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"In the Garden" with Jane Edmanson
March 2010  

We all love colour, sweet-smelling flowers and leafy texture in plants, and the long-lived perennials offer these characteristics.  Some of the most beautiful, long flowering and diverse plants are the perennial plants.  One of their main advantages is that many perennials are adapted to climates with summer drought, so needing little or no water from December onwards, and so will grow well in so many of our gardens.
Perennial plants, generally, need a sunny spot with well drained soil so they can spread out, many forming a clump approximately 1.5 metres wide. Plants such as Penstemons, with red, pink and white tubular flowers, are one of the longest flowering plants, and can be virtually neglected, apart from a once-a-year cut back. Many perennials love and need a quite savage prune, in autumn, when their flowers have finished. One like Perovskia has tall upright stems with spikes of blue-mauve flowers, and is commonly known as the Russian sage.  It is a great ‘combiner’ in the garden, suited to growing amongst roses and other plants as it gives a soft feel in the garden. Any time from now is time to cut it back right down to ground level and in spring it will bounce back with more growth and better flowering.
Another plant that thrives on neglect is the winter iris (Iris unguicularis) which grows in sun or shade and produces masses of mauve flowers over winter and is  great for cut flowers. One of the most rewarding autumn flowering plants is the fleshy leaved Sedum spectabile, in the succulent family. Large clusters of flower heads that attract butterflies and bees  came in a range of colour  from mauve pink, to claret and salmon. They only need to be divided every three years. I have not even mentioned salvias, they need a special space all on their own, so that is for another day.

Over the weekend of Saturday 13^th and Sunday 14^th March 2010 Tesselaar’s Garden and Rare Plant Expo will be held at 357 Monbulk Road , Monbulk from 9am – 4pm daily. www.gardeningandrareplants.com.au
It’s a great opportunity to see a beautiful display garden and meet many stall holders with a great range of plants for sale. I will be giving talks each day at 1pm.
The annual gardening highlight for Victoria , The 15^th Melbourne International  Flower and Garden Show is on at the Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens from Wednesday 24^th – Sunday 28^th March 2010. www.melbflowershow.com.au

 March and April are ideal months for planting seedlings that will flower through winter and spring.  They flower until the warmer months in late spring. Seedlings are available in punnets or in individual pots are primulas, polyanthus, poppies, English daisy (bellis), snapdragons, pansies, violas, aquilegias (columbines), sweet pea, wallflower and sweet William.

Before you purchase your seedlings, you will need to choose a good spot to plant.  The narrow garden bed down the side of the driveway may be an ideal spot, or in a strip beside the front pathway to your door.  Another ideal spot may be around the base of your clothesline, or the trunk of a tree.  Pots or hanging baskets can be brightened up with winter flowering seedlings.

Pull out the summer flowering seedlings such as petunias, marigolds, etc. that are looking finished, a bit tired and straggly.  They will finish very soon, and it is time for a change.

Before you replant, throw 2 handfuls of Organix Blood and Bone mixed with one teaspoon of Garden Essentials Sulphate of Potash, to every square metre of garden bed.  Dig this is, turn the soil over, removing weeds and turn over clods of soil so they break up.

You can also use a complete fertiliser such as Garden King All Purpose Plant Food, so that plants get a good start.  Every three weeks you should give the plants and extra dose of liquid fertiliser such as Nitrosol or Organix Harvest as they grow.

Water seedlings in immediately, and you can use a seaweed extract to help plants get over the stress of transplanting

Watch out for snails and slugs - overnight, these creatures can destroy your newly planted seedlings. Alternatives are to scatter a thin layer of lime, crushed egg shells or sawdust around them. Plastic soft drink bottles cut to fit over young plants will protect them also. Snail bait, used with great caution and in small amounts, or better still one that includes pet deterrent, can be used.

You may choose from the following annuals for loads of colour:
Poppies give a lovely massed display that flower for a long period of time, one being the blood red Flanders with rich red flowers with black dots in their centres.  Another is Aquilegia, otherwise known as Columbines, that are often grown for their old world charm and for their ferny foliage and flowers with long spurs in colours of cream, pink, yellow and mauve.

These days vegetables are quite a highlight, it’s a topic of conversation amongst friends to detail your success with compost, or divulge how many tomatoes you’re picking.  Vegetables can easily be grown in containers if you don’t have garden bed space, and they can be mixed in amongst flowers, herbs or shrubs in the front garden as many are ornamental, as well as being edible. Have a look out for cauliflowers, cabbages, broccoli.