Gardening Guides
Be a gardening legend with step-by-step instructions on how to grow a wide range of plants, what to plant when, how to combat pests and diseases, plus extra tips and tricks to get your garden flourishing.
Be a gardening legend with step-by-step instructions on how to grow a wide range of plants, what to plant when, how to combat pests and diseases, plus extra tips and tricks to get your garden flourishing.
The Oscars, the BAFTAs and the Emmys might be months away, but you can bet the stars, or at least their stylists, are already working out what to wear on the big day, and that diets and personal trainers are, even now, being dusted off.
It's no secret that a lot of hard work goes into looking good on that red carpet!
Well the same can be said of your garden. If you want it to have absolute star quality come spring, now is the time to undertake the preparatory nipping, tucking and grooming.
And this month - courtesy of landscaping expert and personal trainer to your garden, Tod Palenski - we'll start with your perennials.
Left to their own devices, perennials can be the Paris Hilton of the celebrity set.
"They have a tendency to become overgrown, root bound and woody during winter," says Tod, who provides expert gardening advice on behalf of Awapuni Nurseries.
"It is also the time of year when any leaves in the centre of the plant may die off leaving gaps and it may start to grow smaller flowers."
But there is hope - keeping your perennials in red carpet shape is not a gruelling process.
If you have pruned, fertilised and mulched regularly, all of the above signs are simply your plant's way of telling you it needs to be divided.
"Not many people realise dividing your perennials now, while they are dormant, will ensure they remain healthy and ready to flower again this spring.
"Dividing is also a fantastic and inexpensive way of 'redecorating' and expanding your garden and giving it a fresh look."
Tod says there are two ways to divide perennials. The first applies if you have small clumping perennials such as polmoniums, phlomis, tradiscantia, delphiniums, geum, lupin and scabiosa - plants with small and fibrous roots.
"Polmoniums, phlomis and lupin are all great for planting in a nice sunny, well drained spot and tradiscantia will grow well in any shady damp spots, such as those beside creeks and streams.
"Scabiosa will grow just about anywhere but prefers a sunny spot over shady. And delphiniums grow really well with roses and bedded irises because they all love the same sunny, well drained conditions."
Simply dig the plant up with a flat spade roughly 300mm away from the outside edge of the plant.
Wash the roots with water and slowly pull the plant apart. You should try to get four or five growth buds in each separated clump. Then discard the leftover old and woody pieces.
For larger clump plants, such as day lilies, bedded irises and birds of paradise, Tod suggests using two spades or forks to divide them. Simply put these garden tools back to back and pry the clumps apart.
"Day lilies are very versatile plants and can be grown just about anywhere. As mentioned above, bedded irises grow nicely next to roses because they enjoy the same conditions. They also make a great looking combination and neither are fans of overhead watering. Finally, birds of paradise prefer sunny, dry and hard soil," says Tod.
But before you start planting, and to ensure your perennials get a healthy kick-start, Tod recommends digging in some new compost and adding fertiliser such as garden galore.
"Plant your clumps as per usual, mulch lightly afterwards to ensure they are kept moist and free of weeds, and remember to water!"
Lastly, as shoots start to appear in spring, spread a bit of slug and snail bait around your plants or, for an alternative organic repellent, put an open, uncovered tin full of beer in the ground.
Slugs and snails love new shoots but not quite as much as they like the taste of beer. This fatal attraction means the pests will more than likely end up in the tin rather than eating your newly planted flowers.
So put some life back in your garden and transform last year's style into this year's new look by dividing your perennials.
Read full articleWe love mixing annual and perennial flowers in the garden. Annuals bring very generous and colourful blooms all throughout the season and perennials tend to encourage beneficial insects and butterflies all year round. This is why we've prepared a list of perennials for you and their most loved companion plants.
Happy gardening!
