Fabulous colours

Summer gardensGardens can suffer from heat stress or lack of water or both during our long hot summers. We can’t change the weather but there are a few things we can do to help protect our gardens during December and January.

Effective watering — apply a soil wetting agent like Yates Waterwise Soil Wetter over the soil and potted plants and water it in well. This will help to break down the waxy, water repellent layer that can develop on soil and potting mix and promote better penetration of moisture down into the root zone where it’s needed.Mulching — spreading mulch over garden beds, vege patches and on the top of pots will help to reduce the amount of moisture lost from the soil. It also helps to protect the soil surface from the baking summer sun.Find the shade — move sensitive potted plants into a more shaded location, where they are sheltered from the harshest afternoon sun.Apply seaweed tonic —Yates Thrive. Natural Seaweed Tonic, made from 100 percent sustainably sourced bull kelp, is great for helping to improve plant resistance against heat and drought as well as aiding recovery from stress conditions.Crepe myrtlesSummer is when crepe myrtles start their fabulous flower show, with trees being smothered in vibrant flowers for many weeks. Available in a range of different flower colours, from white through to light and dark pink, lavender and almost red, crepe myrtles also have fabulous autumn foliage colours and very attractive bark. There are crepe myrtles to suit both large and small gardens, with tall varieties like crimson Saint Emilion reaching 4m and pink flowered Little Chief being a compact 1.5m tall.

After flowering has finished, where possible trim off the spent flower heads to help keep the crepe myrtle tidy and spread Yates Dynamic Lifter Organic Plant Food around the root zone to encourage new growth and improved soil health.

Summer PoinsettiasThe Northern hemisphere enjoys vibrant red poinsettias during their chilly Christmas weather, which is when they naturally flower and produce their showy coloured bracts. New Zealanders can also enjoy beautiful poinsettias during our hot summers due to some very clever light control done by plant nurseries. They create an artificially short 10 hour day in special greenhouses, for around 2 months, to convince the poinsettias that it’s no longer summer and they should start flowering!

Gorgeous pink and white poinsettias are also available and provide some friendly festive competition to traditional red poinsettias. A white poinsettia planted into a decorative pot and teamed with Christmas ribbon makes an impressive table centrepiece or gift. And the pink poinsettias are just so pretty and are perfect when combined with white and silver decorations.

Position potted poinsettias in a warm brightly lit room, protected from harsh direct sunlight. Keep the pot moist and feed each week with Yates Thrive Roses & Flowers Liquid Plant Food. It’s a complete plant food that’s boosted with additional flower-promoting potassium. After the flowers (bracts) have faded, prune the plant back by around 30 percent. This will help keep the poinsettia compact and tidy. You can also repot the poinsettia into a slightly larger pot, using a good quality potting mix like Yates Premium Potting Mix, or plant it out into the garden in a sheltered spot with well drained soil.

Summer rose careSummer can bring heat, hot dry winds and high humidity, which all affect the health and appearance of roses. And if your roses have developed leggy or sparse growth and spindly stems it’s a sign that your roses need a summer prune. Summer pruning roses refreshes and reinvigorates the plants and they will respond in a matter of weeks, putting on new growth, ready for another flush of flowers. In fact, you can time rose re-blooming if you have a special event coming up, as they’ll flower again around 6 -7 weeks after pruning.

Rose pruning is not tricky, just trim off around 30 percent of the overall growth and also remove any dead or thin stems. You can use hedge shears or a good sharp pair of secateurs. Don’t forget to protect your hands, arms (and face!) from rose thorns with sturdy gloves, long sleeves and glasses.

After pruning, collect up all the fallen leaves and stems (this helps to reduce the incidence of disease) and apply some Yates Thrive Roses & Flowers Liquid Plant Food and water in well. It’s a complete and balanced liquid fertiliser that has been boosted with extra flower promoting potassium. Next, spread a layer of mulch like lucerne or pea straw around the root zone, which will help keep the soil moist and protect the top soil from baking sun. Reapply Yates Thrive each week to encourage healthy new foliage growth and lots of flowers.

New foliage and flower buds can attract damaging insect pests like aphids. Regular sprays of Yates Rose Gun Advanced will help control common insect pests like aphids, as well as caterpillars and diseases like black spot, rust and powdery mildew.

If you’d like to add a beautiful rose to your garden over summer, potted roses are still available for planting. If you’re planting into a container, use a pot with good drainage holes and fill with a quality potting mix like Yates Premium Potting Mix. If your new rose is being planted out in the garden, enrich the soil in the planting hole with some Yates Thrive Natural Blood & Bone, which will encourage the rose to develop a strong healthy root system and gently feed the rose as it establishes.

Pampering your potatoesPotatoes are a delicious and productive vege to grow at home and can even be grown in pots. Seed potatoes planted during spring will be growing strongly during summer. Here’s what you can do during summer to promote the best possible spud harvest:

As green shoots emerge, cover with a 15cm layer of mulch, such as lucerne hay or pea straw, and a sprinkling of Yates Dynamic Lifter Organic Plant Food. The mulch layer encourages the shoots to grow taller, which provides more opportunities for the potatoes to develop along the stem. It also protects the potato tubers from sunlight. Yates Dynamic Lifter provides the growing potato plants with slow release organic nutrients to promote healthy growth and encourage lots of potatoes. Water the plants if the soil and mulch feels dry.Each time new shoots emerge through the mulch, apply another 15cm layer of mulch and more Yates Dynamic Lifter.It takes around four months for potatoes to fully mature, however impatient gardeners can harvest some tender baby potatoes a little earlier. Gently dig around the root zone of the potato plant (a technique called bandicooting) and feel for the little spuds.Potato insect watch: keep an eye out for sap sucking aphids and mites, which can damage and distort potato foliage. Regular sprays of Yates Nature’s Way Pyrethrum & Oil Citrus & Ornamental Insect Gun, on both the upper and lower leaf surfaces, will help keep aphids and mites under control. It’s certified for use in organic gardening so is ideal for gardeners wanting to use organic methods of insect pest control.

For the love of lettuceSalads, sandwiches and wraps wouldn’t be complete without the not so humble lettuce and “cut and come again” lettuces are perfect for giving you an ongoing supply of leafy goodness.

Yates Lettuce Frilly Mix is a colourful blend of dark green and maroon-red frilled lettuces that are easy to grow and individual leaves can be picked as you need them.

Here’s how to grow your own lettuces at home:

Sow seed direct where the lettuces are to grow or raise in trays of Yates Black Magic Seed Raising Mix and transplant when the seedlings are 3-4 cm high.Yates Lettuce Frilly Mix can be grown in a sunny vege patch or in pots. A pot positioned on a deck or courtyard, not too far from the kitchen, makes it super convenient to harvest.Keep the soil moist while the seedlings establish. If the plants are closer than 20cm, you may need to thin them out. There’s no need to waste these thinnings —if you lift them out carefully you can transplant them into another spot.As the lettuces grow, water them regularly and every 1-2 weeks apply some Yates Thrive Natural Fish & Seaweed. It’s a unique complete and balanced liquid fertiliser that contains a rich combination of organic ingredients like fish, seaweed, humates, microbes and molasses and boosted with fast acting nutrients to boost plant growth. Dilute 1 to 2 capfuls of Yates Thrive Natural Fish & Seaweed in a 9 litre watering can and apply over the lettuces and surrounding root zone.Harvest individual lettuce leaves regularly, which will encourage them to grow more fresh leaves.Lettuce pest watch: keep an eye out for snails and slugs, which love eating through lettuces. Control snails and slugs by scattering some Yates Blitzem Snail & Slug Pellets over the soil around the lettuce plants.