May 22, 2009 In the Garden

· Having always fancied a moat (note to selves: first get a castle), the news that some British MP claimed expenses for moat maintenance (3000 pounds sterling) had us chuckling. A quick net search yielded up the information that other moat owners were a little surprised at the idea of maintenance on a regular basis. Apparently moats are static bodies of water on a clay base and aside from a major clean out once a century or so which would cost at least 10 times that price, they are left to the fish and swans to maintain a balance. Leeds Castle just out of London has a splendid moat which was simply magical when seen with white swans floating on mirror clear waters on a dead calm and misty winter’s day.

· Gardeners with more modest ornamental ponds here may wish to reduce the amount of leaf litter that can accumulate in them, especially at this time of the year. Allowing vegetation to rot down in the water can increase the nutrient levels, reduce the oxygen and kill the fish. It can also lead to a growth in algae as temperatures rise. A butterfly net (used to be available cheaply in toy stores when our children were younger) can be a handy tool for scooping small ponds. Loose netting over the top can be a temporary measure to reduce leaf litter.

· As feijoa harvests finish, get in and do a clean up and light prune. Rake back any rotting fruit to around the plant so that it can act as a compost. Take out dead wood, thin or spindly growth, keep it reasonably open and give a light hair cut all over. Feijoas are wonderfully obliging plants, never needing spraying and tolerant of complete neglect but they will reward such efforts with a better crop and larger fruit next year.

· If you still like to spray your lawns, despite our frequent questioning of the practice, autumn is a safer time to use hormone sprays than spring. There are special lawn sprays that target certain weeds or sulphate of ammonia can be used on broad leafs. An old carving knife can equally be used to cut off broad leafed weeds just below the surface. The reason we advocate autumn spraying is because even the slightest drift of hormone spray (and most lawn sprays are hormone sprays) can cause major damage to new growth on neighbouring deciduous plants in spring. Every year, somebody asks us why they have distorted leaves, particularly on magnolias and it is invariably hormone spray drift.

· The dreary late autumn weather we are enduring at this time does rather sap the motivation. If you have Sky, tune in to the Living Channel at 5.00pm on Saturdays to catch Small Town Gardens. This programme packs in a remarkable amount of information and the latest series is very good, even for those of us who don’t have small town gardens. We have seen some really heavy weight English designers talking us through the process.

· In between showers, get that autumn copper spray onto citrus trees and stay on top of the rash of autumn weed seeds which are germinating. Getting a mulch onto garden beds should suppress more weeds and will help to condition soils. If you are of a romantic disposition, you can think of it as laying a blanket around your plants.

· While anthropomorphising plants, this week’s quote comes from Victoria Glendinning: “Science, or para-science, tells us that geraniums bloom better if they are spoken to. But a kind word every now and then is really quite enough. Too much attention, like too much feeding, and weeding and hoeing, inhibits and embarrasses them.”

May 15, 2009 In the Garden

• The most important spray of the year for citrus trees is the autumn copper one. Without it, the fruit can be susceptible to rot even while hanging on the tree. Mandarins are the most vulnerable. While most of Taranaki can grow lemon trees, warmer coastal areas can equally grow mandarins, Tahitian limes, oranges, grapefruit and tangelos. To ensure good fruiting, look for grafted, named varieties (not seedlings) and pay accordingly. The key to self sufficiency in citrus (which we have, thanks to the previous generation of gardeners here) is to plant a range of different varieties. Our absolute stand-by is the orange Lue Gim Gong but we have no idea if this is still available commercially. If you see it, buy it. Washington Navel is another excellent choice for our conditions here, especially on trifoliata dwarfing rootstock.

• If you are fortunate enough to have an asparagus bed, make sure that it is cleaned up and weed free. Gently fork the surface over to stop it from getting too compacted but be careful not to damage the asparagus crowns which sit out of sight below the surface. Then cosset it under a blanket of mulch. Asparagus is a clumping perennial and it is a permanent fixture in the garden.

• Keep a watchful eye out for spring bulbs coming through and be vigilant with slug and snail control around these. Try circling the patches of foliage with a generous ring of bran if you want a more eco-friendly solution to poison. The bran does not kill them but after gorging themselves on it, the slugs and snails then tend to lie there in a comatose state waiting for the early birds to get them.

• A local garden centre was advertising the first of the lily bulbs last weekend so keep an eye out from here on for summer bulbs which will be coming into stock. Bulbs require some forward planning as opposed to impulse buying.

• If you have wrenched larger shrubs and trees for relocation, get onto moving them now even if deciduous ones have still to drop their leaves. Take as large a ball of roots as you can physically manage and prune back the top of the plant by about a third to reduce the shock. If you lack a digger or a suitable tractor with a bucket, the old fashioned approach is to lever the plant out onto a tarpaulin, piece of old carpet or similar and then drag it to the new location. This usually requires more than one person.

• The popular navel oranges have all descended from a chance mutation discovered at a Brazilian monastery around 1820. Because navel oranges do not ever set seed, they can not reproduce on their own. The world stock of navel oranges has, apparently, descended from cuttings and grafts of that original plant and are therefore all of the same original genetic stock. Propagation in the mega thousands has led to natural mutations and all the named selections. Navel oranges are delicious but have a shorter fruiting season and do not hold on the tree.

Why we resigned from the New Zealand Gardens Trust

Latest update, published April 27, 2012, looks at matters related to garden assessment and NZGT. Not, as has been suggested, because we have not “moved on”, but because, fundamentally we still believe in the concept of NZGT. It is just the implementation with which we have issues.

And from May 2009:
We were enthusiastic founder members of the New Zealand Gardens Trust, contributing $2000 to get the scheme underway and promoting it in every way we could. Now we are ex members.

1.      We do not agree with the way the Trust operates. This is an organization which appoints itself, (existing trustees chose new trustees with no input from the membership), meetings are closed, the AGM is held in what amounts to a closed meeting and there is little, if any, consultation with members.

2.      There is a failure to separate the governance role (which should rest with the trustees) from the operation of the Trust. The paid executive officer is also a trustee. The chief assessor is also a trustee, another assessor is the deputy chair of the Trust, a third person was until recently both a trustee and a senior assessor. This affects the ability of the trustees to objectively review Trust activities, including the processes of garden assessment.

3.      Garden assessment is a points based system – get enough points and you too can be rated as nationally significant. Without clear definitions, there are now gardens which carry ratings which describe them as being “significant” when it is not at all clear what is significant about them beyond the fact that they are well presented and tidy.

4.      Garden assessment so far has often been adversarial and lacking accountability, even to garden owners who are paying for it. There are other methods of garden assessment which set standards without alienating participants. We want to see a garden assessment system which nurtures and encourages, rather than burning people off. It was the discourteous and arrogant treatment meted out to the owners of a particular garden which was the final catalyst for our resignation. We no longer wished to be part of an organization which could treat its members so carelessly.

5.      We opposed the concept of Gardens of International Significance from the first moment we heard of it in April 2008. International reputations are earned on the international stage and not awarded to ourselves. This new category was introduced with no consultation of members. The method of selecting the first four allegedly internationally significant gardens lacked robust process and was not even by assessment to meet new criteria. International significance appears to be a Trust response to a top heavy nationally significant class but it is not an appropriate action, in our opinion. In fact, we would describe it as frankly embarrassing. Even worse is the indication on the new NZGT website that provided you can afford the $1125.00 fee, you too can self identify as a potential internationally significant garden and request an assessment. (Note: The pricing structure has apparently been changed recently. For us, it was never about the money in the first instance and this change is still mere tinkering to keep some people happy while the fundamental problems have apparently still not been addressed.) How long before there are so many Gardens of International Significance that we see the Trust needing another category – Gardens of Universal Significance, perhaps?

6.      There appears to be little understanding from the Trust Board of visitor numbers to gardens around the country and even less monitoring of actual benefits derived from membership of the Trust. A bottom line for us is that NZGT endorsement was not delivering up sufficient extra visitors to pay for the annual subscription.

7.      We tabled concerns in writing to the trustees in May last year. We never received a reply. When we resigned, we mentioned those concerns again but all that happened was that we were taken off the website at lightning speed and we received a letter which said nothing of note. Even though we were a founder garden, even though we have actively promoted the Trust, even though we have a reasonably high profile in this country and overseas, not one trustee picked up the phone to talk to us about our resignation.

8.      We still think that the concept of the New Zealand Gardens Trust is a good one but there is too large a gap between the concept and the current reality.

Glyn Church from Woodleigh Gardens comments:
I totally agree with everything you say about NZGT. We resigned from NZGT for the same reasons.

Nicki and Clive Higgie from Paloma Garden comment:
We’re very disappointed NZGT accepted your resignation (horrified there was no communication from them to you!) for we feel any scheme for garden visiting in New Zealand is totally deficient without your garden being included.

We remain members for now, as we’d really like the scheme to work. At present we feel it’s uneconomic for us: we’re not gaining financial benefit from membership but we feel the potential’s there.

With regard to the trust’s failure to separate governance from management, we agree with you. While trustees have so far done a wonderful job, it’s not desirable to put them in that position of performing both governance and operational roles, as trustees and assessors (or CE) at the same time.

The structure of any trust must allow for full member participation, total transparency and accountability.

As for garden assessment, it’s very difficult to award tangible points to intangibles. We feel a workable model’s been put in place and, personally, have few complaints. But at the end of the day, in any system, a points system or whatever, assessors’ personal taste, personal experience (or lack thereof) and even just the garden’s geographical position can have a large influence on results. An example of the last point is that a Japanese garden, even of international standards, should never, in our opinion, be assessed as having international significance in New Zealand .
Regards
Nicki and Clive

Organics, baking soda and cooking oils

Over the counter organics or out of the kitchen cupboard

Over the counter organics or out of the kitchen cupboard

Organics are hot these days. More like the new religion, perhaps, which attracts converts who are often long on passion and conviction but at times distinctly short on logic and reason. This is not to say that there is not a great deal that is good and beneficial about organics. But we do not subscribe to the mantra that just because something is organic it is necessarily superior. A bit of rigour and enquiry never goes astray.

Regular readers will know that we have been advocating moving away from the use of chemical fertilisers and sprays in the home garden situation. The chemical arsenal that many people used routinely in the relatively recent past (the age of the 1960s to the 1990s) should be a cause of some shame in terms of what home gardeners inflicted on the planet, and still do with lawns. Such practices have been substantially tamed by modern advancements with safer chemicals and hugely increased controls on what is available over the counter. Inconvenient this may seem to some, but we regard it as a jolly good thing.

For those who prefer to avoid routine application of chemicals, there are two approaches. One is to try and continue gardening in exactly the same manner but substituting organic sprays to control pests and diseases previously managed with chemicals. The second approach is to take a much broader view (wholistic, the crystal gazers may call it) and to try and select plants which are more resistant to such problems and to manage their growing conditions so that they are less vulnerable. It is this latter approach to gardening which we have been advising as preferable and implementing ourselves (without the crystal gazing). But for those who wish to keep doing things the same way as previously, Tui have just brought out a range of certified organic products – an insecticide, a fungicide and a liquid fertiliser. They kindly sent me samples which had me whooping with delight. I notice that the wine writer for this paper has written about receiving samples and I am sure other writers must see samples but they are a bit lacking in the garden department.

Ours is an establishment which has more respect for science than many. While my own background is a little sparse, not for nothing am I the daughter of one scientist, the mother of another and married to someone who took science to a considerably higher level than I managed. So we tend to be a little analytical.

I looked at the label information on Tui’s Organic Eco-Fungicide. It is potassium bicarbonate. This necessitated a quick Google search followed by an email to scientist daughter to try and unravel the difference between potassium bicarbonate and sodium bicarbonate. The short answer is that the bicarbonated bit is the important part and that the potassium and sodium are generally interchangeable. Some of you will have already deduced what this means – Tui’s eco fungicide is 95% baking soda and the label does not say what the other 5% is. I did not do a price comparison between Tui’s product and the supermarket option. If you are serious, you can do it yourself. Baking soda is a bit of cure-all product and its anti fungal properties have long been acknowledged. The important information to know is that the recommended dosage is a level teaspoon per litre. The only downside is that to be effective, you will likely have to spray considerably more frequently than with the horticultural chemical alternative.

On to Tui’s Organic Eco-Pest to treat insect infestations. It sounds good – for the control of two-spotted mite, aphids, whitefly and scale and for helping control powdery mildew. I tried it out on whitefly which were infesting a container plant and it dealt to them. What is it? Canola oil, mainly. It is just over 85% canola oil in the form of an emulsifiable concentrate. I do not think you can concentrate the canola oil so the concentrated reference must be to the unspecified surfactant which enables the canola oil to be mixed with water. The label claims that Eco-Pest contains three powerful plant oils but the other two must be in very minor traces because they are not mentioned by name.

Purists may question the choice of canola – it is of course the food oil most likely to be the result of some genetic modification (lots of GE work done on rape seed production). As with the Eco-Fungicide, this product works but will need more frequent application than heavier duty non-organic sprays. It is not a magic bullet or a great new find. You can substitute with a home kitchen mix of a light cooking oil (there is no reason why rice bran or soya oil will not work just as well) with a squirt of dish washing detergent. Tui recommend diluting at 5ml per litre (that is about a teaspoon) for insects and 10ml per litre for scale.

Eco-Fert came as a little 100gram pot of concentrated seaweed extract which is mixed with water to make a massive 200 litres of liquid fertiliser. Recommended application is weekly or fortnightly. I haven’t tried this yet because liquid feeding is not part of our regular routine here so I will have to think what to experiment on. Liquid feed is the plant equivalent of human fast food. It does nothing to alter the soil structure but it will give plants an immediate boost. Seaweed has long been recognised as a good all round fertiliser. I can’t recommend a cheap alternative from the kitchen cupboard for this product but logically it sits alongside compost teas and worm farm liquids.

Tui’s products are marked as being registered with BFA Organic. Organic certification is a bit of shaky territory internationally (not all certifying bodies are of equal credibility). I had to Google BFA Organic. I had been guessing British Food Authority or similar, but no. It is Biological Farmers of Australia and I can not comment on credibility beyond noting that some might think that all farming is, by definition, a biological activity.

So Tui’s products are tried and true natural remedies packaged to meet the modern convenience market. There is nothing wrong with that but you are paying for convenience, not for extensive research or exciting new discoveries which are kind to the planet. The interesting aspect is the recognition by Tui of an important market which has emerged and the extent to which organics is becoming mainstream.

May 8 2009 In the Garden

• Well, we did warn about the imminent probability of cold weather but Wednesday’s decided drop in temperatures had Mark out with a cloche to cover his crop of late beans. We will hover between autumn and winter for a while longer but do not delay on getting into the autumn clean-up while you can.
• If you are planning to cut the foliage off your helleborus orientalis (the common ones) then do it now because the triggers to encourage them into fresh growth and flowers are all on. If you leave it any longer, you have to carefully cut around all the fresh growth which takes a great deal longer. If the foliage is not infested with aphids, you can leave it lying as mulch though it takes a while to rot down.
• Lift and divide polyanthus. These are gentle performers in the garden but with a modicum of TLC, they will flower for months. If you had one plant and it seems to have morphed into a clump of 10 smaller rosettes of leaves, that is a sign that it will respond well to being lifted and thinned. Till the soil before you replant individual divisions and if you add some compost, the polys will be even more responsive.
• Garlic and broad beans are the main crops to be planted in the vegetable garden over winter. Besides some fiddle-faddle with winter lettuce, spinach, silver beet and brassicas on an ongoing basis, many gardens will have some bare areas left. Clean up now. Get rid of diseased tomato plants. These can be composted if you add lawn clippings and do a hot mix. Otherwise burn them or put them out with the rubbish to avoid spreading fungal diseases. Dig potatoes. If you leave them in the ground, bugs and slugs tend to eat holes in them. Break down old sweet corn plants and either compost them or leave them to rot on the top of the ground. Hoe and rake off weeds. Sow green crops in any bare areas.
• As you do the autumn clean up in the ornamental garden, continue the dig and divide routine on clumping perennials.
• If you are keen to try some cuttings, taking fuchsia and vireya rhododendron cuttings is a bit of an insurance policy against winter deaths. You can try some early rose cuttings but if there are any leaves left, remove them.
• Mark is sure that Taranaki ducks do go to the safe haven of the lakes at Pukekura. He is of the view that a panic response to the sound of a gunshot is learned behaviour, not genetically programmed (in ducks at least). He recalls looking at a crowded lake in Pukekura one morning in duck shooting season and provocatively popping a paper bag. The entire lake erupted with an instant and mass evacuation of ducks which was a bit of a surprise to him, matched only by the very dirty looks he received from the parents with their little kiddies feeding out bread.