Gardeners love daylight savings - Oct 07, 2011

Dear gardening friends

If you are like me then you will be making use of the extra day light to do more gardening.

This week I finally got a chance to fertilise my garden with " Organic Life". I used 105kgs so you can imagine what the place smells like. When I open the door in the morning I get that organic farm fragrance. What I like about Organic Life fertiliser is you can use it on everything. I even put some on my outdoor pot plants. Don't use it on your indoor plants or you will have to sell the house. The smell only lasts for a couple of days and your plants will love it. We have 35kg bags for $42.50.

Yesterday while it was raining I fertilised my lawn with Tim's Rapid Results Lawn Food. I always apply this using a Scott's fertiliser spreader. These are a fantastic investment because they are made from plastic so the fertiliser doesn't rust it out.

While I was applying the fertiliser two mad plovers came out of the sky like spitfires. They must have layed their eggs in the paddock next door. They swooshed past my ears every couple of minutes which was quite unnerving.

Last year they layed their eggs in the middle of my lawn so this year I am happy. The Rapid Results will turn my lawn bright green in 14 days if the weather warms up.

If you have fertilised your lawn recently you may have noticed that the lawn hasn't turned as green as last year. Modern fertilisers are temperature controlled so they won't release while we are having this cold weather. It will get hot soon enough and your grass will go bright green. Make the most of this free water and fertilise your lawn and garden now.

I also had time after work to pot up one of my terracotta urns. I have red geraniums growing in some of them but at this time of year I always plant Oasis Spreading Petunias. These are not like ordinary petunias that grow upright and leggy. Oasis spreading petunias grow one metre wide and they grow flat on the ground. You get 3 plants in a punnet so this will cover 3 metres. They come in pink,white, red, blue and purple. My favourite is the Brilliant Purple because it goes beautifully with the bright red geraniums. If you have ever been to Italy in summer you see these plants spilling out of terracotta pots everywhere.

I only plant one plant in each pot and they flower until the end of Autumn. Check out the photo to see how much these plants spread.

While I am talking about Petunias I should also let you know that Petunia Raspberry Blast has arrived. These have been a sensation ever since they were released a couple of years ago. Raspberry Blast has Raspberry Pink striped flowers for 9 months. They are brilliant pot plants for sunny positions and they will give you the wow factor on Christmas Day if you plant them now. These are more like ground covers and they have thick stems like succulents. We planted them in pots last year on our front veranda. This year Hayden has planted them in hanging baskets too and they are already starting to flower.

We always use Yates self watering Tuscan hanging baskets. These are fantastic because on those really hot days in summer the plants can survive on the water that is in the well. Always buy the biggest basket in the series and use Tim's Best Potting Mix. The water storing crystals and wetting agents make all the difference on those hot days.

Poor Lisa fell off the stairs coming out of the lunch room on Sunday and hurt her back. Luckily she has responded to treatment and she is back at work. We all get sore backs at this time of year because we are moving so many plants around. Luckily we have a couple of young guys like Russell and Hayden to help us.

Monika is getting married on Saturday in a park near Bundeena. Monika is a very colourful character and she often shocks us.

She may shock you one day too. We are hoping they have a sunny day for the wedding. Monika will be back at work a week later so if you get a chance you might like to congratulate her.

Snails and slugs are everywhere after all this beautiful rain so come and get some Multi Guard snail pellets. It is safe to use around children and pets and it kills snails and slugs fast. Lots of people are coming in with plants that have just been eaten by snails.

Just reminding you that we do have umbrellas so you won't get wet when you come and visit.

Happy gardening
Tim