April Diary

Sasanqua camelia

The lingering warmth has everything growing like mad, and gardens are looking lush and green as ever. This is a busy month in the garden, with lots of gorgeous, colourful plants to add to your planting list, and a bunch of odd jobs to attend to before the crisp autumn air starts to move in.

FLOWERING NOW

• Trees & Shrubs: Azaleas (spot flowering), banksia ericifolia, berberis, camellia sasanqua, crowea, gordonia, hibiscus, plectranthus, tibouchina
• Annuals & Perennials: Chrysanthemum, Easter daisy, Japanese windflower, Michaelmas daisy, pansy, polyanthus, poppy, viola
• Bulbs: Dahlia, daylily, nerine

PLANT

• Take your pick from alyssum, candytuft, Canterbury bells, cineraria, cornflower, lobelia, lupin, penstemon, polyanthus, poppy, snapdragon, sweet pea, verbena and wallflower.
• Prepare for a winter feast! Edibles that love cooler weather include broad beans, broccoli, brussels sprout, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, lettuce (winter varieties), onion, parsley, peas, rocket, silverbeet and spinach. Sweet tooth? Plant strawberries! 
• For months of colour right up until Christmas, plant your favourite pansies and violas.
• Potty for potted plants? Now’s the time to plant container-grown azaleas, citrus, conifers, daphne and natives.
• Fill your garden with spring-flowering bulbs like anemone, babiana, bluebell, Dutch iris, freesia, ixia, jonquil and ranunculus. Daffodil, grape hyacinth, hyacinth and tulip bulbs need a chilling period, so should be kept in the fridge for six weeks first.

FEED

• Get your veggie garden in tip-top shape for a winter crop by adding lime or Supersoil Professional Enriched Cow Manure to the soil.
• Fertilise annuals with weak fortnightly solutions of Harvest or PowerFeed.
• Avoid fertilising camellias and azaleas in April. Why? Feeding now will stimulate leaf growth, but might cost you buds and flowers down the track.

PRUNE

• If you live in an area prone to cold and frost, stay away from the secateurs this month. Plants will need leaf cover to protect them from frost.
• Remove spent heads of pansies, violas and other annuals to encourage further flowering.

PESTS AND DISEASES

• Protect newly-planted bulbs and seedlings with snail pellets. Use pellets like Multiguard Snail & Slug Killer, always ensuring you follow the packet instructions.
• If mildew appears on your roses or hydrangeas, spray with a fungicide such as Mancozeb Plus.
• Aphids on pansy and viola seedlings can be kept under control with pyrethrum.
• Caterpillars munching on edibles can be controlled with Success ULTRA.

GENERAL GARDEN AND LAWN CARE

• Autumn is prime time for lawn care. 
• Mulch autumn leaves and add them to the compost heap. If you leave them to compost in a heap by themselves, add Supergrow Organic Fertiliser Pellets and dolomite to the pile to quicken the decomposition process.
• Divide clumps of perennials such as iris, perennial phlox and Shasta daisies.
• Repot plants into larger containers with fresh potting mix.
• Prepare a bed for your roses. Dig the soil over in a sunny position, and then add compost or a rose planting mix.
• Remove stone fruit from trees and dispose of them to eliminate sources of brown-rot fungus.
• Start applying Amgrow Seaweed Solution to help protect against frost in the colder months.

BUY NOW

• Fungicide to protect indoor and outdoor plants from mould and mildew.
• Autumn roses are at their best, making it a good time to choose and buy your favourites.
• Choose your colourful autumn trees and camellias now while you can see their true colours.

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Courtesy of Flower Power: https://www.flowerpower.com.au/