Summer is fast approaching. Now is the time to prepare and plant for Christmas and the coming warmer months. Summer is a time great of the year for entertaining and some effort now will ensure that your garden and living areas are looking bright, colourful and healthy as you enjoy your summer living.

The Flower Garden
Pots, containers and hanging baskets should be planted now. There are great plants available such as geraniums, cape daisies, impatiens, petunias, and calibrachoas that will reward with bright, colourful summer displays. Always use a premium quality potting mix. Water pots and hanging baskets regularly. Feed weekly with a liquid food such as Powerfeed or Maxicrop, or a soluble plant food such as Bloom Booster or Flourish.
Plant annual summer flowers such as alyssum, celosia, cosmos, gerbera, impatiens, lobelia, nasturtium, marigold, petunia, phlox, portulaca and zinnia.
Roses are looking fantastic. Fertilise with a formulated rose food and watch out for aphids and thrips.
New season’s Hydrangeas are beginning to flower and are excellent spring/summer colour for pots and those shady parts of the garden or entertainment areas where we spend our summer days.

Repot orchids that have finished flowering.
Mulch garden beds. This will have the gardens looking great for Christmas and help with water retention and weed control.
For areas with dry summers – check watering systems and complete any maintenance needed before the summer arrives
Use a quality water retention granules or solutions to make the most of every summer drop.

Lawns
Lift the mower blades. A longer lawn will help to shade the roots, cool the earth and hold onto water. This will encourage a deep root system for longer lasting green lawn.
Treat lawn areas with a soil conditioner such as Seasol.
Apply a water retention granule now to help to hold summer moisture.

The Edible Garden
Food  grown in your ‘Food Forest’ is filled with homegrown goodness, freshness and flavour. November is a month that food almost seems to jump out of the earth. There is much to achieve this month to supply this tasty freshness to your summer entertainment events. Ensure regular watering and fertilising for the abundant harvest ahead. Watch out for bugs – control the ones that will cause problems and leave the rest.

See the planting guide below. Ask us for the best local advice.

In the Veggie Patch

*Including Rosemary, Sage, Thyme, Majoram, and Oregano