What a roller coaster we’ve had with the weather. From drought in 2023 to wild storms and heavy rain the last week. I hope your gardens are thriving with the much needed moisture returning to our soils (and water tanks)! What a relief. The heatwaves have not been pleasant but the plants and trees are certainly benefiting from the rain.
I’ve been busy weeding as this is the easiest time I find to pull them while small and the soil is soft. I use Dogbane (Plectranthus caninus, Coleus caninus) as my favourite weed deterrent ground cover. This incredibly useful plant, like its cousin Mother of Herbs (Plectranthus amboinicus, Coleus amboinicus), grows fast and outcompetes every weed I know. Including nut grass. It’s not invasive and has an attractive clumping habit. I have been sticking cuttings of Dogbane into our rock walls in the tiniest shallow bits of clay soil to stop weeds and soften the hard landscaping. It’s brilliant. This plant seems to thrive on neglect and adapts to the conditions. It shrugs off drought, heatwaves, poor soil and abandonment by the gardener! It quietly fills in spaces and is a low-maintenance undemanding plant tenant. Weeds don’t stand a chance which saves me water, time and energy. It flowers profusely, repels pests and attracts beneficial insects when in bloom. I can share more about this plant and its uses another time if anyone is interested. I just wanted to flag it in case you haven’t had the opportunity to use it in your garden.
In the attached PDF, I share some seasonal growing tips for our local climate, what to plant, a few issues to consider and garden tasks for this time of year. I hope you find this month’s tips helpful. Dig in!
Wishing you an abundance of health and productive harvests in your garden this year.
Cheers, Anne
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