Is this the best Wisteria in Australia? - Sep 15, 2016
Dear Gardening Friends,
Our gardens are really looking spectacular this week with more plants bursting into bloom. Wisterias are flowering on old farm fences in the Camden district but he best Chinese Wisteria I've ever seen is growing up and over the balconies of St Elmos House in Broughton Street Campbelltown. This historic house which faces west has the perfect aspect and structure for this Wisteria to thrive. The perfume was amazing!
Wisterias can be pruned into weeping standards if you're pushed for room. They can also be pruned to grow along your paling fence. They can even be trained as bonsai. We have blue and white flowering varieties in the nursery now.
I was driving through Menangle this week and I spotted this fantastic Banksia Rose growing over an arbor. Banksia roses are perfect for this because they don't have thorns like normal roses. They come in yellow and white flowering forms and they flower throughout spring. My favourite is this yellow flowering variety called Lutea. We have some nice plants in the climbing plant section.
Arthur's Big Greek tomato seeds are up and we have started to pot them up using Tim's Best Potting Mix so they will be ready for sale in a couple of weeks. We sell these tomatoes to raise money for the African AIDS Foundation in Camden. They use the money to provide Zulus with fencing, garden tools and training so they can grow their own vegetables. The program has been an outstanding success with some of the Gardeners now selling their produce and becoming self sufficient. The antiviral drugs to combat AIDS work better when the recipients have a healthy diet. We all need more fresh vegetables in our lives.
It's time to plant Cucumbers!!! These are one of the easiest vegetables to grow so get your kids to help you plant them. Dig Tim's Cow Manure into your soil then mulch with sugar cane. Plant your Cucumber seedlings thru the Sugar Cane and water daily. Each plant will grow at least one metre wide. They are a vine so they can be grown over trellis too. I like Lebanese Cucumbers the best. Pick them when they are small and sweet.
Kids love eating corn too and this is easy to grow from seeds or seedlings. It grows tall so you need to plant it at the back of your garden so it doesn't shade your vegetable garden. Remember, fruiting plants need lots of energy to produce fruit and they get it from the sun. If you're starting a veggie patch put it where your lawn is growing the best!!!!
40 kids from a local primary school came to our nursery for an excursion during the week and they all got to plant a petunia in a pot using Tim's Best Potting Mix. Most of the kids had never touched potting mix before and they were so excited about planting a seedling in a pot that they had filled themselves. If they put these petunias in the sun and water daily then these plants will grow and they will be hooked for life! If we used a chainstore potting mix then the plants will probably die and they will never want to garden again.
Chilli plants have arrived and we have varieties that are so hot you need to wear gloves to touch the fruit! I don't understand this desire to grow the hottest Chilli's in the world but we do have milder varieties that will add some heat to your cooking. Chillies can be grown in pots or gardens in sunny positions. They look great in a pot because the fruit are very ornamental. Use Tim's Best Potting Mix and water daily. The pot needs to be at least 45cms wide. Chilli plants are available in the herb section for just $5.25
You still have plenty of time to plant tomatoes and we actually sold out of our famous Fruit Fly Resistant Variety on the weekend. We have fresh stock this week so make sure you plant at least one of these.
Remember tomatoes grow at least 1.8 metres high so you need to stake them. We also have these special tomato frames that support your tomato plants and they look cool. Check this one out in the photo. These cost $15.99 and they will last for several seasons.
Pig's been watching the grass grow ever since we fertilised the lawn with our Tim's Rapid Results Lawn Food. This turbo charged fertiliser turns your grass bright green within days and it can't burn your lawn so it's safe to use on soft leaf buffalo varieties too. Mow first then fertilise. The more you water the greener it goes!!!
So many new release plants in the nursery this week. Come and see us for a bit of plant therapy.
Happy Gardening
Tim