The Star: September 16, 2021

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Thursday September 16 2021 The Star
SPRING GARDENING 27
Time to prepare for warm days ahead
NEITHER WINTER nor
summer, September can be
termed the ‘in-between’ month.
Spring is here and there’s a taste
of better things to come, and it’s
a very busy month preparing for
the heat to come.
Houseplant care
Hopefully your houseplants
have successfully survived winter.
It is a difficult time for them as
many originate from tropical
countries.
As tempting as it is, delay
purchasing new houseplants for
another month until indoor temperatures
warm up consistently
throughout the day.
Continue to water plants sparingly
and mist the foliage (leaves)
regularly with lukewarm water
and ensure they are positioned
in a ‘high-light’ part of the house.
With large “glossy” green-leaved
houseplants such as fiddle leaf fig,
clean the leaves regularly with a
soft sponge.
If you have any houseplants
that are struggling, a few days in
a steamy bathroom is an excellent
way to revive them.
In the vege patch
It’s the very end for harvesting
traditional winter vegetables;
broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage,
cauliflower, celery, leeks,
lettuce, parsnips, rhubarb, silverbeet,
spinach and turnips. Keep
VIBRANT: Bulbs should now be in full bloom. Mark the area where they are planted so
they aren’t disturbed before next year’s showpiece.
planting out year-round vegetables
like celery, lettuce, silverbeet,
beetroot and spinach.
Many rush to plant out traditional
summer vegetable
seedlings in September such as,
tomatoes and cucumbers, but it
is still a little early. You are better
to wait until mid-October when
soils have warmed up.
However, you can now sow
summer vegetable seeds in seed
trays or punnets and place them
in a warm sheltered position
indoors or in glass houses.
Where areas of your vegetable
garden not too wet, start preparing
your summer garden by
digging in fresh compost. When
‘cleaning up’ the winter vegetable
garden, all the green material can
go straight into the compost bin
(so long as it is disease free).
Blooming bulbs
A wonderful month to enjoy
the spring flowers of traditional
bulbs.
When they finish flowering,
sadly sometimes too briefly, allow
the foliage to ‘brown’ and die
down before removing.
This is how the bulbs obtain
enough nutrients for the next
seasons flowering.
It can be worth marking in the
areas of your major bulb plantings
with some small stakes to
avoid disturbing later in the season
when planting possible trees
and shrubs.
Flowering annuals
Most winter annuals are
now coming to the end of flowering.
Begin preparing for planting
summer flowering annuals by
sowing varieties in seed trays
ready to plant out later.
In the meantime, for continuous
flowers in your garden, plant
annuals that flower all year round;
alyssum, calendulas, cornflowers,
lobelias, pansies and violas.
Roses
Many rose varieties will now be
in full growth and the first flowers
will appear towards the end of the
month.
Apply the first side dressing
of rose fertiliser. Make sure your
fertiliser is high in potash which
promotes strong flowers.
Compost can be spread around
the base of the roses. This works
as both a soil conditioner and
mulch.
Lawn care
Grass will begin growing again
in some warmer areas.
Towards the end of the month
the first dressing of fertiliser can
be applied.
Check the lawn for wet spots or
areas that may require additional
drainage to be installed over the
summer months.
Ornamental trees and
shrubs
Camellias and azaleas will be
near the end of their flowering,
while rhododendrons are in full
bloom.
Complete any additional
planting of trees and shrubs in
September, before soils dry out in
early summer.
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