How do you know if your garden’s pH is too high or too low and what can you do about it? Every so often I will get a call from a gardener who tells me their pH is too high or too low and what can they do about it. The conversation will go along […]
Gardeners endeavour to have their garden plants looking as healthy as possible, especially their preferred plants such as roses. To understand what is needed to have very healthy looking plants, one can compare plant health to human health. For a healthy body we require a certain amount of water, sun, a balance of food, rich […]
Now is the time to prepare ourselves and our gardens for winter. We are prompted by advertisements and common sense to prepare for the coming short daylight hours and the cold that winter brings. We endeavour to make ourselves and our homes “as snug as a bug in a rug” by getting in the firewood, […]
Citrus trees are a common fruit tree for NZ gardeners and in most areas grow in open ground or in containers with protection during winter. Citrus trees cross very easily which has created a large number of types over the years. The genus Citrus appears to have originated in Southeast Asia with the following types: […]
Potential problems you may encounter with growing and caring for citrus. An important aspect for your citrus tree is the area between the trunk and the drip line. This is the area where you want micro organisms to work and thrive, so avoid using any Herbicides, chemical sprays and fertilisers it this area. Instead hand […]
I received an email newsletter this week from ‘Spilling the Beans’ by Jeffrey M. Smith the well known American Author of, Seeds of Deception, and Genetic Roulette.
February is the last month of summer and the time when many pest insects have built up big populations, if you have not been on the ball with your controls. It is very easy to miss a build up and then a lot harder to gain control. I got caught out recently with my zucchini […]
It is Saturday in Palmerston North, and while I am writing this, nice showers are wetting the soil and plants are growing in response. It has been a poor spring and summer so far for gardening, but hopefully conditions will improve in February, if they don’t then it’s going to be a bad season overall. […]
