Try spraying the plants with a brew of Neem oil and fish-based liquid fertiliser.
They are put off eating the roses and other goodies by the smell, and so are the rabbits and hares for that matter.
Read full articleWhite butterfly are notoriously difficult to get rid of. Here are a few suggestions from Tod and Awapuni customers.
1 Hose off as many of the eggs, caterpillars and butterflies as you can from the plants. Then spray the affected plants with neem oil.
2 Cover the plants or garden completely with white netting from your local garden centre - the kind that covers but doesn't shade, which will also protect against birds.
3 Try a chilli and garlic spray to repel the white butterfly.
4 Plant French marigold (tagetes patula) and spray plants with seaweed spray.
5 Plant rhubarb or use a rhubarb and garlic spray
6 Use a robo can in hot houses
7 Lastly, send out an army of children with butterfly nets – if necessary pay 10 cents per butterfly!
Read full articleIf your leaves look dull and are stippled with white dots then you most likely have spider mites. They love nice, warm, still spots so are usually found on plants, particularly rhodoendrons and roses, next to the house or under the eves. To get rid of spider mites simply hose them off with a strong stream of water and spray the plant with Neem, an organic oil sold at Awapuni Nurseries. Or spray with a natural insecticide.
Read full articleThe cause of this problem is most likely caterpillars. I would suggest spraying with Neem Oil. In the colder weather try cutting the plant back. As the new growth comes away it will not be effected because the caterpillars do not like the cold weather.
Read full articleFirstly, try our beer bait! In the winter stockpile all those wood fire ashes into clean paper sacs. Sprinkle them around the border of your garden or around individual plants. Reapply after rain. Any soft bodied mollusk will not cross over this as it will dry out and burn their foot. Or try crushed egg shells that have been baked in the oven till dry and crisp – these are too sharp to cross over. Another option is to simply hand pick and destroy the pests and apply Yates Quash (copper) around the base of the plants to prevent the bugs returning.
Read full articleAphids leave rose leaves looking curled, distorted and yellow. To rid your plant of aphids simply hose them off with a strong stream of water and spray the plant with Neem.
Spray with a natural insecticide or try companion planting. Lavender, garlic, parsley and chives will help protect roses against aphids.
Read full articleShort answer – yes. Rust (pictured) is a fungal disease that affects garlic, leeks and onions. It can impact bulb development and also kill your whole crop. But unless, you had a really bad case of rust or it happened early on in the bulb development stage, you should be able to harvest your garlic as normal and eat it. Chop off the infected leaves as soon as you spot rust and discard of them in the rubbish – not your compost bin as this will spread the infection. Also, give your hands, clothes and gardening tools that might have come into contact with the fungus a good wash to stop the spread. Harvest the garlic when you normally would – don’t pull it up early. Go here for tips on how to avoid getting rust next year.
Read full articleKeep the flies and mosquitos at bay, in these coming warmer months - don’t let the sound of buzzing and slapping your thighs ruin your evening barbeques! To keep these little critters away, try planting fragrant herbs and flowers in pots or planters close to your outdoor areas. We recommend...
-Mint
-Sage
Read full articleThe black patches on your daphne leaves sound like a fungal leaf spot which is caused by high humidity. I suggest you avoid watering the foliage, remove the infected foliage and spray the remaining foliage with an organic copper spray. If this was a watering problem the leaves would be brown at the tips.
Read full articleCAUSE: Grey mould is a fungus that causes bud and flower blight. It is active in cool humid weather. SOLUTION: Remove infected plant material and debris, improve growing conditions, avoid planting in too much shade, low spots and areas with poor air circulation.
Read full articleThese are the signs of rust or powdery mildew. They love the water and as a result often occur during humid and wet weather. To free your plants of these unpleasant diseases destroy the infected foliage, thin the plant to increase air circulation and spray with a fungicide.
Read full articleWhite spots on your roses could be two things - insects or fungus. To test whether it is a problem with insects or fungus, try and scrape it off with your finger. If it scrapes off it's an insect. If not, it's a fungus. If it's an insect, it's very likely scale. To get rid of it, scrub it off with warm soapy water and then apply lime sulphur (you can get lime sulphur from your local garden centre). Ideally you should apply lime sulphur in May/June when there are no leaves. If your rose has leaves, just be careful not to get the spray on them - otherwise it might burn them. An alternative to lime sulphur is conquor oil - this is not as harsh on leaves. If the white spots don't scrape off, it's a fungus. To fix this you will need a copper based fungicide (also available at your local garden centre or super market).
To prevent both insects and fungus getting at your roses, it's a good idea to spray them around spring every year with a mix of copper and conquor oil. This will kill the insects and prevent the roses getting fungus as the weather warms up. Again, try to avoid getting it on the leaves.
Read full articleIf they're climbing up the tree try pinning a piece of absorbent cloth soaked in Yates Shield around the trunk. (make sure you use gloves). This will prevent insects running up and will also soak into the tree. Make sure you pin it quite high up the trunk out of the way of pets or kids. You could also try putting some grease on the ridged side of some corrugated cardboard and pin that to tree.
Read full articleBuxus Psyllid is a pest that deforms the new growth in box hedging, often in spring. It also affects many Pittosporum varieties. To remove Buxus Psyllid lightly spray Neem Oil on the plants. Another suggestion is to increase bird life and ladybirds, these are ideal predators.
Read full articleRust (pictured) is a fungal disease that affects garlic, leeks and onions. It can impact bulb development and also kill your whole crop. But unless, you had a really bad case of rust or it happened early on in the bulb development stage, you should be able to harvest your garlic as normal and eat it. Chop off the infected leaves as soon as you spot rust and discard of them in the rubbish – not your compost bin as this will spread the infection. Also, give your hands, clothes and gardening tools that might have come into contact with the fungus a good wash to stop the spread. Harvest the garlic when you normally would – don’t pull it up early.
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