Basic gardening tip for thirsty ferns

Ferns are some of the thirstiest plants you can have in the garden and also some of the loveliest. They are sometimes small and delicate and other times large and majestic.

My particular favorite is the maidenhair fern, and my plant comes from the home I grew up in as a child.  It was my Nanna's pride and joy, she would carefully take out the tea pot each morning and pour the left over cold tea on to it. This morning ritual kept the fern lush and healthy even in the hush climate of South Australia.  My Mum still has the original trough of fern that has been continually growing for at least the last 60 years and the parent plant has produced many small ferns to share with family and friends.

As you can see in the picture there is a plastic drink bottle sticking out of the basket of my fern.  I placed it under the table in the antrum as it was a cool, shady spot.  I find by keeping a bottle of water in the plant it helps keep the soil moist throughout the summer and if you are away for a few days it keeps it watered.  Always keep your fern in a cool, shady spot in the garden.

Ferns grow all year round in the sub-tropics where I live, but in South Australia where my Mum lives they have hash winters and come August we have always cut the fern back, place a sheet of newspaper over the top of the stems and burn the paper.  This ensures that all old growth is taken away from the base and within days new shoots quickly appear.  Be careful when burning the paper, you only need a small piece, but always keep the hose on standby.





Happy gardening

Bronwyn

Basic tip for gardening the natural way, be careful those bugs may be the good guys

It is very hard being a gardener not to reach for the commercial bug spray, to rid ourselves of those pesky little creatures munching away at our plants.  I'm as guilty as the next person, but have been trying very hard of late to let nature take it's course.

One of the best little bugs to have in your garden is the ladybug, not only are they tireless workers, but they are pretty little things as well.  Colour is usually red to rusty with little black spots, I just love hunting for them in the garden and thrilled when I find them.

You'll have to look closely to see them in the photos but they are there, now you can see why you have to hunt for them, they are so tiny, but big when it comes to being effective.

They are on the leaves of the Rose and potato plant below

Ladybugs just love thrips and if you look closely at the next photo you can see the thrip covering the rose and it's stem.  As I said you can spray then with a commercial spray and they will disappear for a few weeks then you re spray.  But, when you spray you also kill the ladybugs who are feeding on the thrip, and they are doing the same job naturally.

It takes time to build up a large population of good bugs and although I have concentrated on ladybugs there are many different types of good bugs that are of benefit to your garden.

Keep an eye out for the good guys and be patient.

Happy gardening

Bronwyn

Basic gardening tip for good soil balance

As a new gardener, and I'm talking many, many years ago, I was lucky to have gardening mentors all around me, especially my Dad.  As a child I saw him planting everything from, fruit trees, grapes, veggies and an array of flowering shrubs and plants.  Coming home from school was always a delight because as I jumped over the front fence, practicing for high jumping, I would pass the grapes and fruit trees snacking as I went.  My Dad built my first shade house when I was 10 and taught me how to propagate, how lucky was I.

But, the most important lesson he taught me was that all plants needed different soil types, whether it be natural, acidic or alkaline.  Such a simple act but the bases of a good garden.  In his day it was just instinctive to know what plant needed what, but today we have the wonderful soil testing kit to help us out.  It can be purchased at garden centres.

Last year I had some very unhappy grevilleas, which are Australian native plants, and like most Australian native plants they prefer natural to acidic soil.  After testing the soil it showed high alkaline levels, in part due to an over exuberant husband who fertilised heavily, native plants don't like a lot of fertiliser, hence the end result.



After using the test kit to establish the PH,  I added powdered sulphur, sprinkling 1 handful per square metre and you can see the results in the picture (grevilleas pink flowers at the back) the Lillie loved it too, they were covered in flowers and the birds loved them.





Happy gardening

Bronwyn

Basic gardening tips - Bring your garden inside

Just when outside for some reason, but got distracted by a beautiful rose, so just had to pick a bunch of flowers.

Only had 4 roses, but picked some leafy bushes combined with rosemary and mint, the smell is amazing and I think it looks pretty good as well, what do you think.

Happy gardening

Bronwyn

Basic tip for gardening with worms, worms and more worms

Worms are the gardeners best friend, working away tirelessly every day to improve the soil.  I still get excited when I'm digging in my garden and see them trying to wiggle their way back down under the cool, dark soil after being disturbed.

Don't under estimate these little creatures they are invaluable in the garden, they provide nutrients and naturally break up the soil.  Gardens that have not been looked after and become barren don't usually have many worms in them, so how do we get them back.

Simply buy then from your garden centre, most sell worms in boxes, usually marketed for establishing worm farms, but you can also put then straight into the soil, I do.

Tip 4:

Purchase 1 box of worms, usually come in boxes of 1000s (I buy mine from Bunnings).

Divide the worms into as many bundles as you want.

Dig holes throughout  the garden, don't forget the pots, and pop them in with a small amount of food scrapes, cover with soil.

Be patient as they silently work away establishing themselves in your garden.

Happy gardening

Bronwyn

Basic gardening tip for improving soil with potatoes

Digging into hard compacted soil is by no means an enjoyable task.  I have found this to be the case in my current garden, but a simple conversation with my daughter-in-law lead me to an old but effective way to break up the soil, plant potatoes, they are not just for eating.

As they grow the potatoes push down into the soil breaking it up as they go.  They establish very quickly and create small green bushes that don't look unsightly in the garden.  When they start to die back dig the old foliage back into the soil and leave the potatoes to rot, this process creates compost to further enrich the soil.

My husband Gary diligently plants potatoes all year through, and as we live in a sub tropical area they grow really well, working to constantly improve our garden.  I wouldn't be without potatoes in the garden.

Tip 3:

A bag of potatoes, placed in a dark area for about 2 weeks or until they start to sprout.

Plant to any depth, the deeper the better, throughout your garden beds.

Allow to mature, then dig back into the soil.

Repeat the process as often as you like, the more times the better the soil becomes.


Happy gardening

Bronwyn

Basic gardening tip - Sneaky cats, flowers and plants

Cats are fascinating little creatures and very inquisitive, sometimes to their own detriment.   So, what has this to do with gardening!

My daughter-in-law has two beautiful cats, Sami and Freya.  They are very busy throughout the day exploring the entire house and gardens, but one of their favourite past times is drinking out of the flower vases.

Most people are unaware that one of the most dangerous plants and one of the most commonly used in floral arrangements is the lily. They  are highly toxic and can cause renal failure in cats.

It is so easy to avoid these traps simply by being aware of  what plants are toxic, and it's all on the internet so research and have happy healthy cats.

Happy gardening

Bronwyn

Basic gardening tip - Oscar the vegetable thief

I have a constant companion, besides my husband Gary in the garden, and that's my little black pug Oscar.

He is always on the lookout for a veggie snack at any time of the day, and what's more he always finds one, be they tomatoes, cucumbers, strawberries, pumpkins and the latest treat zucchinis.

Busted this morning by Gary sneaking into find zucchinis.

Although the common belief  is that dogs are carnivores, they do get benefit from having vegetables in their diet, especially older dogs.  Oscar is 8 and had recently been diagnosed with an impacted bowel, and our vet told us to stop giving him bones, which unfortunately he loves and make sure he has two to three meals of veggies and rice a week.  In Oscars case this is not a problem and many of our friend also have dogs that enjoy veggies.  Cooked or raw it doesn't matter, although in Oscar's case he prefers his carrots cooked.  The good news is Oscar is back to his normal.

So consider enriching your pets life by letting them have some of the veggies in the garden, not only keeping them busy, but keeping them healthy as well.  Leave a section of the veggie patch for the pets and like us put up barriers to protect the rest, it really works,  keeping everyone happy.

As you can see it is exhausting work for Oscar and he usually ends up sleeping in the sun to recover, then it's off for another hunt.







Make sure you are familiar with foods that are dangerous for your dogs, like onions, garlic, grapes etc., this is only a few foods so look up on the internet for a comprehensive list, we love them and want them well.


Happy gardening

Bronwyn

Where are the questions?

There must be so many questions that need answers so send in your gardening questions I'm happy to help.

Happy gardening

Bronwyn

Basic and simple gardening tip for composting in limited space

Ever been frustrated because inside of you is a big gardener, wanting to try all sorts of ways to improve your garden, but find your first garden is quite a bit smaller than your vision?

Composting is the perfect example of this, because all the advise for improving soil is to compost, and it appears that you either need a large area for the compost heap or spend a lot of money to buy one.

Not true, here is a simple but effective way to solve the smaller garden problem while at the same time improving your soil.

I turned a barren sandy soil garden bed into a healthy lush garden in 12 months at relatively no cost,  while recycling and felt a real sense of achievement.

Tip 2:

1 plastic bucket

Kitchen scraps
Shredded paper or any form of mulch




Create a hole in which ever garden bed you want to improve and dig a shallow hole about 12 inches deep and a little smaller than the circumference of the bucket.

Place scraps in with a little shredded paper or mulch and place soil back over.

Place bucket on top and keep laying your food scraps and shredded paper over the next few months.

Every time you lift the bucket lightly dig in the mixture, and extend the depth of the hole.

Have as many buckets as you want and you will be amazed how over the coming months your soil gradually enriches.

Make a statement and choose bright colourful buckets because it's all about the enjoyment and colour makes you feel happy.  Also place a brick on top to give stability and stop inquisitive pets from pushing it over or make a feature of the bucket by using it as a stand for an array of colourful pot plants.

Happy gardening

Bronwyn

Basic gardening tips - Need help in your garden, just ask

Happy to answer any questions you might have to make gardening easier for you.

Happy gardening

Bronwyn

Basic gardening tips for long term flowering

I visited a friend this week who is new to gardening and she had recently planted an array of new little seedlings.   I find the hardest thing that faces new gardeners is the need to pick off new flower buds, in order to establish a healthy plant and encourage continuous flowering.

I in my normal gardening mode while being shown her marigold seedlings bent down and picked out the small newly forming buds.  "Oh that was brutal" came her reply, I then went on to justify myself.  A new little seedling can't copy with establishing a healthy bush if it is trying to feed the flowers at the same time it puts stress on them.  She was delighted with this simple little tip and we went in for Chai and cake.

Therefore image my surprise when on the way out when I started dead heading her rose, even the spent flowers with only a few petals left.  "Brutal" was the reply again, but after explaining that deadheading is an important part of the flowering process she calmed down again.

Tip One:

To establish healthy seedlings always pick off the new flowers for the first two weeks and let the seedling get bigger and  for continuous flowers and more than one flush of flowers a year alway deadhead.  Simple but true, not hard work but the results are amazing.




Happy gardening

 Bronwyn