Author: Christine

Dominated by large trees on a medium sized property, my garden is very shaded. With no “full sun” areas I have to plant shade and partial shade loving plants. I love shrubs and flowers including camellias and azaleas but Roses and Irises are my favourite and getting these to thrive is a challenge …

View from the bench

In my front garden I have a bench which sits in the “Gardenia Bed” and faces the front garden. I like to sit there on occasion to admire all the trees – the one big Shinus sp. which looks a bit like a willow tree and the trees that border my property outside the boundary wall. I sat here for a while today and contemplated the change of the season and how my front garden has developed in the last year. I thought I’d share the view from the bench and few shots of how this little area looked just 14 months ago.

This bed was planned to be a “fragrance garden” with Gardenias and Mock orange blossom (Murraya exotica). It hasn’t turned out that way. I’ve removed a few Gardenias that were taking strain in the heat and added a few less formal plants including the Mexican Petunias and Switch Grass which I love (Panicum virgatum), amongst others. I prefer the more relaxed wildness that’s going on in this bed now to the way it was originally planned.

The bench …

Here is how it looked in December 2010

[one_half]To the left of the bench in December 2010[/one_half]

[one_half_last]and to the right in December 2010[/one_half_last]

And how it looks today …

[one_half]The bench from the back[/one_half]

[one_half_last]A lovely spot to sit and contemplate[/one_half_last]

And sitting on this bench you see this view. A few more shots of what I see from the bench …

[one_half]To the left: my little Rose Bed[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Still left, the Lavender and bower vines[/one_half_last]

[one_half]The Camellias and Pepper Tree[/one_half]

[one_half_last]The gorgeous Gaura flowering now[/one_half_last]

PS: The Mexican Petunias are so dead easy to propagate. I broke off a piece, stuck in a bottle of water, two weeks later = 1 new plant! Awesome.

Have a fabulous weekend
xxx

Tags front garden, gardenia

Christine's garden Gardening Home page features Products Reviews

Lets talk about Mulch

Rooibos and Bark Mulch - Both are beautiful

Today I tried a product that completely blew me away. I am thrilled to have found Rooibos Mulch by Carmién Tea (based in Citrusdal in the Western Cape) and I want to tell you a bit about it.

[note_box](For our foreign visitors that are perhaps not familiar with Rooibos: Rooibos – Afrikaans for “red bush”; (scientific name Aspalathus linearis) is a broom-like member of the legume family of plants growing in South Africa’s fynbos. The plant is used to make an herbal tea called rooibos tea, bush tea (esp. Southern Africa), redbush tea (esp. UK), South African red tea, or red tea. The product has been popular in Southern Africa for generations and is now consumed in many countries – source: Wikipedia)[/note_box]

A few weeks ago I saw Rooibos Mulch for sale at a nursery and saw someone walking out with a few bags. I was curious. I stopped the friendly gardener and asked her about it and she pretty much raved about it to me. As I had just finished laying bark mulch all over my garden so I decided against buying any that day but made a mental note to try out Rooibos Mulch before the next time I need to mulch all my beds.

Coincidentally, a few days later I received a mail from from Lize at Carmién Tea offering me a few free sample bags of their rooibos mulch, with no strings attached. I responded, admitted that I was considering using it and I offered to pay for a few bags to trial it. A few days later a charming young man delivered five bags of the mulch to me as a gift. The correspondence was clear – I would trial it and if I felt that way inclined I would blog about it giving my honest opinion.

So where to use? My vegetable planters have never been mulched with anything other than compost, I’ll give those some of this mulch. In the garden I have been pulling out spent annuals and overgrown ground covers, so I have a few blank spots of exposed soil that could do with some fresh mulch.

I decided to compare the Rooibos Mulch with the mulch I have been favouring – Bark Mulch. After all, the objective is to see which one I will use next time my entire garden needs mulching again.

I will let the photos do the talking …

[one_half]The trial gets underway … Rooibos vs Bark[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Lets compare. Both look very nice[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Close up of Rooibos Mulch[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Close up of the Bark Mulch[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Lets compare them in a flower bed[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Rooibos and Bark Mulch – Both are beautiful[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Before in the veggie planter …[/one_half]

[one_half_last]… and After with the Rooibos Mulch[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Lovely between pavers and dainty flowers[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Suberb around tender plants and blooms[/one_half_last]

[one_half]A newly mulched veggie container[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Surrounding the Lemon Grass[/one_half_last]

My “Wind Trial” shots

It was quite windy today. I only realised after I’d cut the bags open that it was gusty out. How would the wind affect the laying of the Rooibos mulch which is so much softer and lighter than the bark chips? Well lets see …

[one_half]Photo of the loose mulch taken at 16h18[/one_half]

[one_half_last]And taken again at 17h15. Not much change[/one_half_last]

Rooibos Mulch – What did I like?

It looks really fantastic! I love it! I think it looks better than the peach pips I used once and the bark mulch I currently use.
Compared to bark mulch, this was extremely gentle on the hands. I did not need to wear gloves to lay it! Wonderful!
It went down easily!! Much easier to put down than bark. Firstly, the bags are lighter and it is easy to control the flow of the mulch out of the bags as opposed to having to handle the bark to lay it. And it pours beautifully!
When laying bark I have to be careful around tender, soft little plants that I don’t damage them or even cover them completely if they are tiny. The Rooibos Mulch went over seedlings that are about 3cm tall without ease and without disturbing a single seedling. Fabulous!
Between pavers it is amazing! No mess, no fuss! Try laying those big bark pieces between a 3cm gap between pavers. Can’t be done if you want it to look nice. The Rooibos Mulch went into the gaps with ease, looks fabulous and I made hardly any mess (see Photo number 9 above – mulch laid, no cleaning afterwards).
You cannot easily “sprinkle” bark mulch around. Rooibos Mulch sprinkles easily so you can lay mulch even in hard to reach little places. It can be sprinkled over and around plants.
Its totally organic!
Snails dislike the slightly sharp stalk edges so its a good biological pest control. I have quite a snail problem so this is great news!
But … The VERY BEST Feature of Rooibos Mulch is the smell when you water it … OMG! It is absolutely wonderful to get the subtle smell of Rooibos when you water on and around this mulch. I’d buy it just for that!

What didn’t I like?

Not a single thing. Zero. Zip. Nudda.

My Verdict

I am very tempted NOT to tell you where to get it because I want to keep this little secret all to myself! Just kidding, but Im going to be a upset if they can’t supply me when I order my next load of mulch in September because y’all have bought every last bit of Rooibos Mulch in the country! I fear that once this product becomes known there will be a shortage! Please leave me some then I’ll share my secret …

Contact details for Carmien Tea

To order the Real Rooibos Mulch, contact the farm directly on:
Telephone: +27 (0)22 921 3405/7 or via e-mail admin@carmientea.co.za
The bags cost R6.00 per 3kg bag, excluding delivery. (Those are 3kg bags you see in my photos).
You can get the full details, all the features and benefits etc. from the website at: Carmien Tea – The Real Rooibos Mulch.

PS: This product is going to the very top of our “Recommended Products” list which you can see here: Recommended Products by The Gardening Blog.

Other Benefits of using Rooibos Mulch

Rooibos mulch forms a crusty layer on the soil after a few waterings. This layer reduces water loss through evaporation and is thus ideal for reducing stress on young transplants and contributes to considerable water saving in gardens and potplants.
A 10 – 15% better growth was observed on young plants when using the rooibos mulch.
The mulch is a natural organic product and will not harm the environment – it is attractive and will not blow away once watered thoroughly.
The tea reduces germination of weeds through formation of an insulating layer above the soil, thus facilitating cleaner seedbeds and potplants.
The leachate, which is low in tannins, is beneficial to plant and root development. Tea has been used by gardeners since Grandma´s days for maintaining healthy growth.
Mixed with potting soil, it provides an excellent growing medium – light and well drained.
PH is between 5 and 5.5 – ideal for plants requiring slightly acidic medium. Bonemeal or lime can be added to modify pH for plants requiring more alkaline conditions.

Tags apricot kernel mulch, mulch, rooibos mulch, sheet mulching

Christine's garden Do it yourself Gardening Home page features

The Problem with the Thatching Reed

Post author By Christine
Post date February 27, 2012
9 Comments on The Problem with the Thatching Reed

We continue with the Big Pond Makeover – or “Project Pond“. The problem I’m focussing on in this post, is the “flop” of the Chondropetalum tectorum (Cape Thatching Reed) planted in the bed on the left of the pond. On each side of the pond is a planting bed. Landscapers told me whatever I plant in the one I need to mirror in the other – and I agree. But it is tricky, as the bed on the left of the pond is quite shaded and the one on the right is mostly full(ish) sun. So getting the same plant to thrive on either side is proving a challenge two landscapers have not succeeded at. Which makes me nervous. If the professionals can’t get it right, how will I?

It’s gorgeous on the right. I love these three plants – they are stunning and I would have loved it to work on both sides. But sadly, it is not. Let me show you what I mean …

In the first photo you see the Alleyway with the pond/water feature to the left and the Cape Thatching Reed growing tall and strong just beside it – the second photo is a closer shot. See how great that plant is? The tall strappy reed that looks fabulous, is water wise and trouble-free indigenous plant. I love it and the way it looks.

And then, the third photo shows what a flop it is in the bed on the other side of the pond.

[one_third]Love them next to the pond[/one_third]

[one_third]Beautiful, strong and tall.[/one_third]

[one_third_last]Here it all goes wrong[/one_third_last]

Here are a few photographs with more detail of whats happening with those plants. On the right of the pond you see the Chondropetalum tectorum grows beautifully in a mostly sunny position (even here, the very large one gets the most sun). And then you see in the last two photos how poorly it does when it does not get adequate sunlight.

[one_half]Successful planting on the RIGHT[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Taken from the other angle[/one_half_last]

[one_half]UNsuccessful planting on LEFT[/one_half]

[one_half_last]They really need way more sun …[/one_half_last]

I’m at a loss. First prize would be of course to get the plants on the left to perform. I can remove any more from the tree causing the shade – it is already looking a bit lop-sided, so that’s not an option. So what else can I do? Replant? It will be very sad to lose or remove the three gorgeous ones on the right.

So if I was to plant something different, what could work? I’m considering Panicum virgatum – any type I can find. They are not easy to come by here in the Cape it seems. I’ve never seen one at a regular nursery. What a shame, they are so amazingly beautiful and easy to grow. Miscanthus perhaps? Also not readily available. I’m still researching plants and will of course be very grateful if anyone has a winning suggestion for me!

Next in the series of Project Pond comes the first attempt at cleaning up. Does it work or fail? Does my pond guy get to keep increasing his rate whenever he feels like it? We shall soon see … 🙂

Happy Gardening
xxx

Tags pond, pond plants, project pond, water feature

Christine's garden Do it yourself Gardening Home page features

The Big PRE-Makeover Pond Post

Post author By Christine
Post date February 26, 2012
23 Comments on The Big PRE-Makeover Pond Post

I keep repeating myself on this – my pond / water feature kinda sucks! Seeing to it and making it more attractive is one of the things on my 2012 Gardening To-Do List and up to now I’ve been thinking and doing a bit of pond research. So far, Project Pond has started slowly with the adding of some oxygenator plants to the pond, I’ve germinated some Lotus Blossom from seed (new flowering plants for the pond), I’ve been “window shopping” a bit for other plants and taken a few “before” photographs. Which is the point of todays’ post – the big “Pre” reveal of my slightly grotty pond /water feature, my current ideas of what I might do with it and then a call for opinions, advice and suggestions 🙂

Some background info about the pond. It came with the house. It came with four goldfish, we now have three. It has a few random, not very well cared for plants in it (yes I’m guilty as charged). I’m not loving the pond. At all. which is why I think I ignore it. Although it is right opposite the big double door to my office and I hear the water tinkling in it all day, I rarely look at it which seems a pity, so I need to make it look lovely and more of a feature. Look … when I sit at my desk and turn my head slightly to the left, this is what I see. Here, Hercules has taken over again, sitting on my keyboard and faces the pond …

The pond is in the Alley on the left hand side of the house. (One of these days I will draw a map of the property!). It’s a long Alley that starts as a well shaded area and changes to lots of sun and heat (from the boundary wall) and then shaded again further down. On each side of the pond is a planting bed. The landscapers told me whatever I planted in the one I needed to mirror in the other and I agree. That is one of the things I need to work on to improve the overall look of the pond area… but more about those two beds in my next pond update.

Then the pond itself … there is nothing actually wrong with it, it’s just not very inspiring. I don’t ever look at it and say “Wow! that’s lovely”. Isn’t that what one should feel? As I said, the plants in it have been neglected so we will get that sorted in the next weeks as soon as the weather is slightly cooler. Then what? I really don’t know what more to do or to plant to make it all better. But I do have a few ideas which I will share.

Lets look at the photos and see if I can show what I am talking about.

Panoramas

I am showing two panoramas of the Alley – it was difficult to do a good panorama because the alley is narrow and long. If you click the images below you will see the full view – these are cropped versions:

Some normal photographs of the alley and pond

[one_half]Pond and Alley view taken from the front[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Pond and Alley view taken from the other side[/one_half_last]

[one_third]Alley Way seen from the front[/one_third]

[one_third]Closer view of pond[/one_third]

[one_third_last]Alley as seen from the back[/one_third_last]

Project Pond is not a one day project. There are a few things I want to do to improve it. So far these are the steps I have set myself to do:

Project Pond To Do List

Tackle the beds on either side of the water feature to get the planting right.
Repot into larger pots and fresh medium all the plants that are currently in the pond.
Clean up the pond. Seriously.
Decide whether the pond needs more plants – if yes, try to buy. (Japanese Irises which I love are apparently rarely available).
Decide whether to paint or mosaic the inner which is currently painted black and looking a bit worse for wear. Leave it and enjoy the “oldness” or renew? I need to decide.
Find a way to incorporate more plant material into this space, perhaps a trellis or two above the 3 bird baths? I can picture Star Jasmine making a beautiful wall covering here, the scent filling the evening air in spring. I’m very tempted. But how?

I have a lot of decisions to make about this area and being nervous about messing it up and slightly daunted by the task means I’ve had all these things on my “To Do” list for nearly two years. I’m hoping that breaking it down into these bite-sized individual tasks means I might actually get something done. And I feel a bit more committed to doing it all now that I’ve written about it!

Here are a few more visuals and ideas I have …

[one_half]The birds love the three bird baths[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Starlings are here every day[/one_half_last]

[one_half]One of my goldfish in the pond[/one_half]

[one_half_last]I am considering blue mosaic for the inside[/one_half_last]

The birds and fishy are just to show you why I want to keep the water feature going and not just fill it with soil and plants.

Tomorrow I will show you the plant beds on either side of the pond and why they are not working (see post here).

Happy Gardening
xxx

Tags pond, pond plants, project pond, water feature

Christine's garden Gardening Home page features Miscellaneous

Growing Lotus Blossom from Seed

Post author By Christine
Post date February 24, 2012
14 Comments on Growing Lotus Blossom from Seed

A few weeks ago I decided it was time to start working on the plants in my pond. I read up a bit about plants for ponds, what works, what doesn’t. First thing I learnt is that Water Lilies don’t do very well in a pond with moving water. Ok, that explains a lot. The ones I inherited with the pond have never done well. I’ve had one bloom in 3 years.

I can’t do too much to the pond whilst it is still really hot here, so I will tackle the whole “pond planting” improvement probably in April. But there are a few things I am able to do straight away including adding the Oxygenators to the pond and getting some Lotus Blossom seeds going. I ordered some Lotus Blossom (Nelumbo nucifera) seeds online and started to read up about how to get them to germinate. You can’t just throw them in water …

The Vision … a pond full of these

To get the seeds to germinate you first need to prepare the seeds for germination (good thing I read up about this or I would have thought the seeds were rubbish when they didn’t germinate). “The inherent characteristic of the Nelumbo seed is to remain dormant for many years even if the environment is perfect for them. This resistance to germination is caused by the seedcoat which is almost impermeable to water penetration. The secret for speeding up the germination process is to remove this protective cover without harming the internal seed”.

So the trick is to pierce the seed without damaging the inner core, and this is best done using a metal file or sandpaper. This process is very well documented on this web page: Nelumbo (Lotus) Germination & Seedling Growth by Walter Pagels – whose instructions I followed to the tee. Two of the three seeds I started with are now almost ready for planting! (I kept 5 seeds in reserve – apparantly each seed will grow very large – even a single Lotus seedling is enough to fill a normal backyard pond in a year).

I filed my three seeds very carefully and put them in a glass jar with water. Within three days the first one germinated, the second followed about two days later. During this time I had to keep changing the water as it got very murky (the cloudy color is caused by bacteria feeding on the exudation from the seed). Once the first shoot and roots started to appear the water stayed clear and I put each of the two viable seedlings into its own glass jar. They have now been growing for two and a half weeks and are looking pretty good. As soon as the three leaves have formed they need to be potted up.

[one_half]The seedlings in their jars[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Showing the size of the swollen seed[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Full sized single seedling[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Almost ready for planting[/one_half_last]

I found Walter Pagels‘ trial and documentation incredibly easy to follow and interesting to read. It felt like I was doing a school science project and was quite fun following his notes and watching my seedlings develop exactly as he said they would. (That doesn’t always happen for me! I’m not good with seeds). I’m looking forward to potting them and then getting them into my pond. With a bit of luck they should flower at the end of the year.

Notes about the Lotus Blossom (Nelumbo nucifera)

Nelumbo nucifera is a perennial growing to 1 m (3ft 3in) by 1 m (3ft 3in). Flowering for only 2 months of the year according to what I have read, it should flower in high summer here. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by insects and beetles. The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and it cannot grow in the shade.

References:

Nelumbo (Lotus) Germination & Seedling Growth by Walter Pagels – In 2001, water gardening legend Walter Pagels, San Diego, California, offered Nelumbo seed from his personal collection to members of the IWGS email discussion list who were interested in participating in a germination experiment. The following is the journal/newsletter that Walter provided as the experiment progressed. It also contains excellent descriptions of and tips on germination of seeds and early growth of seedlings.

Tags lotus blossom, pond plants, seedlings

Christine's garden Gardening Home page features Reviews

The Complete Planting Design Course – February Book Review

Post author By Christine
Post date February 23, 2012
4 Comments on The Complete Planting Design Course – February Book Review

For this month I’ve chosen to do my book review on a book by Hilary Thomas called “The Complete Planting Design Course – Plans and Styles for every garden”. I first came across the author when I did a distance learning course about garden design and Hilary Thomas was the tutor. At the time I blogged about the course here and at the end I decided to buy the book by Hilary. I’m really glad I did.

It’s a pretty comprehensive book that helped me to view plants in a different light (or with fresh eyes). The chapters / subjects were very similar to what we covered in the course, so for those who don’t have the time to do a course and submit assignments etc., this book is great as it covers pretty much everything we learnt on the course. From initial vision to finished planting, the book clearly explains the practical steps, considerations, opportunities and decisions that need to be taken. This process can be applied to ones own gardens, and it will also help you to take your skills a step further into other people’s gardens!

The key subjects covered are:

understanding plants in design
How to get the most from your site
Planting ideas for every style
Finding a theme for your location

According to the book blurb, once you’ve read this book and put into practise what you learn, you should be abl;e to design a garden. Once you understand colour, shape, texture, and form and know how to use these to best effect in a garden setting you will soon be designing your own garden and then you’ll be moving on to designing for your family friends. You will learn to create expert planting schemes using your newly learnt skills and techniques.

What I liked most about the book (and the course) is that Hilary taught me to look at the garden in a new way. Instead of planting for planting sake I learnt to plant for year-round interest. I learnt how to choose and combine plants for specific effects, for year-round color and interest, for drama and movement and to overcome site difficulties. The book is beautifully illustrated (photography by Steven Wooster) and chapters are divided and subdivided in a very simple, easy-to-follow way. I regularly pull this book off the bookshelf as the photographs are very inspiring and I seem to learn something new every time I pick up this book.

[one_half][/one_half]