Cutting Cocktails - Part 2

TOMATO

My tomato cuttings were shoots removed when thinning their "donor" plants:

LEMON BALM AND MINT

The Lemon Balm and Peppermint cuttings were approximately 7cm long, with all but the top sets of leaves removed. Each lower set of leaves or branch is at a node from which roots can grow - make sure you have 2 or 3 nodes "buried" in the gel.

HEN AND CHICKEN FERN

JASMINE

Normally a jasmine cutting is a length of stem that has several nodes, but these have only one node, with little root buds showing.  To keep them looking cute, I've really only included enough stem to anchor it in the gel.  Time will tell whether that give them enough chance to survive.

Jasmine drawing is from Edwards Botanical Register, Ornamental flower-garden and shrubbery Published 1829 by James Ridgway in London.  In the Public Domain. The book is available at the Internet Archive.

All photos copyright Megan Michie.

Cutting Cocktails

Don't drink these.....but they look cute.

Isobel was playing with some water storage crystals and dreaming up creative things to do with them...and we ended up with a LOT of hydrated gel.  So I've been creative myself and used it to pot up some cuttings.

I've used the gel before with cuttings and it does seem to work well, and faster for some reason.  Its similar to striking cuttings in water, but the gel forms a structure that hold the cuttings, and so long as you don't totally drown them, it holds bubbles of air so the roots have some access to oxygen. More types of plants will tolerate striking in gel than will in water, and the gel prevents the water becoming stagnant so quickly. Place them in a sheltered place out of the sun, as you would other cuttings.   If the container you use is clear you can see when roots appear, and when you need to water.

The gel, which comes as small crystals, is designed to be added to soil or potting mix to increase its water holding capacity.

These are the crystals we had, which come from ALDI, but Yates, Eden and Hortico have similar products sold at hardware and garden stores. Seasol sell a version that release Seasol to the plants. Don't try using the crystals from nappies or kitty litter because although they are also polymer hydrogels they are types that absorb and hold onto the water or wastes, whereas the garden products make the water available back to the soil or plant.

You can also watch seeds grow in these gels which makes for another good educational experience if you have inquiring minds about, or to do just for fun.  But obviously you will need to wrap or cover the container if the seeds are types that need dark to germinate.

In My Garden Today - Blue Day

 I noticed a common choice of colour in my wander around my garden today.....

Hydrangea, Native Violet, Petunia, Calibrachoa, Chives, Lobelia, Hydrangea detail.

I've called these Blue Blooms because they are all described as blue on their labels or reference books. I would probably call them all purple though in any other context.

At this time of year there are other blue flowers in bloom: jacarandas, agapanthus, duranta, wild violets and lavender flowers, but sadly not in my garden. 

Illustration MAY LOVE EACH DAY, MAKE GLAD THY WAY pot of violets, published by Raphael Tuck and Sons, 1903.  http://tuckdb.org/postcards/64199 in the Public Domain.  Photos Megan Michie

In My Garden Today - Kangaroo Paws

 The Kangaroo Paws in my side front garden are blooming away at the moment.  It turns out it is quite difficult to take a photo that shows what they are like en mass. When seen in person they stand out better from my neighbours houses and form a psychological screen, if not a physical one.

I used to think of the furry finger like growths as the flowers but they actually open to reveal the small flower inside.

I think these are "Bush Pioneer" and "Bush Endeavour" from the "Bush Gem" range, which are hybrids bred for good form and disease resistance.  I didn't plant these and I am basing this on my memory of labels found in the garden when I was pruning last year. Since they have been here for many years and have had plenty of time to grow new offspring from cross pollinated seed, they may not be true to form any more in any case. 

There is good advice about caring for Kangaroo Paws at the following links:

Gardening Australia Website: Fact Sheet: Kangaroo Paws 

Waldecks Kangaroo Paw Care Sheet

Aussie Green Thumb : Pruning Kangaroo Paw

The Bush Gem range was bred by Angus Stewart and he has information and a video on his site, Gardening with Angus, about their care:

Plant Search: Kangaroo Paw

Kangaroo Paws Anigozanthus Bush Gems Landscapers

Everything I've read about their care recommends enthusiastic pruning twice a year, and say that a prune directly after flowering will likely produce a second flush of flowers - so that is next on my gardening tasks list.

If the plants are pruned before the flowers have died completely, new stems and flowers are encouraged to form in the same flowering season.  Cut off any flower stalks that have started to look tatty at the base of the stalk, above a leaf node, with a 45 degree cut. Look out for active buds on the stem and don't cut below them.

Angus recommends cutting the flowers above a dormant flower bud low on each stem as soon as the first flowers open. The buds with grow out and give a second flush of flowers, and you can enjoy the cut flowers inside in a vase.

The other pruning should be after the flowering season, and should be more drastic, cutting the whole plant close to the ground to encourage new growth of leaves and flowers for next year.

Photographs Copyright by Megan Michie

LOVE THIS WEBSITE - Square Foot Gardening Foundation

I have been enjoying the Square Foot Gardening Foundation Website. There is a lot of information there for vegetable growing using space efficiently, which applies nicely to my limited garden area.

But another lovely feature of the site is the inspiring quotes that are beautifully illustrated.  Like this one:

Go over there and have a look!

http://squarefootgardening.org

MARAUDING MARSUPIALS - Deterrents

I had a visit from possums again last night.  They denuded a parsley and a camomile plant, and nibbled some spinach where their tops poked through the mesh. To reach the spinach they had to stand on a pot of oregano which is crushed but will probably recover. They also knocked over some pots in their clumsiness.

I've read and been told about a range of substances that will deter the marauding marsupials but have not had much success with these methods.

One reason is that applying something every few days or every time it rains (and in some cases every time I water) is a pain. My experiments trying out the substances below have shown me that its unrealistic to think that I will be able to keep up the reapplications to keep my plants constantly protected. 

Some of the ideas seemed to work for a night or two, even a week, but then the possums overcame their dislike of the deterrent and ate my plants again. I think if they are hungry or thirsty enough they will eat their target plants anyway, especially if they can remember there being good eating in that particular spot.

It makes sense that since there are different species of possums, and each species lives over a range of different regions of Australia, under different environmental stresses, the same things may or may not work on any particular possums.

There is a good article on the Victorian Department of Environment and Primary Industries website here which has a list of substances that people have used and claim to work to deter possums, so you can try some of them too. But as the article says nothing will work if the possums are hungry or determined enough.

MY LIST

I've forgotten the number of people who have told me to make a spray from blended CHILLIES - but my possums ate the whole chilli plant, including all the ripe chillies before I had a chance to make the spray!

I've also tried:

MOTH BALLS (scattered on soil or hung from branches)

MIX OF WASABI PASTE AND VICKS VAPOUR_RUB (spread on edges of pot, and along fence the possums liked to jump off)

CITRONELLA (lanterns/flares left with lids off so that oil is evaporating and releasing its scent, left next to pots)

LAPSANG SOUCHONG TEA (sprayed around and on plant)

BLOOD AND BONE (sprinkled around plants)

FISH BASED FERTILISER (watered onto plants)

BLEACH (sprayed on pot edges)

or COMBINATIONS of the above. 

Because I don't think I'd be able to keep up the applications, even if they do work, I haven't gone to the effort of finding another common suggestion, Qassia chips, or gone to the expense of buying commercial products such as Scat or Keep Off (both by Multicrop) or D-ter. These products have Aluminium Ammonium Sulphate (Alum) as their main active ingredient, which makes the plants bitter, but also contain other strongly scented ingredients (such as the ones I've tried).  Another product, Poss Off is based on Citronella, Garlic and Chilli.

I assume individual possums have different personalities with their own preferences, so maybe mine are a family of particularly determined criminals with poor taste and little common sense.

More to come about other deterrent methods.....

SELF WATERING POTS

I’ve been experimenting with some self watering pots for growing my veggies in this year - I’ve made some versions and bought some and all seem to be going well so far. 

Advantages of Self Watering Pots:

1. Watering is easier

• less frequent watering needed
• more flexibility about when I water
• reservoir acts as a safety net on days I am unable to water
• less water wasted

2. A constant water supply is provided to the plants, that will

• encourage maximum growth and yield
• avoid problems in the veggies that result from drying out (such as bitterness in lettuce or splitting and blossom end rot in tomatoes).
• increase heat resistance over our hot spring and summer.  (potted plants have a really hard time in the heat because as well as the plant on top, the sides of the pots and hence their soil and roots can bake as well.)

3. Water isn't left on plant leaves

• diseases such as powdery mildew less likely to develop
• leaves less likely to get burnt by water droplets heated by the sun

How does a self watering pot work?

Self watering planters work by providing a reservoir of water that is wicked up into the soil so that  the plants can draw on it.  The size of the reservoir allows for enough water to last the plant longer than regular watering can, and the supply is constant.  

They are not magic - they can’t entirely water themselves - they do need to have water added to the reservoir. The soil also needs to be top watered to start them off and to fertilise if you use methods that benefit the leaves as well (such as seaweed or fish fertilisers).  Care must be taken with fertilising to avoid the buildup of salts in the reservoir, because excess fertiliser will be fed back to the plant rather than draining away.

Diagram Copyright by Megan Michie

The key elements of a self watering pot:

• Space for plant, with drainage holes for excess water added from above to escape into the reservoir

• Reservoir to store the water

• Wick to provide a means for the water to move from the reservoir into the soil and roots of the plant by capillary action.

• Overflow outlet to prevent reservoir from overfilling and water logging the whole pot. The presence of an overflow outlet creates a layer of air in the reservoir above it and below the bottom of the soil to aerate the soil to maintain the air pockets needed in the potting mix for good root growth.

• Water inlet - to allow water to be added to the reservoir.

Over following posts I will describe some designs for self watering pots, how I made them and how they are working out.