August 2007 Garden news

The garden is as dry as a bone, no rain whatsoever during July and so far up to mid August, just extremely cold.
A yearly job is to prune the carambolas (five corner fruit), I usually do this at this time every year to keep them at a manageable height.
I am going right through the garden at the moment with watering cans filled with a mix of kelp and a liquid fertilizer, this should give the plants a boost when the cold weather finally finishes.
It is the official opening of this seasons Queensland ‘Open Garden’ Scheme, this is being held at Government House in Brisbane on Friday 10 August 2007.
A couple of days prior to this Kim Rabbage from the ‘Open Garden’ Scheme contacted me and asked if I would be a guest speaker, like an idiot I said yes, hopefully my speech will be reasonably interesting and not too boring. I must admit to a few nerves.
Well the speech went well and such notables as Colin Campbell congratulated me. Judy and I had a nice morning tea and met some very nice fellow gardeners.
I arrived back home to a truck load of soil and spent the rest of the weekend wheel-barrowing the soil to the back yard, then bucketing it into the needy gardens. This was an absolute cow of a job, but the gardens will spring into life soon and this will give an added boost.
I calculate that I have wheel-barrowed at least 30 metres of soil this year around the gardens, its no wonder my shoulder, hips and knees are sore.
Rain is forecast for this coming weekend, I have bought a 40 kg bag of Crop King 88 and hopefully I will get to spread it on the lawns. If it does rain it will certainly be at the right time as the garden knows that spring is almost here.
Well it has rained; we had 26mm overnight and what a difference this will make.
I had to cut the Citrus trees back a fair bit this year just to get rid of the ‘gall wasps’ I have now treated with the trees with trace elements, kelp and fertilizer, they are now showing good signs of early growth.
Another two metres of soil put on the garden this weekend plus some of my own compost mix.
Lots of new plants put in the garden, amazing how I find room for them all.
What with pots, plants, soil and fertilizers I calculate that we have spent almost $1000 on the garden this month, plenty of new and interesting plants for this years ‘Open Garden’.
Well it has certainly has rained. We have had three inches so far with more to come, but the bonus came with a price and that was very strong gale force winds. The winds were up to 100k an hour causing damage to the Brugmansias, and Heliconias (as if they haven’t suffered enough with the cold) and a Curry Tree uprooted.
The Heliconias that are left are going to be a real mess for this years opening.
This weekend will be a cleaning up weekend as there is debris everywhere and the swimming pool is full of gum leaves.
Well it hardly seems true but we have had five inches of rain this week, what a bonus, all the rainwater tanks are overflowing.
Well the rain has stopped and the sun is out, we should see a real difference in the garden in the coming weeks, it’s always exciting when the garden knows spring is here.

Water Plants

To re-pot: Separate into crowns, cut away excess roots, and then line the new pot with newspaper. Use a garden soil do NOT use a potting mix. Put some blood and bone or wrap a fertilizer tablet in a cloth or newspaper and inside the pot. The crown of the plant should be level with top of pot. Top off with sand or gravel. The water lily should be at a depth of between 45 to 50 cm and at least 25cm from top of pot to water level.

Remember, water lilies like at least 4 to 6 hours of sun daily.To maintain: Remove old spent leaves and flowers, keep water level up, re-pot prior to spring growth starting. The bigger the pot the bigger the flowers and leaves will be. Most water lilies will die down during winter

Speech for 2007 opening of 'Open Garden' Scheme at Government House

The Open Garden Scheme celebrated 20 years this week and the opening of the 2007-2008 season was held in Government House, Brisbane on 10 August 2007 and was officially opened by Her Excellency, Quentin Price, Govern er of Queensland. I was asked to make a speech from a garden owners point of view. Below is the speech I made.

Our garden is coming up for it’s November opening and of course we want to show it off to the most people possible because we are proud of the result of years of hard work and effort.
For our garden opening we enlist our family and friends to help with the gate and plant sales, there’s just no way Judy and I could cope otherwise.Having been through five previous ‘Open Gardens’ we pretty well know what to expect. Because Judy is such a good plant propagator we expect the bargain plant buyers first, and true to form they start to arrive at 9:00am.Judy prepares hundreds of beautiful Bromeliads all in flower and best of these are snapped up very quickly, Needless to say lots of people go away very satisfied owners of new plants.After the initial rush of plant buyers people then start to explore our garden, our philosophy is that on this open weekend our garden belongs to our visitors who are free to relax and spend as much time as they like in the garden and hopefully go away with a good feeling and perhaps some ideas for their own garden. Both Judy and I are more than happy to answer questions and give advice.When you think about it, a garden is much like a work of art, it is designed and created with just as much passion and creativity, it is then shown to the Public through Art Galleries, ‘Open Garden’ Scheme ect for people to enjoy. Perhaps the only difference is that a Painting/sculpture once completed is finished but a garden is never finished.
Remember that there is no other garden in Australia like yours, your garden is unique and this uniqueness is what you should promote, your garden is your own individual artistic creation.
For those here that open their garden please do not expect the ‘Open Garden’ Co-Ordinator to do everything for you, remember they are very busy and have many other gardens to look after.You know more about your garden than anyone else, so why not do most of the groundwork and promotion yourself, and you can start this several months ahead of your opening. Highlight what your garden has to offer be it a specific plant types, landscaping, sculptures, or the wildlife that visit or live in your garden ect. Look up the local Garden Clubs and offer to talk about your garden and how it started, how it has changed, what there is to see and any specific plant interest you have, you can also talk about how you came into the ‘Open Garden Scheme’ and what it has done for you.
Contact you local newspaper, they are usually very supportive especially if a charity gains from the opening.Most nurseries’, produce stores ect will put out your shop signs regardless of whether you are having a plant sale or not.
If you are into digital photography why not start an on line ‘Photo Album’ and promote it through garden sites ect, I have done this and my album now receives between 7000 to 10,000 hits every month.
It is really tough going these times of drought, gardening would have to be the most stressful hobby going. We gardeners have all had to adapt and change our gardening practices, sometimes at great personal financial cost, I know that because we have bought five rainwater tanks at a cost of nearly $10,000 just for use in the garden.
Our garden is that important to us.
It is always a worrying time in the lead up to the opening, too little/too much rain, storms, frost, hail ect can and do happen (this year our heliconias have been badly burnt from the cold). Google always gets a good work out, ‘googling’ trying to get a long range forecast for the opening weekend. Fortunately we have never been washed out, that would be terrible to see a whole years hard work washed away.
As it usually rains during September/October, the garden starts to look green and lush, especially after another year of drought conditions (has been like this since we started to open) the spring rain is most welcome as we are usually despairing by the end of Winter.
Nature is truly amazing; the difference the rain makes is incredible. We actually have a green garden for people to walk through.
To make the garden opening an experience we ask the inventor of the ‘Waterfork’ (Norm) to demonstrate his product and he is usually very pleased with the results for the weekend. We ask him to provide one of his ‘Waterforks’ as a ‘Lions Club’ raffle prize as his payment.
This year we have also asked our friend David to sell pots and fertilizers at ‘special’ open garden prices, he will also give a prize to the ‘Lions Club’. We have always asked the ‘Lions Club’ to cater for our ‘Open Garden’ openings which they do very well. Our back patio is converted to an outside eating area where visitors can partake in morning and afternoon teas with beautiful home made cakes and a sausage sizzle for lunch, they also run a Raffle (no escapes this) which has some nice prizes including a couple of nice ‘Bromeliads’ donated by Judy, a ‘waterfork’ , ten bundles of ‘sugar sane ‘mulch donated by the grower (Currants) and a couple of ‘worm farms’ and ‘compost mates’ donated by the manufacturer (Reln).
The Lions Club usually make about $2000 out of the weekend and this is donated to charities such as ‘Young Care’ prior to Christmas.On the second day we have a different type of visitor, these are the ‘lookers’ some of whom spend up to four hours in our garden, most are enthusiasts who have a million questions and photograph everything of interest.We try to make our garden opening an interesting experience with plant sales, food and drinks, expert advice on tropical fruit growing and care by our good friend Kasper Schnyder, demonstrations of composting techniques, demonstrations of garden equipment and last but not least the fact that Judy and I take the time to meet and greet as many visitors as we are able to, we also have lots of resin native animals hidden in logs and trees around the garden which are a hit with the children.We love opening as we find the open weekend to be a fantastic experience and a real pleasure to meet so many like minded people who are interested in Gardening.The comments both in the Open Garden visitor’s book and from the visitors themselves are a pleasure to read and hear, I must admit these comments do make us feel pretty good. We have never had a negative comment in the past five years from the hundreds of visitors we receive each opening, we have had nothing stolen or any damage caused to our property.
Another good thing about opening is that the Open Garden Scheme provides financial assistance for Community gardens throughout Australia, it is a great organisation that gives a great deal of pleasure to a lot of people and I would like to thank Kim and the Open Garden Committee for letting us be part of this great scheme.
After two hectic days and hundreds of visitors later we head up to the Sunshine Coast for a well-deserved break.
What do we do you may ask? Well we visit nursery's of course and usually come back with a car full of plants.
After it’s all over I am already thinking about new ideas and plans for next year and Judy is trying to dissuaded me, saying enough is enough.
Can I be cured?
The answer is of course NO.
Thank you and happy gardening and great openings.

Waterwise Garden Competition

Would we still be avid gardeners if we had known the drought would be so bad? I think we would of, but perhaps not gone as far as we have done.
I know now that gardening is a highly stressful hobby, all this checking the weather and looking into the sky praying for rain gives us a sore neck and a headache.
Judy and I feel we should enter the ‘Green Thumbs’ garden competition as we struggle to maintain a beautiful one acre sub tropical garden against all odds and have put a real effort both financial and physical (not understated) into the garden to make it as ‘waterwise’ as possible. We have spent several thousand dollars on an unsuccessful bore and again several thousand more on water tanks.
There is not much else we can do to make our garden any more ‘waterwise’ other than to destroy the garden and plant natives.
We will not do that as we believe native plants also need water, and we would destroy the present ‘micro climate’, which has taken years to achieve.
We believe we have risen to the drought challenge and work very hard to maintain our beautiful garden without wasting a drop of water.
Admittedly we are not in as bad a position as residents of Brisbane as we in the ‘Redlands’ (level 2) are allowed some hose watering and we do of course take advantage of that.
Admittedly not all our plants are ‘waterwise’ but they do survive on minimal watering, our philosophy is to give each plant only enough water for it to survive, we hand water only, sprinklers, water systems ect were all mothballed several years ago.
I am a mad composter and have large ‘Greenfield’ petrol driven shredder, which is used to put all green waste through which then, is composted along with all the lawn clippings. I mix into the compost ‘blood and bone’, ‘hydrated lime’, ‘dolomite’ ‘urea’ and animal manure this accelerates my compost.
Bales of coarse Sugar Cane mulch are laid throughout the garden twice a year or wherever necessary. We would use at least 150 bales every year; this in turn decomposes and improves the soil and water retention. Compost is also added to the garden as well as trailer loads of animal manure. Mulch plays a very important part in our garden and on our open day weekend I make sure that my shredder and finished compost is on display during our ‘Open Garden’ for visitors to see, we also make sure we are available to answer any questions relating to ‘waterwise’ gardening.
We have reduced our lawn area but it’s still a big area, I can assure you that the lawn survives totally from rain from the sky; it is never watered, either from the tap or tank.
Bromeliads are a passion, we have 1000s of these and they are of course a ‘waterwise’ plant.
We now have three 15,000-litre water tanks and one 5000-litre tank, totalling 50,000 litres of rainwater. For watering we use a small portable electric pump attached onto a hand trolley, which we move between tanks.
The swimming pool is always topped up from a rainwater tank.
Due to the heavy mulching our gardens are weed free and also with the heavy use of seaweed liquid ‘natrakelp’ the plants are healthy and disease free, this of course strengthens the plant and helps it survive on minimal water.
As a footnote I have researched the ‘Redland Shire’ (presently on level 2 restrictions) web site and have found that in 2006 our home average daily water use was less than 800 litres a day, whereas the Shire average was 617 litres per day. We believe this is pretty good as we are on one acre block with one of the best sub tropical gardens in the country. Basically we only use a few more buckets a day more than the average Shire home situated on blocks 400 to 800 square metres. With all the rainwater tanks now installed our water use should reduce considerably.
We have ordered another 15000 litre tank. This will take 22 weeks to be delivered.
We were a finalist in the competition but did not win. I knew that, as we have a garden that needs water and in the Redlands we do not have as severe water restrictions as Brisbane. I believe the garden that won was at Mout Mee and has no town water just 90,000 litres in two rain water tanks. Sounds like it has also been professionaly landscaped.

July 2007 Garden News

Once again we went to the Nambour Garden Expo, enjoyed it as usual but certainly not the range of plants that has been in the past. We had hoped to get some more nice vandas but they were not there nor were James and Kevin selling their heliconias and tropical plants.
For once we went home with virtually an empty car.
As usual there were a lot of stalls selling what I call rubbish, super vegetable peelers, shoe cleaners, chamois ect.
Brisbane has had one of the coldest winters since 1941 and some of the more tropical plants; Heliconias especially are not looking too healthy, plenty of cold burn on the leaves.
I have just finished a four-day weekend and spent it all in the Garden and even then I was unable to finish all the jobs that needed doing. One thing I do I know is that I will be very busy when I finally retire, at the moment looks like 3 January 2009.
I placed four new big pots into the garden, these things help put the finishing touches to the garden.
Going through the process of watering liquid seaweed onto all the gardens, big job and uses a lot of kelp but is worth it as it strengthens the roots and improves the soil. I am a big fan of both ground and foliar kelping.
I have rejoined the ‘International Tropical Foliage and Garden Society’ as their magazine by itself is well worth the membership.
Started the once a year job of pruning back the Carambolas, then when that’s done I will start on the Custard Apple trees.

June Garden News 2007

Started off the month with a very welcome 27mm of rain and its forecast for good rain next week. How crazy is it that Caloundra, which is only a one-hour drive away can get 10 inches of rain in a week and we get so little.
We really enjoyed our trip to Townsville it was magnificent to see such skill combined with strength and courage. These young people put a lot of our high profile sports people to shame.
The garden is starting to look like winter is here as all the gingers; costus are now dormant and need cutting back.
Our good friends Ian and Helen Wicks have left the Nursery Industry, that is a big loss as Ian was a very wise plant man and had the foresight to stock water wise plants prior to them becoming fashionable. The Chandler Markets are not the same without them.
Ian had a big sell out sale and we bought two trailer/car loads of plants off him.
We plant to turn the front garden into a water wise area with a range of agaves, ect. That is this coming long weekend’s job, will take about five metres of soil, fertilizer and seaweed, might as well do it properly.
We look like finally having some good rain ‘at last’, we had 45mm overnight and more coming, good soaking rain, something we have not seen for a long time.
The big job for this month has been completed, the refurbishment of the front garden has been completed, we must admit this garden has been neglected and left to on it’s own these past few years.
All that has now changed, all the old much has been pulled out, fertilizers applied and then a good soaking with liquid seaweed, and then finally a good top-dress with a top quality premium garden mix, which has 80% soil content. We will re-mulch, plant the new plants then keep watering from the rainwater tanks. Should look good for this years ‘Open Garden’.
Due to Public Service re-structure I am on a two week training course at the moment and the only thing keeping me going is the thought of retirement, probably in the next nine months.
The big news, bigger than anything in the garden is that we have our first new car in 24 years, we have bought a Subaru Forester, two tone silver with all the extras, nice car.

Garden News May 2007

Starting off this month with the driest garden I have seen in the 19 years we have lived here.
It will soon be three months since any moisture fell from the sky; I am beginning to wonder if it will ever rain again.
I have entered the ‘Green Thumbs’ water wise Garden competition and the ABC ‘Gardener of the Year’, I know I will not win as we do not have enough/any native plants but I do believe our gardening efforts have at least qualified us to be an entrant.
If we win I will certainly purchase another rain water tank, I reckon another 15,000 tank will give us at least three months supply.
Brisbane Extra filmed in the Garden, it was a water-wise related segment showing the tanks, mulching ect. It did not go for long but looked good.
Well we had 3mm of rain on 8/5; of course it was not enough to do any good but was better than the last three months. Hopefully it will rain soon and I mean real rain not just a piddle. Another 14mm fell last weekend, not enough for a soaking but these days ‘anything is better than nothing’.
We are finalists in the ‘Green-thumbs’ competition and will be inspected on Tuesday 15/5. Colin Campbell is one of the Judges; it will be great to have him finally seeing our garden, must admit I have a lot of respect for him.
The inspection team were supposed to be here early Tuesday morning; they finally arrived at 4:15 pm, better late than not at all. Colin Campbell seemed to be impressed with the garden but no one else said much and one was on a mobile phone the whole visit, they did not take any notes so I have no idea whatsoever of what they thought of our ‘water-wise’ efforts.
We are off to Townsville tomorrow to see our son Scott compete in the ‘World Disabled Water Ski Championships’, it will be good to see Scott compete and just as good to have a break away from the garden as it’s been such a stressful year with the prolonged drought.
We returned from Townsville completely in awe of the athletes, 17 countries competed in the event and the competition was intense between individuals and teams.
Scott had a bad fall on the Thursday suffering slight concussion, unfortunately this affected his performance during the prelims and he failed to complete the slalom course.
He won the wakeboard/trick event and was awarded the GOLD medal for ‘best in the world’.
The jump event took place and each competitor had three tries at the jump. Scott fractured his board on the first jump causing it to flex and wobble on the remaining two jumps; never the less he won the SILVER medal.
Australia did the best ever as a team coming second winning a SILVER medal.
I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.
Returned to cool nights and warm days and of course no rain.