Make bees happy! - Oct 13, 2017
Thrips love roses more than you!
Dear gardening friends
Great to see a few drops of rain. I got hit by one drop and I found myself looking up to see where it came from?
More rain is forecast, so that's great news for gardeners.
Some plants are thriving during this dry spell and one of the most drought hardy plants on the planet is a plant called Pride of Madeira. Botanically known as Echium, it has these bright blue flower spikes in spring. The bees absolutely love it, so if you want to get more fruit on your plants, attract more bees into your garden by planting bee attracting plants.
Echium thrives in those hot dry spots, where other plants, simply give up and drop dead. Plant one now, and it will be covered in these amazing blue flowers this time next year. They grow about 1.5 metres high by 1.5 metres wide. They can be pruned and kept smaller too.
I love the grey foliage, and it's the perfect back drop for these spectacular flowers.
When you first plant it, you will need to water it, for the first few weeks to get it started. Like other newly planted shrubs, they are not hardy until they become established. We have nice plants here for $16.99. We have two colours. Blue or bright blue. It's up to you!
Bottle brush are bursting into bloom around Macarthur. We almost sold out of Callistemon last week because gardeners always fall in love with them, when it's hot and dry. Where ever I go I see these drought hardy shrubs and small trees covered in red flowers!!!!
The birds and the bees love these nectar filled flowers so why wouldn't you plant more? They are so easy to grow, and we even have dwarf varieties that will come up to your belly button. Water well to get them started then stand back.
If you want to save some money, we have them for just $5.99 on the native tube bench. Always dunk plants in a bucket of water just prior to planting. This removes the air from the Potting mix and rehydrates it so your plants have a better chance of survival.
Remember if the root ball dries out, it's almost impossible to get it wet again. Modern Potting mixes are made from wood chip and it can become hydrophobic during dry weather.
Our Wettasoil sales are breaking all records. This brilliant product removes the oily barrier to allow your soil to accept water again. It doesn't replace water, it makes the water get absorbed by the soil.
Our potted rose bushes are magnificent.
They are all in flower now, so you really do need to stop and smell our roses. The perfume is incredible. No wonder so many people love roses.
Check the buds and the new growth on your roses at home for Thrips. These sap sucking insects cause the flower buds and new growth to come out all twisted and distorted. Thrips thrive during dry weather.
Spray now with Pestoil or Eco oil. These non poisonous sprays dehydrate insects without killing you!
Because of our overhead watering, which comes on every night, we use Yates Rose Gun to control insects and black spot.
It just lasts longer in our conditions.
Pig won Bathurst in a bug last Sunday.
An amazing achievement, seeing his vintage car has no steering wheel or brakes. Pig really made the car sizzle as he roasted all other competitors! He drank the Champagne rather than wasting it.
We still have Tomatoes galore and it's not too late to plant up your vegetable garden. Grow them in pots if you don't have the patch. Use our Tim's Best Potting Mix and you can't go wrong.
Traditionally Tomatoes are staked with 6 foot (1.8m) hard wood stakes. I don't know why, because I've noticed my tomato plants grow much bigger than the stakes. So I've ordered 2.4 metres high stakes this year.
Come and get some. When your plants grow bigger, you get more tomatoes, it just makes sense.
I was speaking to Rae Mathews during the week. Rae told me she was "just having a lovely time browsing". I said "I'm so sorry Rae, but we've banned browsing".
Let's face it, buying is so much more fun than browsing. Rae quickly found a nice shrub to plant in her busy garden. " I love colour" she said. "It's not that hard to keep your garden looking nice". She's a bit disturbed about how many of the gardens in her street have gone to the pack. Some people have given up keeping the gardens looking nice. It's a shame because houses look so much nicer when the gardens are loved.
I know you are loving your garden, because we have been so busy this spring. People garden when it's sunny, and we've had plenty of sunshine this spring!
Come and see us if you need help in the garden.
Happy gardening
Tim