that it’s a great way to de-stress. The Garden Media Group, which is often bang on for spotting trends, quotes a study in the United States showing that 8 in 10 young people think gardening is ‘cool’, and would rather go to a garden centre than a nightclub. Considering that nightclubs are super-spreader venues while garden centres offer fresh air and space, that makes a lot of sense! For our own next generation of gardeners, don’t let little or no experience of gardening stop you from getting started. YouTube is great for picking up tips, but the only way to develop your own green fingers is to…

When driving around the Cape countryside at this time of year, you will see many naked ladies waving at you from the huge old town gardens. They are the indigenous Amaryllis belladonna, also known as the March lily or the naked lady, and when you see the flowering stems of this bulb emerging from the bare ground, know that they are giving you a sign that summer is coming to an end in the Western Cape. Large clusters of up to 12 gently scented, trumpet-shaped pink flowers are carried on slender stems up to 50cm in height. These flowers, which have protruding curved anthers, always face the direction that receives the most sun. Straplike leaves appear after flowering, remain green throughout winter and then die back in summer when the…

To attract bees, butterflies and beetles to the garden, you can’t go wrong with Buddleja saligna. What’s more, all this insect activity will entice insectivorous birds to visit this almost endemic plant in droves. Commonly known as the false olive due to its long, narrow olive-like leaves, it forms a shrub or even a small tree up to 8m tall. It will generally form a 4 x 3m bush that can be pruned to keep the size small or formed into a hedge. From October to April the shrub is filled with clusters of tiny creamy flowers, fragrant and filled with nectar for all those hungry insects. It’s a hardy evergreen that can be planted as a windbreak in full sun and is drought-resistant. Add plenty of compost to any…

With the long summer months slowly passing into the cooler and calm autumn days, it is time to take stock of your garden with your pruning tools at hand. Now is the time to see what should be neatened, shaped, tamed or encouraged to give another flower flush, as most plants will have grown vigorously and might need a haircut or a clean-up. Prune the evergreens – this means trimming topiaries and formal evergreen hedges. Allowing plants with a formal shape to lose it takes away from their quality and desired denseness. Neglecting this job and then trying to correct it in a drastic way is seldom successful and defeats the purpose of the exercise. Care for the damaged – damage from hail and summer storms causes torn and broken…

Oregano is a zesty, savoury herb for slow-cooked winter feasts, which means that you should get it going now for a good supply of leaves from June onward. Fortunately, it is frost hardy. Wine, tomatoes, garlic and onion are ingredients that pair well with oregano, especially when slow cooking cuts of lamb or beef. It’s a flavour combination redolent of Italian and Greek cuisine. For lovers of chicken, roast with lemon juice, olive oil and garlic, adding oregano, rosemary and a dash of cayenne pepper for extra flavour. Fresh or dried? Interestingly, oregano dries very well and has a stronger flavour than fresh leaves. Why not dry part of your harvest and combine it with coarse sea salt or Himalayan salt? It adds loads of flavour when ground over roasting…

Our gardens are the ultimate haven for local bird life. Whether it’s a tree they find a home in, or berries they feed on before going on their way, your garden design and contents can become a great support to these essential garden friends that increasingly struggle to find homes as city spaces expand. And there is no better way to draw birds to your garden, and to keep them there, than with a bird feeder. With so many benefits for your garden, for yourself, and for the birds themselves, its not hard to see why every garden needs at least one bird feeder. Pest control Pests are the bane of every gardener’s existence. Aphids, slugs, caterpillars, and a range of other insects can wreak havoc on your plants –…

Like all other sectors in the garden industry, rose growers have been working towards a poison-free garden, and the moment seems to have arrived. It started with the introduction of PLANT FEATURE disease-resistant roses, like the Eco-Chic range in 2009, and more recently the A poison-free rose garden Stamina roses, selected by Ludwig’s Roses as powerful growers with strong roots TEXT Alice Spenser-Higgs and tough leaves to survive both variable weather and disease. Like all other sectors in the garden But pests have always been a problem, especially those like thrips that spoil blooms and deform new growth, and red spider mite, which can defoliate a rose if It started with the introduction of left unchecked, making it susceptible to die-back. In a hunt for alternatives, Halmar Taschner made contact…

Foliar feeding Foliar feeding means applying a water-soluble fertiliser directly to plant leaves via a spray bottle or knapsack sprayer. The best time to apply fertiliser like this is early to mid-morning or late afternoon, on a windless day, as the absorption takes place through the plant stomata (pores in the epidermis leaves and stems). Foliar feed or water-soluble fertilisers are high in trace nutrients that help to develop strong cell structure in plants, which in turn aids plants in resisting pests. Most water-soluble fertilisers have a sea/kelp-based mix. How to apply: Mix the fertiliser into water as per the instructions on the packaging. Apply an even spray over the plant as well as under the leaves and stems. Plants that will benefit: Young seedlings, veggies Soaking or bottom watering This…

‘Golden Penny’ is a free-flowering and incredibly healthy rose that produces ‘golden pennies’ in the form of shapely copper-gold blooms. This landscape rose grows to hip height and shows off best when three or more are planted together. It is also a good picking rose, and a bowl of these golden blooms will warm and brighten the home. Rose tasks for March Water deeply at least once a week. Keep deadheading to encourage new blooms Heavier dew in the morning may result in black spot. Spray preventatively with Chronos mixed with Ludwig’s Insect Spray or use Rose Protector. The two treatments can be alternated. Fertilise with Vigorosa towards the middle of March. If you notice crinkled leaves and deformed flower buds caused by a thrips infestation, spray with Plant Care…

Eriocapitella hupehensis (synonym: Anemone hupehensis) and other species and hybrids are bred and grown intensively in Japan, although these plants are native to China. It is a genus in the buttercup family (Ranunculaceae), and are also commonly known as windflowers. These long-living perennials can quickly form large colonies with a clumping growth habit spread by underground rhizomes. Flowering time for them is late summer and primarily in autumn, mostly in shades of pinks, lilacs and pure white, depending on the variety. The wispy flowers on thin stems are great cut flowers that are also loved by butterflies. The best place to plant windflowers is in a spot with morning sun and afternoon shade, such as the southern side of the house. They will grow in full sun too, but will…

Terracotta nesting box A pot and some offcuts is all you need for this funky nesting box. YOU NEED 1 x 16cm pot 1 x 4cm piece of 12mm dowel 1 x 8mm x 38mm washer 1 x 8mm x 75mm coach bolt 1 x nylon wall plug Clear silicone Wood sealer Offcuts of 20mm wood big enough for a 160mm disc and a 90mm disc. Tools: Jigsaw, drill, 8mm and 12mm wood drill bits, 35mm wood hole saw or Forstner bit, compasses and pencil Steps 1. Mark a 160mm circle and a 90mm circle on the wood and cut them out with the jigsaw. 2. Drill an 8mm hole in the centre of the 90mm disc. 3. Drill a 35mm hole off-centre in the 160mm disc. 4. Drill a…

IN BRIEF Where Bedford, Eastern Cape Soil: Clay Size: 0.5 ha Bedford, the little town in the Eastern Cape that we travel to once a year, is known for its lush farm gardens, even in the persisting drought. I discovered a hidden gem on a recent visit, set on the outskirts of town at the foot of the Kaggaberg. Having met Janine and Bruce a few years ago, and last seen their garden then, I was astounded to see how it had been transformed so completely in such a short time. Yes, we talk about garden design and the importance of plant matter, of creating rooms, of contrasting foliage and height, but a garden have all of this and still leave us feeling empty after a visit to it. Well,…

Expectations are always high for plants growing in a small garden with limited space and different sun patterns. You can’t afford to pick the wrong plants, unless you have the energy and resources to replant time and time again… The solution lies within the coffee plant family, and more specifically with dwarf coprosma hybrids bred from Coprosma repens (mirror bush). In addition to their colourful, glossy leaves with variegation that intensifies in cool seasons, we love these plants for their ease to cultivate and year-long good looks, adaptability to many climates (apart from the coldest and frostiest), and high resistance to pests and diseases, as nothing ever seems to eat or plague them. Another bonus is that they use very little water once established. Our recommended dwarf hybrids all have…

Whether you call them Dipladenia or Mandevilla does not really matter – what does matter is the ‘sanderi’ part of the name. This is the bit that you should remember, as that indicates plants that flower like machines and that are calling you to fill up pots and hanging baskets with all the latest varieties you can find. Flower colours include white, lilac, different pinks and bright to deep reds. Other good-to-know facts are that they have surprisingly low water requirements, and that their bright blooms don’t get bleached by the sun. Will they grow everywhere? Mandevillas will tolerate light frost in temperate climates, but it would be a better idea to plant them somewhere with protection and to cover potted plants with frost cloth in winter. They love subtropical…

In the subtropical areas of South Africa, you can find the madumbe or amadumbe, a naturalised tuber that is topped off with leaves similar to those of the elephant ear. The tubers are a popular food source similar to what are called yams or taro in other countries. Peeled and cooked into stir-fries or curries or used as a side dish, madumbes have a host of health benefits with loads of vitamins and minerals as well as being a good source of fibre. They do, however, contain calcium oxalate, a toxic chemical that is destroyed by cooking, so they must not be eaten raw. The leaves are also edible and can be used like spinach. Plant tubers in rich well-composted soil, in full sun or semi-shade. If you are outside…

For more than twenty years, the pink Rosa ’Knock Out’ has been knocking the socks off rose lovers all over the world. So if you are a newbie to rose gardening, or just looking for a tough and very floriferous floribunda rose to plant as a low flowering hedge, a rosy border or to add some strong colour in a spot or two in the garden, or even into roomy containers, go for this one. Remember that March is the perfect time to plant roses, as they are heavy into their autumn flowering flush. It is a repeat bloomer of about hip height (80 x 40cm) with a blooming cycle of 5 – 6 weeks, and with hearty clusters of dark cherry-pink, self-cleaning flowers. This rose is quite disease resistant…

Turnips are brassicas, like cabbage and broccoli, but they don’t get as big or take up as much space, which makes it easy to grow them in containers. They are quicker to harvest than other brassicas, and both the leaves and root are edible. Turnips can be eaten raw (shredded or chopped), roasted, steamed, boiled and mashed like potatoes, or added to soups and stews. The younger they are, the sweeter the flavour. The greens can be treated like spinach. For container-grown turnips you will need: A deep trough (at least 30cm deep), growbag or pot between 30 and 60cm deep, with drainage holes. Good quality potting soil, or your own mix of 1 part compost, 1 part peat/cocopeat, 1 part perlite and a slow-release fertiliser. To sow: Almost fill…