May in the Garden

The mild month of May is a perfect time to add new plants to your autumn garden. Plant some winter and spring and see how smart plants can ‘work’ for you in the seasons to come…

Trending – ‘Colour blocking’

Colour blocking is a fashion trend which originated from the artwork of Dutch painter, Piet Mondriaan. He used clean, and simple lines, and solid colours opposing each other on the colour wheel. This trend works very well in the garden too, if you plant bold patches of opposing, but complementary colour combinations. An example: blue delphiniums paired with bright orange calendulas. You can even add a little grey in there by using bold swathes of silvery grey sedge grass (Festuca). Midnight blue and bright yellow is another good combination and you can do this by planting a mass of dark blue pansies set off by bright yellow violas. If you’re not sure about this concept, visit our seedling tables and flowering perennial displays (many indigenous daisies, diascias and nemesias are flowering now), where you will clearly see which colours go together well. Colour blocking doesn’t stop with plants – you can paint a background wall in a contrasting, but complementing colour, to the plants near it.   

Smart planting

 
Heavenly bamboo (Nandina domestica) is the heavenliest, ‘fake bamboo’ available! In large pots, they mean good luck at your front door and they are the ‘zen’ in Zen gardens. You can plant them in a row in the narrow space, with its changing sun and shade patterns between the house and a boundary wall. They will soon supply a lacy look with their rust-tinted leaves in the cold months, small white flowers in spring, and post box red berries in autumn. They will grow heavenwards with their slender and tall branches, giving you privacy, while their roots are not dangerous. 

Camellia (Camellia japonica) – large evergreen shrub or small tree with glossy, dark green leaves. Suitable for shade or sun (not baking hot!). Very cold and frost hardy, and truly not a water guzzler when established. They produce masses of the most beautiful and delicate flowers from late winter until spring. Many hybrids with different flower shapes are available in an array of colours from pure white, to all shades of pink and red.  

  
Pork bush (Portulacaria afra) – not really known as a low hedge plant but one of the best indigenous plants to put to this use, as it does not mind being pruned frequently and can do the job of being a barrier perfectly in a dry garden. It is extremely drought resistant and fast-growing. Once established, it will basically look after itself.

New Zealand Flax (Phormium) with their long, leathery, sword-shaped leaves that are held in fans emerging from fleshy roots, always make a bold statement in the garden and there are many hybrids in a wide array of foliage colours to choose from. They thrive in full sun or dappled shade and can withstand a fair amount of winter cold, although some hybrids can be damaged by frost. A little protection with frost cover can overcome this. The following two hybrids are amongst our top sellers:

• Tenax ‘Rubra’ – a well-known, cold-hardy cultivar with a graceful, arching habit with a cascade of narrow, deeply bronzed foliage.
• ‘Fire Chief’ – Upright growth habit with rich crimson red leaves with darker red margins. Full sun intensifies the foliage colours.

Jade plant (Crassula ovata ‘Sunset’) – the jade plant is probably the most widely grown succulent in gardens as well as containers. Spectacular forms are found in nature and selected for the nursery trade such as ‘Red Edge’ with bright green fleshy leaves with red margins. This fast-growing succulent produce a mass of star shaped flowers in winter and is a very attractive rockery or accent plant for dry gardens. Very cold and drought resistant.

Naturalising spring bulbs

To create a most spectacular spring meadow and to enjoy the beauty of a wider range of veld flowers every year, look out for the following perennial bulbous plants:

Weeping Anthericum (Chlorophytum saundersiae) – grass-like with masses of starry white flowers for sun or light shade

Fortnight Lily (Dietes bicolor) – sun or light shade, lots of yellow flowers with brown eye

Red-hot poker (Kniphofia praecox) – tall, striking spikes of yellow/orange flowers

Sweet garlic (Tulbaghia fragrans) – sweetly scented, long lasting mauve flowers

White Arum Lily (Zantedeschia aethiopica) – creamy white spathes and large showy leaves for moist, shady areas

Rose care for May

 
• Keep on spraying against fungal infections like black spot, mildews and rust which are much more active in cooler weather. You can alternate by spraying with Chronos one month and then spray Orius the second month

• Aphids can still be problematic and more difficult to destroy in summer, seemingly due to higher sugar levels in the plant cells, which attracts them. Drench your bushes now with Koinor
 

Pest watch

Conifer aphids which cannot be seen by the naked eye, become active from May to September. Damage done like yellowing foliage, shoot dieback and the eventual demise of the whole plant, can only be seen after the end of winter. Preventative treatment is therefore recommended from May to September, by applying systemic liquid insecticide every two weeks. Drench the soil with Koinor.

To do’s for the Month…

• Water newly planted bulbs deeply every four days – they should never dry out completely. Those in pots will need more regular watering. You can still plant all spring-flowering bulbs like daffodils, ranunculus, and more.
• Sow some wild grass seed somewhere in your garden to encourage birds in winter.
• Plant the seeds of sugar snap peas in a circle to grow them up a cane tepee. Also plant a patch of peppery edibles by alternating rows of tatsoi, rocket, radish and pak choi.
• Cut down the last tomatoes, bring the unripe fruit indoors and place with a banana to ripen fully.
• Start covering plants against frost at night.

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• Plant more seedlings of: Snapdragons, lobelias, primulas, Iceland poppies and petunias.
• Mow lawns with the blades set high and water when dry. You can still do a last over-seeding with some seed types.

WORLD NAKED GARDENING DAY

Saturday the 5th of May was World naked gardening day.

Some of us celebrated it and some not.....no worries....next year we are going big and there will be some BIG BIG prizes up for grabs

We hope you find this newsletter informative and helpful.

Happy gardening!