Landscape Advice - Hedge & Stone

Summer garden pests and diseases

Posted by | Garden Design, Garden Maintenance, Landscape Advice, Pests and diseases, Seedlings, Snails, summer gardening, Summer gardens, Uncategorized, Vegetable gardens | No Comments

Snail

Many common garden pests emerge as the warmer months ensue. By mid to late summer, if allowed to proliferate unchecked, these pests can cause serious damage to plants. Healthy plants will always have a better chance at resisting the scourge of pest infestations; working on the overall health of your garden will minimize the impact of common pests and diseases.

Common pests and diseases include…

Snails and slugs – familiar to us all, there are many home remedies for controlling snails and slugs. Labour intensive but effective, is manually removing them by torchlight, on moist nights, when they appear on paths and lawns to feed. You can set out beer traps, saucers of beer, which the snail are attracted to then remove the snails by hand – two hours after sunset is the best time. Many chemical controls are dangerous to other children, pets and animals – snail pellets with an active ingredient of iron sulphate are a safer solution however still dangerous to dogs if consumed in quantity. Far and away the most important step you can take is eliminating habitat; snail and slugs hide away during the day in leaf mold, under pot rims, in rock borders etc. – if you keep these areas clean, you can limit the number of snail and slugs in your garden.

Aphid

Aphids

Aphids are tiny, prolific sucking insects, commonly green however can also be black, brown and pink. They attack new growth on ornamental flowering plants like roses as well as many vegetables. They weaken the plant by sapping nutrients and damaging the plant stems and buds and making the plant vulnerable to diseases.

Aphids can be removed manually by squishing the aphids, wiping and spraying them off with water. Alternatively, they can be controlled with soap sprays and white oil.

Scale

Scale are similar to aphids, scale are sucking insects however are immobile and appear as small, dry, white bumps on the surface of leaves and stems. They weaken the plant similarly to aphids.

Scale can be removed by manually brushing from the leaves and stems with soap spray. There are chemical products available to help control serious infestations.

Thrip and mites

Difficult to see because of their size, the effects of thrip and mites are obvious on your plants when you have an infestation on your hands. Spider mites affect azaleas in particular, causing the leaves to appear stunted and bronze in colour.

Control mites by installing aerial spray irrigation systems as the mites cluster on the underside of leaves and can be inhibited by regular spraying with water. Chemical miticides are available but not always effective. Biological controls such as encouraging lady beetles and other ‘good’ garden insects as well as under-watering from spring through summer will help minimize the impact of thrip and mites.

White fly

White flies

White flies infest the shady lush parts of your vegetable garden, clouds of tiny, irritating white insects emerge when disturbed. They feed on the surface of leafy plants such as lettuce, silverbeet and parsley. They damage the leaves and cause them to appear mottled and unhealthy.

White flies can be controlled to a degree with pyrethrum and soap sprays. Their numbers fluctuate seasonally and during periods of high humidity you just have to wait them out.

Mildew

Sooty mould, powdery mildew and downy mildew are all fungal infections that occur on the leaves of some plants. Encouraged by high humidity, they create a dusty film and patches of grey and white fuzz on the leaves – the spores are spread by wind.

Control by removing infected foliage and applying fungicides such as sulphur dust,

Black spot

Black Spot

Black spot is a fungal disease commonly affecting roses and fruit trees, black spot attacks the leaves causing them to whither and drop prematurely. As with most fungal diseases, it is encouraged by humidty.

Leaves affected by black spot should be removed and disposed of in the garbage – do not compost. Plants can be sprayed in late winter to prevent any outbreak with a copper based fungicide.

 

Irrigation…

Posted by | Garden Advice, Garden Design, Garden Maintenance, irrigation, Landscape Advice, Mulching, Vegetable gardens, Watering | No Comments

Impact_Sprinkler_Mechanism_2Gone are the days of running the sprinkler during hot, lazy summer afternoons. Residential irrigation systems are becoming an essential management tool to maintain our gardens while supporting water saving initiatives.

One of the key steps to designing your irrigation is to understand the water requirements of your plants and the natural attributes and deficiencies of your site. Conditioning soil and mulching will maximize water retention and should be considered an essential element of your ‘irrigation system’.

You can divide your garden into primary, secondary and minimal hydro zones:

  • Primary hydro zones include turf, entranceways and formal beds as well as vegetable plots – these types of gardens require regular supplementary watering.
  • Secondary hydro zones include established ornamental beds with shrubs and small trees that require routine but minimal supplementary watering.
  • Minimal hydro zones are those that require little or no supplementary watering.

As well as helping you choose the right type of irrigation, these zones can also be used to manage your overall irrigation system, including a schedule for soil improvement and rebuilding mulch.

Primary and secondary hydro zones can be fitted with a combination of spray and drip irrigation systems. All spray sprinklers lose water due to weather condition and evaporation but are essential for irrigating turf or large zones. Drip systems are much more efficient and are generally easier to maintain. The most common sprinkler fittings are as follows:

Pops up sprinklers – excellent for turf as they are submerged when switched off so do not create a hazard or incur damage. Not great for garden beds as vegetation can interfere with spray.

Fixed spray sprinklers – installed on risers in garden beds, these can be set to a fixed radius or pre-set arc so maximize efficiency. These work particularly well in garden beds with established plants and fixed requirements.

Rotator nozzles – can be installed and rotate in a sweeping arc. These work well to cover large areas but are only effective in calm weather conditions.

Drip irrigation – the most water efficient irrigation system for garden beds. Minimal water loss through evaporation, no interference from weather conditions.

All spray sprinklers lose water due to weather condition and evaporation.

The other essential component of your irrigation system is the system sensor and computer – these are small devices either fitted to the main tap head or fixed to a wall or fence. The system sensor measures rain, soil moisture and evapotranspiration and transmits this data to the system computer. The system computer regulates the timing and flow rates to your garden. You can have single or multiple hydro zones with varied timing and flow rates for the perfect soil moisture balance.

Magnificent Magnolias

Posted by | Courtyard Garden, Garden Advice, Garden Design, Landscape Advice, Magnolia, Mulching, Ornamental Trees, Uncategorized, Winter | No Comments

magnolia-soulangeana_magnolia-genie-flowerHeralding the coming of spring, Magnolias, especially the deciduous varieties hold a special place in the hearts of many a gardener with their stunning displays of large, fragrant blooms on elegant naked branches. Originating in Asia there are over 100 species and unnumbered cultivars. They are well adapted to Australian conditions and provided you give them a good position and adequate food and water they will reward you for many years.

Magnolias can be a little sulky for the first few years so feed them well when you first plant them with a good compost, build a well around the base of the trunk to direct water into the root zone and mulch well to keep the roots moist and cool. Choose a north or east facing position with shelter from hot winds and frost.

Here are 10 of our favorites with a brief description and their height and width noted so you can make a good choice for your site:

Deciduous varieties

magnolia_x_soulangeana_flowers_16-03-11_1-2Magnolia x soulangeana
cv. 3m X 3m; one of the old varieties and the basis of many cultivars Magnolia x soulangeana is perhaps the most common Magnolia seen in Melbourne gardens.

Magnolia_stellata_RJBMagnolia stellata 1.5m X 1.5m; a slow-growing medium-sized deciduous shrub of broadly rounded habit, flowering in early spring. This Magnolia is particularly stunning because of it fine white petals. It also comes in a pink variety Magnolia stellate rosea.

Magnolia-Caerhays-Belle2-590by387Magnolia ‘Caerhays Belle’ 7m X 5m; a very narrow, fastigiate shape, excellent for a small garden because it needs almost no pruning and has a beautiful fragrance.

Magnolia Philip TMagnolia ‘Phillip Tregunna’ 5m X 3m; an upright tree, with a vivid purple flower and a beautiful fragrance.

Magnolia rubyMagnolia ‘Ruby’ 3m X 2m; a beauty because of the beautiful, exquisite shape of the bud and also a white edge around each of the petals. Does well in a smaller garden and can be pruned to shape.

Magnolia vulcanMagnolia ‘Vulcan‘ 3m X 2m; a hybrid raised in New Zealand. The flowers are large, wine red and lightly perfumed.

Magnolia elizabethMagnolia ‘Elizabeth’ 4m X 2.5m; with perfumed primrose yellow fading to cream coloured flowers. It is later flowering than other magnolia varieties blossoming in late spring.

magnolia-royal-purpleMagnolia ‘Royal Purple’ 3.5m X 1.2m; a beautiful new magnolia from New Zealand; a narrow yet stunning column with 20cm cup and saucer shaped blooms, dark red purple with a gorgeous perfume. A great choice for a small space.

Evergreen varieties

magnolia Little gemMagnolia ‘Little Gem’ 5m X 2.5m; a very popular plant used as an ornamental lawn tree or as for screening and even hedging. It is an outstanding variety of Magnolia grandiflora with a compact habit, deep green discolourous leaves and large white blooms.

 Magnolia st maryMagnolia ‘St Mary’ 6m X 3m: A wider growing variety with large glossy apple green leaves. It is a hardy and versatile plant that will tolerate a range of conditions and is relatively pest and disease free. During the warmer months it produces beautiful, creamy-white, fragrant flowers and will flower from an early age.

Mulch, mulch, mulch

Posted by | Garden Advice, Garden Maintenance, Landscape Advice, Mulching, Uncategorized | No Comments

ch_wide_mulch_20121126231108575608-620x0
In our climate, mulching is one of the most sensible, cost effective treatments you can apply to your garden for all round positive results. Using the right mulch and using it the right way, can reduce the need to water by up to 60%, improve soil conditions, help minimize the need for manual weeding or herbicides and nourish your garden.

Your options for mulching are organic and inorganic. The inorganic mulches are pebbles, scoria and gravel – these should be used judiciously as they can be a challenge to maintain in some situations. Organic mulches range from lawn clippings, leaf litter, cubed mulches, baled lucerne or pea straw to the hardier composted bark mulches.

Organic mulches are your best option for overall garden health; as they slowly breakdown they encourage microbial activity and worms, which in turn nourish and oxygenate the soil as well as adding organic matter and improving soil structure. Good mulch will secure moisture in the top layer of the soil and discourage weeds, which compete with plants for nutrients and water.

Lawn clippings and leaf litter are a handy option, however are better put to use in the compost, as they are yet to breakdown. Using them as mulch can have the unwanted side effect of reducing the nitrogen in your soil, as the little microbes that will do the composting require nitrogen to go about their business. This is called nitrogen drawdown and anything that is not fully composted before adding to the garden can have this effect. It can however, be easily counteracted by applying a good fertilizer.

Cubed mulches, which are a chopped pea straw or lucerne, are easy to spread but will soften and break down quickly so are excellent as soil conditioners but not a mulch with any long term prospects.

Baled lucerne and pea straw are another great option, especially in productive garden beds as they supply all the benefits of good mulch but can be easily dug in to the soil at the end of a season to add essential organic matter. They are also inexpensive, easy to come by and easy to handle. Ordinary hay should be avoided, as it will invariably carry unwanted seeds.

If you are going for the bark mulch option, always choose composted bark mulch and select the grade or ‘coarseness’ carefully. Fine grade mulch can actually act as a barrier to water as it compacts and can also form a seedbed for unwanted weeds. The mulch should be medium to large grade and spread up to 7.5cm deep. These larger particle mulches allow water to trickle through to the soil and do not compact over time. Most of the bark mulches available to us are by products of the pine industry, which is an advantage, as these products tend to acidify the soil as they decompose which is great, as most plants prefer a neutral to lower pH soil.

Happy mulching!

mulched garden

Winter…where did my garden go?

Posted by | Garden Advice, Garden Design, Landscape Advice, Winter | No Comments

Cherry Blossom

At first glance, your garden may appear to be barely alive in the long, dark cold days of winter. Most of the deciduous plants will be skeletal versions of their springtime selves, the ground hard and bare where all the spring and summer perennials have rotted away, the summer grasses yellowing off…a general sense of stillness that could be mistaken for lifelessness pervades.

Appearances, as we know, can be very misleading. This period of stillness that occurs in our gardens is an essential time in the lifecycle of our plants. In fact, this dormancy allows us to enjoy many of things we consider most valuable in our gardens; foliage, flowers and fruit!

For many of the plants that originate in colder climates, winter is a time for conserving nutrients, rebuilding tissues and a whole bunch of other unseen yet essential chemical processes.

Deciduous plants typically lose their leaves; as the temperature drops the plants metabolism slows, resulting in a decrease in chlorophyll – the chemical used to turn sunlight into energy – which also gives leaves their green pigment. As the chlorophyll production stalls during the cold, the leaves of many deciduous trees, such as Liquidambar styraciflua – turn from green, to gold, to that lovely deep red we all love.

We all notice the summer grasses such as buffalo, kikuyu and couch yellowing off, with growth slowing to next to nothing. Most of us count this as a bonus of the cold weather…no mowing! These are winter dormant rhizomatous grasses and all return with renewed vigor as soon as the spring arrives.

During winter, while all but appearing dead, many trees hide their buds beneath layers of bud scales and actually need to be chilled for a period of time to cause them to burst forth into flower and foliage – cherry trees are one such tree. Bulbs are another garden favorite that require a sustained drop in temperature to promote growth. No cold, no flowers!

Apples need over a 1000 hours exposure to temperatures below 7°c to ensure the production of a hormone that initiates spring growth…no cold, no apples!

So there is magic going on quietly, beneath the cold surface in our winter gardens.

Potted Gardens

Posted by | Container Plants, Courtyard Garden, Garden Advice, Garden Design, Landscape Advice, Potted Plants | No Comments

fresh-containers-garden-container-garden

Creating a potted garden is just like arranging flowers; you build up layers of texture, colour and form in an arrangement to fill, highlight or lift the space…and when you are ready for a change, you just rearrange. Another reason for choosing to pot plants is that soil conditions and plant selection are not always compatible; if you have alkaline soil but love camellias a container plant may be your best option. Similarly, climate conditions are a factor; some of our favorite plants are too sensitive to be permanently positioned in the garden so container planting is a great solution allowing you to reposition the plant during the searing heat of summer or the frosty winter.

Here are some great tips for choosing and maintaining your container plants…

  1. The first considerations will be the practical; how much space, light, heat and water is available? How much time do you have for maintenance? Do you want to water regularly? When you have identified your needs you will be able to refine your plant selection.
  2. In temperate conditions you will be able to maintain ferns and succulents in the same space, otherwise keep to plants that will thrive in the conditions available. This will minimize maintenance and avoid disappointment.
  3. Choose plants for their foliage as well as their flowers. The foliage will be with you all year round but you will only have the flowers for their seasonal appearance. If you are after colour all year, there are many perfect container plants with colorful foliage such as aglaonema, coleus, caladium, begonia, hosta and bromeliad name a few.
  4. Use contrast in the colour palette; soft grey foliage really pops against burgundy’s and deep greens.
  5. Choose the right container. Drainage is essential so make sure there are adequate drainage holes in the base of the pot. Before you add potting mix, place some stones or chunks of broken brick or paving in the base to add another layer for free drainage. The three main types of pots available are plastic, terracotta and glazed ceramic pots. If the pots are going to be exposed to the summer heat, choose one of the glazed ceramic variety as plastic pots heat up quickly and soil temperatures can top 70°c which will destroy the root system of most plants. Terracotta pots are porous so are great for plants like lavender and geraniums which require excellent drainage but for most other plants will mean you must water daily. Choose a pot size that will allow the root system to develop.
  6. Use a good quality potting mix. Potting mix was developed for use in pots and unlike soil, which can set like concrete, fail to drain or even produce weeds, potting mix is free draining, sterile and compatible with plants. A well-composted mix has the right balance of particle sizes to hold air and water and has nutrients to feed the plants that are grown in it. There are special mixes developed for particular plants like orchids, camellias etc.
  7. Water wisely! Indoor plants are often over-watered, especially in winter; a sign that you are over doing it is yellowing foliage as the water-clogged soil is drowning the roots so that the plant cannot access oxygen. Plant saucers holding water prevent soil drainage so must be kept empty to avoid root rot. Conversely, outdoor pots need consistent and regular watering especially through the heat of our summer to prevent heat damage to the roots. As mentioned, container selection and knowing your plants requirements will help strike the right balance. Use a finger to measure the moisture in the soil.
  8. Ideally, pot plants are repotted every year or two in early spring; a chance to increase pot size and rejuvenate the soil and root system.
  9. Fertilisers formulated for potted plants are available and the liquid varieties are the best option to avoid over doing it. Fertilise when the plants are actively growing and will use the help. Avoid fertilising in the heat.

Goodluck!

Japanese Garden Design

Posted by | Garden Design, Japanese Garden, Landscape Advice | No Comments

Japanese Garden 2smJapanese Gardens are part of the great tradition of landscape design. Did you know there are five basic styles of Japanese Gardens? Each highly stylized, they all have a specific theme and purpose and use plants and objects as symbols.

Chisen-shoy?-teien or pond gardens

Influenced by Chinese garden design, the ponds represent the seas and the hills symbolize the islands. Traditionally Chisen-shoy?-teien are large gardens but can be recreated on a smaller scale. Typically the garden features artificial hills contoured around a pond, a waterfall, and an island while carefully placed rocks also play a leading role. Other architectural elements of the garden are wooden bridges, stone lanterns, a viewing pavilion, the torii or gateway, and a shrine

Roji or tea gardens

Tea gardens were created as part of the traditional tea ceremony which features in traditional Japanese culture. The gardens were designed to be an intimate space for meditation and preparation before participating in the tea ceremony. They included architectural elements such as a water basin for cleansing and benches for resting. In a modern setting, they can be a secluded garden space attached to the home that is entered via a leafy pathway, nestled in dense greenery that provides quiet relief from busy lives.

Kaiy?-shiki-teien or promenade gardens

Promenade gardens were built to play on the existing natural elements of a larger landscape including mountains, forests, watercourses, lakes and oceans. The gardens were formed around a network of walkways; playful but highly controlled they concealed and revealed the views and highlights to visitors at precise points for maximum impact, to delight and surprise.

Tsubo-niwa or courtyard gardens

As they name suggests, courtyard gardens are tiny walled gardens located within or adjacent to a residence or building. Originally intended to be viewed rather than inhabited, the little gardens were ornamented with lanterns, basins, stepping-stones and plants. Modern Japanese courtyard gardens offer the all the pleasure and relaxation of a small garden within a home; they are meant to be used and enjoyed.

Japanese Garden 1sm

 Karesansui, Zen or dry rock gardens

Simple, modern and architectural, originally used to define sacred spaces, modern Karesansui or Zen gardens are familiar to all. Using fine pebbles, stones and sand they are garden for quiet contemplation and reflection. Perfect for small spaces, they can encompass a whole site or be a feature within. The pebbles, stones and sand are raked ritually into shapes that represent nature; water, hills and mountains and are interspersed with carefully positioned rocks and stepping-stones.

Which of the five styles appeals to you? Talk to Simon about your garden or courtyard and see how any of the elements from the five styles could be married in a beautiful, relaxing, peaceful Japanese inspired retreat.

 

Gardening in Winter?

Posted by | Landscape Advice, Winter | No Comments

Gardening in winter

Not too cold for some…

Winter in Melbourne can be cold and gloomy and we are all happiest snug inside our warm homes…the last thing we are thinking about is our gardens and outdoor areas…however, there are a few reasons why winter is a fantastic time to consider revamping your outdoor spaces… Read More

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