Maggies
· English Country ·
Garden
Many people aren't aware that autumn in the garden is almost as hectic as spring.
Since that record rain the weather has been a lot like summer. Its been real BBQ weather. Easter is on the way so you may wish to practice your latest BBQ recipes to impress your guests coming for festivities.
While the weather has been great we have been making the most of it by building stone walls, watering gardens, renovating hedges and redesigning gardens so they are sustainable even in these long dry spells.
Designing sustainable gardens is important for a number of reasons. The most important reason we need to keep gardens growing is to chew up greenhouse gas. Garden plants do this just as efficiently as other plants. They provide habitat for a whole host of animals, insects, worms and things. Gardens are an ecosystem in themselves
Cool shady green gardens are welcoming to visitors, owners and our souls. The key is to design a garden that's welcoming and productive and can do without constant water or attention even though restrictions have been eased a bit for the moment.
Creating courtyards on the northern side of your home is one simple strategy you can employ to create a welcoming space that cools your home as well.
There's a large raft of plants that can be selected to achieve whatever aims you have. The courtyard above could feature grape vines and perhaps an almond tree which are naturally passive solar. Because they are both deciduous they will provide cool shade for summer and then when they lose their leaves they will allow the warm winter sun to shine through into your home.
Productive edible gardens are must haves as well to provide yummy and nutritious vegies at home. You can easily water your pots and vegies with shower water and leftovers form the tea pot. The taste of tomatoes eaten fresh from your own vine at this time of year is just sensational.
If you just don't have space for a vegie garden grow some in pots on your balcony or at the very least grow some herbs. Grow as much as you can
Why I hear you ask? Well its simple really, by growing your own veggies and fruit you will significantly reduce the amount of greenhouse gases generated by the transport system, the trucks and things which transport our food long distances.
If you are starting your landscaping this weekend here's a big tip. In landscaping, the design concept starts with the soil and its preparation. The type and quality of your soil will determine the type and quality of the plants your garden will grow and sustain.
We use only specially formulated soil mixes to prepare our gardens and lawns. The more organic matter you can incorporate in the form of compost and manures the better your garden will grow. Organic matter holds much much more water in the root zone and is the key to healthy gardens that continue through the testing times of summer and early autumn.
If you need some extra colour in your garden and you enjoy growing sweet peas you have probably already got them in this week. Plant them around St Patrick's Day. It's the traditional time to plant, not sure why, maybe St Patrick was the guy who drove all the sweet peas out of Ireland. (only joking I know it was snakes).
They are easy to grow and give you loads of flowers to pick which have heaps of perfume and colour. All you need is a frame or trellis or fence or something to grow them up. If you don't have a lot of space there are compact varieties which you can grow in hanging baskets or pots. They need full sun and add a bit of lime to the soil before you plant. A few days before you plant them add some well rotted manure or compost (there it is again).
If you are planning on utilizing your drip irrigation system spend some time this weekend and give it a good checking over. Only water plants that need it. ...and I'll see you in the garden. We'd love to hear your garden design story.
http://www.tophedge.com.au/Landscaping_News.php?blog_archive=2010-04
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