Page 22 - HW September 2020

lawn & garden
YOU MAY BE tired of seeing the word “unprecedented” but 2020 really has been a year unlike any other in recent times.
David Mortimer, Country Manager for Yates NZ (www.yates. co.nz), agrees, saying this year more than any other has seen a broader range of gardeners taking more time to consider their outdoor spaces and prepare them for spring.
“We are certainly living in a time of unprecedented demand for gardening supplies,” he says.
“Kiwis are cocooning, wanting food security, a connection to nature and feel like gardening is a great way to ‘take control’ of a part of their lives in a positive and uplifting way.”
As a result, he adds: “It’s going to be a bumper spring season so retailers will need plenty of stock!”
Yates has been busy catering to the strongest trends in the garden space.
“Indoor starts people on the journey,” David Mortimer explains, “and small-space gardening has been a trend for the past couple of years that Covid kicked up another gear.
“ e beauty of that is it’s bringing a lot of younger people into the garden space who won’t be thinking of themselves as gardeners.”
To feed this trend, in the past year, Yates has launched an interior-speci c potting mix, several fertiliser application products, including a spike fertiliser and dripper fertiliser that feed plants for a couple of months, and a range of organic products.
A small-garden expert’s expert advice
“People are looking for clever design ideas to maximise their liveable zones,” says Martin Steel-Brown, owner/manager of Auckland-based specialist in small garden design and maintenance, City Botanics.
“A well-designed balcony or deck is like adding another room to your home so the investment is certainly worth it, and there has been a huge uptake of enthusiasts in the indoor space.
“With spring upon us, now is the time to be paying attention to the soil health of plants. Time and time again we see people rushing out to panic buy fertiliser, weed killer or pest and disease products as soon as they notice a problem.
“The reality is that so many plant health problems can
be overcome by focusing time and energy on soil health. I recommend a good top dressing of compost (about 3cm) to all garden beds and plants that are kept in pots, then top this with a layer of ne bark mulch (at least 5cm).”
Martin’s go-to fertiliser is “always an organic form, either sheep pellets or blood and bone. If using the latter, I add potassium in the form of potash for owering and fruiting plants.”
It’s important to look for ways to conserve water and prepare in case the summer months are unkind again, he advises. Installing a watering system is not as expensive as people think and plants will respond beautifully.
Indoor plants often consist of lush tropical varieties that are hungry feeders over the warm months.They require feeding with a liquid fertiliser every two weeks to keep them looking their best.
In terms of small garden tools, must-haves include a good pair of secateurs for hand branch pruning and a pair of oral snips for de-heading and tip pruning.
A sturdy watering can with spray nozzle is important for watering pots and applying liquid fertiliser.
Many will also need a weeding tool for pulling out dif cult weeds, a sturdy spade, and hand-held shears.
Container gardening continues to be a hit in small spaces and there are plenty of lightweight pots which work well on balconies.
“Contemporary pot colours like black, white and grey are very versatile, and I also recommend pots for single statement pieces or in clusters of three in varying sizes to create interest.”
www.citybotanics.co.nz
Kill weeds organically
Now available to Kiwi gardeners, Slasher is a class-leading commercial organic weedkiller. A combo of fatty acid and botanical essential oils, Slasher was developed for use around commercial edible crops in Australia, and is BioGro approved in New Zealand as an organic input (passing the strictest criteria applied to organics). Fatty acid provides very fast visible results while the essential oil acts as a synergist, improving the ef cacy even further to kill weeds, moss, algae and lichen on contact, producing visible results within an hour. It contains no lasting spray residues and no glyphosate. Available in 750ml & 3L ready- to-use sprays plus 500ml, 1L & 5L concentrate formats.
www.ecoorganicgarden.co.nz
20 NZHJ | SEPTEMBER 2020
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