Autumn is such a beautiful time of the year, deciduous trees are taking on a multitude of colours and gardens are becoming vivid and awe- inspiring.
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Enjoy the views but make time to work on your ornamental and vegetable gardens.
There’s no excuse for not growing some of your own produce, even if you only have a small garden.
Ensure you have a compost bin or a worm farm, every home needs at least one of these for disposal of kitchen and garden waste.
If you want to grow onions – prepare your beds now.
Dig over and remove weeds from your beds so that by next month they are weed free.
Use lime on acidic soils, a light dusting over the bed should be sufficient.
Gardens can look a bit tired at this time of the year.
Take your wheelbarrow and secateurs and remove spent flowers and any dead material from your herbaceous and woody plants.
The word herbaceous refers to any plants that don’t produce wood.
Brighten pockets of the garden by planting some annuals and perennials.
You can buy and plant bulbs of tulips and hyacinths and consider planting ranunculus, anemones, and freesias for a spring/summer display.
Plant carnations, nemesia, violas, wallflowers and stock to name a few and take the time to visit a local nursery to see what they have to offer.
Canna lilies can be planted now - they give a magnificent display with flowers of yellow, orange and red and there are varieties available with decorative foliage as well.
Canna Lilies thrive in any garden and they love an open sunny position.
As a backing plant, they are second to none, and all they need from you is a bit of water over the summer and a cut back when they start to die down each year.
Our gardens are always a work in progress, it’s important to get out in the garden at every opportunity and to keep the chores in check – but more importantly, you need to enjoy every minute you spend with your plants.
Diary
Wodonga TAFE’s Horticulture department is running a half day course on getting ready for pruning. Hosted by Alister Rhook, this course will look primarily at rose and fruit tree pruning, with a look at what to do with summer flowering plants. From 9am to noon on Tuesday, May 23. Cost is $50.
For more information call 1300 MY TAFE (I300 698 233) or email AgHort@wodongatafe.edu.au. Feel free to call into the Agriculture/Horticulture Department in University Drive, West Wodonga. To have your event listed email ddelahunty@wodongatafe.edu.au
