Page 28 - Fourways Gardens August Issue 2023

Gardening

August in the garden

ugust is a windy month and
can get miserably cold, but it is
also the month when you really
Astart reaping the rewards of
your carefully planned winter and spring
flower garden. As the month progresses,
the displays will get better and better –
banishing even the worst of the winter
blues.
Your main job this month is to:
Get your soil into prime planting condition
by adding compost to new and planted
beds. Do not dig it in – you will just
encourage dormant weeds to germinate.
Spread it out in a thick layer on top of the Photo by Patricia Lavigne
soil and around the root area (not against
the stems of plants) and rake it level. to avoid collar rot. Feed with an organic to still take hardwood rose-cuttings, do so
fertiliser that is high in nitrogen, like 8:1:6, now because the sap will soon begin to rise.
Prune your roses. When they start showing and water thoroughly.
signs of shooting, give them a deep soaking Divide and replant overcrowded
and then water deeply each week as the To prevent early insect infestations, spray groundcovers and perennial plants like
weather warms up. Towards the end of your plants with an organic insecticide agapanthus, Wild Iris (Dietes) and Daylily
the month you can increase your watering when the new leaves emerge. It should (Hemerocallis) now, transplanting them
to about twice weekly. Mulch the roots of not be necessary to spray against fungal immediately into well-prepared beds. Gently
your plants with mature kraal manure or diseases this early in the season, unless pull apart the actively growing plants from
compost; keep it well away from the stems you live in a subtropical region. If you wish the outside of the clump, choosing only
healthy-looking pieces and discarding the
woody central part of the mother plant.
GARDENER OF THE
MONTH Mulch the clumps with compost or
manure and feed them with organic 3:1:5
The gardener of the month is or 2:3:2 fertilisers, watering it thoroughly
Jack Mothapo. afterwards. If your ornamental grasses are
looking untidy but do not need dividing,
He is the assistant to the tractor operator prune them back right down to the ground
on site. Jack is always punctual. He before they start shooting again.
waters with the bowser and loads the
garden refuse bags onto the trailer. He A beautiful lawn needs regular care
is very hardworking and has been a big throughout the year but especially in spring
part of the nature reserve upgrade. Well and summer. If you want a gorgeous lawn
done, Jack, for always willing to help this summer, you need to start preparing
with anything in and around Fourways now, when all danger of frost is over. Lawns
Gardens Estate, and thank you. are traditionally scarified, top-dressed and
fertilised with an organic lawn fertiliser that
is high in nitrogen.

To purchase natural gardening products or for more information about how to be eco-friendly, contact Turfnet on
tel: 011 464 5088 or cell: 073 935 9754. Alternatively, email Jerida@mweb.co.za, or visit www.turfgreen.co.za.
Address: Plot 17, School Road, Diepsloot

Fourways Gardens • 26 • August 2023