Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2022 i The Gardener Magazine

Christmas day is around the corner and many of you have already got your lists scribed with what gifts you are buying and for whom. Some just have a name and a blank spot where the gift is meant to be written. I am having a similar problem! I am told: “Just get me a strange exotic plant.” This may sound easy but let me tell you that it’s not an air fryer, make up, perfume or those items which one can pick up from most regular shops. Now when you have a partner that has collected most of the strange exotic specimen plants available, this task gets really hard! So, the hunt is on; I am trawling websites, plant groups that begin with ‘Rare’, just anything right now to…

1. Veggies pillar candles Transform ordinary white candles into a green and white delight with a few veggies and some ribbon. Wrap a line of beans or rosemary around a candle and secure with ribbon. Also hollow out an artichoke and use as a candle holder. Use as table décor for a fresh arrangement. 2. Everlasting bouquet A bouquet made from dried flowers can be a thing of beauty and it lasts much longer than fresh flowers. There are several things in the edible garden that could be added like dried chillies, wheat and oats, cereal grasses, dried citrus (will need to be wired before adding to the mix), rosemary, sage and roses. To dry long stemmed cuttings, tie them up together and place upside down until fully dried. 3.…

Any interior designer will tell you that the outdoor space should be decorated in the same way any interior space is designed. But there are a few things to consider like the weather. You want to choose items that will take the sun, wind and rain and come back smiling; be willing to look after your outdoor furniture; or be able to store items efficiently and with ease when the weather is bad. Start building your outdoor oasis with good, comfortable furniture. Decide what the space will be used for – relaxing or lounging or dining, or both. Also don’t forget a braai space which can be as small as a spot for a portable braai to a bigger investment in an outdoor kitchen with all the bells and whistles…

One of the regular tips on what to do in the veggie garden, is to add dry leaves, grass clippings or green garden material to the compost heap. That’s good advice but it doesn’t tell the whole story. There are two types of composting. If you are doing hot composting, which produces compost faster, that is not actually good advice. However, it does apply if you are doing cold composting, which takes longer. There is no reason why you can’t do both side by side, for an extended supply of compost. Here’s why and how: A hot compost pile needs volume (biomass) and about a 60:40 proportion of fresh green material (nitrogen) and dry brown material (carbon) in order to generate heat for the bacteria to quickly break down the…

Summer-frost your garden with a dense carpet of snow with the extremely cold-hardy and vigorous groundcover called Cerastium tomentosum. The small foliage is felty and silvery-grey and becomes totally smothered at blooming time with snow-white, star-shaped flowers. Height is 10cm with an indefinite spread which makes it useful to plant as a lawn substitute, to drape over rocks in a sunny rock garden, or to cover the cracks in crazy paving. Clip back firmly after flowering and divide your carpet of snow regularly in spring or autumn to keep it fresh and healthy. Golden sweet flag This plant is happy growing inside a pond, copes with heavy clay or damp boggy soil, but also adaptable to any other condition – this is the good side of Acorus gramineus ‘Golden Edge’…

Purple fountain grass Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum’ forms a dramatic tuft of more than 1m high with a fountain-like growth habit with curving, linear leaves which are a rich burgundy colour. Reedy flower stems appear in summer carrying downy purple-pink plumes until the end of winter. Fast growing and loved by birds. Uses are many. They make lovely accent plants if used in bold groups; great as background fillers in mixed shrub beds; perfect to bind soil on banks; attractive near water features; low-care choice for a gravel garden; and pretty as specimen plants in pots. It will grow in most climates and is frost-hardy. Plant it in full sun or light shade in compost-enriched soil which drains well. It has medium water requirements, but can tolerate periods of drought when…

IN BRIEF: What: Ammazulu Sculpture Garden Where: Kloof Falls Road, Kloof Size: 20 acres Climate: Subtropical Designer: Peter Amm The climate in KwaZulu-Natal is such that allows for the conversion of a cattle farm on a grassland with gum trees into a tropical paradise with natural forest and vining plants climbing skywards. Although it has been 70 years in the making, you would never know that this tropical paradise was ever anything else. It’s now a forest of tall trees, climbing vines, flowering shrubs and interesting plants with pathways on which to wander and explore every corner – a typical KwaZulu-Natal forest but with a few differences. The conversion started with Peter’s mother, Mrs Winkle, who set about making the garden into a fantasy world. Peter then filled the garden…

Black is certainly the colour of drama. Just a small amount draws the eye and provides intense contrast to any colour it is paired with. When used with purpose, it can create a unique feature that is bold but comforting at the same time. Feature walls, furniture or smaller furnishings like cushions and rugs can benefit from a drop of this trending colour. But what if black is simply too bold for your current space? It doesn’t mean you have to give up on the trend altogether. Look to the world of houseplants to fulfil your needs (in design and in gardening) without making too many changes. Black is just as elusive in the plant world as it is in design, with very few plants and flowers sporting the colour.…

Lush hanging baskets add that something extra to a patio or a balcony and there are many plant options to fill them up with. But, for low care baskets that will stay around longer than the traditional floral baskets filled with seasonal plants that have to be replaced often, consider interesting succulents with a natural trailing habit and richly-textured and hued stems and leaves. You will need: Sinceyoursucculentwillreside in the same basket for quite a while, pick a roomy and strong wire basket lined with a coir lining. You can opt for any other type of container, but robust succulents generally combine well with a natural-looking basket. Agrowingsucculentwithfleshy leaves and a typical succulent soil medium containing river sand can be a hefty package. Make sure that the hook…

Fuchsia ‘Sundancer’ For a potted plant that flowers for several months, you have to get Fuchsia ‘Sundancer’ from the Proven Winners range. It grows up to 2m in the garden and can be trimmed to keep its shape and in pots it’s perfect for summer patios on its own or planted with other contrasting plants. It can be positioned in full sun or shade and needs regular watering. Feed every couple of weeks with a liquid plant food and add water retaining products to the soil to keep it moist. Cuphea hyssopifolia ‘Lemon & Ice’ For foliage that stands out with its bright lime and yellow, ‘Lemon & Ice’ is the choice. It’s a compact cuphea 30cm high and 40cm wide that can be pruned into a striking low hedge.…

Ruttya fruticosa, hailing from Mozambique and tropical East Africa, bears very unusual and attractive orange or yellow tubular flowers with two distinctive lips and a shiny black smudge spilling from each flower’s throat. Blooming time is from spring to late summer. This rounded shrub has glossy dark-green leaves, sometimes dropping a few during winter conditions, but not something to be worried about. It reaches a height and spread of 2m and more, and will grow in full sun or semi-shade in composted, well-draining soil. A fast grower if watered and fed regularly and it will tolerate light frost. Regular pruning after flowering will keep it neat and ensure a nice shape. Plant it as a hedge, as a specimen background shrub, or in a roomy pot to enable you to…

Going on holiday and leaving your garden behind? ✓ Postpone tasks like seed sowing, division, potting up and the taking of cuttings until you are home again. ✓ Remove old blooms and disbud repeat-flowering plants just before leaving to encourage new flowers for when you return. ✓ If you do not have an automatic irrigation system, ask a friendly neighbour to water your garden in your absence. To make it easier on the waterer, attach time switches and hosepipes on all taps and group potted plants together in the shade of a tree where they will dry out less quickly and will also be easier to water. ✓ Do not forget to add water retention granules to all your outdoor pots. It can go a long way to save precious…

We will be a full house as usual during the holidays, with an intense peak of more eating heads around my festive table on Christmas day. At a first briefing meeting with the ‘main management’ team it was impossible to reach consensus or commitment. It turned out on the brink of open aggression but in the end, everybody did acknowledge the fact that times are difficult and that the festivities should be toned down. A decision was made that the family kids, age group under 13, would not miss out on gifts (although cost within reason as their aunt and their grandma immediately chirped in). Upon a quick perusal of just one boy’s wish list, I noticed that a pair of very upmarket Crocs were on the list and my…

Sarracenia Trumpet pitcher plants Sarracenia purpurea was named after Dr Michael Sarrazin, a surgeon and naturalist who lived in the 17th century. He was one of the first scientists to document and catalogue ecosystems in New France – an area that reached from the Gulf of Mexico all the way to the coast of what is now Canada. On discovery of these plants, he informed the academic community that the plant trapped and digested insects, but his theory was dismissed only to be later validated by Charles Darwin’s findings in 1875. Commonly known as trumpet pitchers, this genus of North American pitcher plants has approximately 11 species. They grow from rhizomes and their upright pitchers – some reaching up to 1m in height – can survive winter temperatures down to…

There are also several colours available and they last for ages in their pots. Once they have finished flowering, they can be popped into the garden to continue giving of their best for years to come. Now that’s a gift that lasts! In fact, if you ask Tanya Visser about potted roses, she will probably mention the 3 potted roses she purchased for her Mom that were later planted in wooden barrels and are still growing today – 12 years later. Indoor and patio care If cared for well indoors, potted roses can flower for a very long time. Here are some tips to make sure they do: Light – roses need lots of light indoors and will not do well in a dark corner. Make sure to give them several…

You need Timber in the following dimensions: 2 x 700mm x 68mm x 20mm (uprights) 2 x 450mm x 68mm x 20mm (top and bottom) 1 x 600mm x 144mm x 20mm (base) Wood glue Woodoc 35 Polywax Sealer (Dark Brown) 3.5mm x 40mm wood screws 1 x decorative finial (found in stores that sell curtain rods) 1 x brass cup hook Mineral turpentine Tools: Sander, pencil, tape measure, cordless drill, 3mm speed bit and driver bit, paint brush, clamps, clean cloth, flat stirrer Steps 1. Make a mark in the centre of the top piece. You can do this by drawing diagonal lines from corner to corner – the middle is where they intersect. Drill a 3mm pilot hole at this mark, not all the way through. This is…