Durban - September 1 marked the official start of spring, but for gardeners on the KwaZulu-Natal coast, spring sprang weeks before.
Everything in the garden is growing rapidly, and so it is a very busy and exciting time for gardeners, says Durban gardening expert Eric Burgess.
The rains have come, and the very cold weather has, hopefully, left us until next year.
Nurseries and garden centres are bursting with stock and are a riot of colour, so are well worth a visit or two, says Burgess.
“New stocks are arriving every week, so if what you are looking for is not there today, it might be there next time.”
Spring, points out Burgess, is all about colour.
“The best and quickest way to add colour to your garden is by planting bedding plants, or seedlings as they used to be called.
“There is a huge selection available at this time of year. It is not too late for planting pansies and violas, which will continue to flower until December if you remember to always pinch off the old flowers to stop the plants going to seed.”
This “dead-heading” works for all plants and keeps them young and vigorous. All plants want to make seeds – some even die after seeding – so if you “dead-head” them, they have to start flowering all over again.
“Other favourite bedding plants include petunias, begonia, marigolds, alyssum, torenia, lobelia and portulaca. All of these also do wonderfully well in hanging baskets.”
Nothing says spring quite like a colourful hanging basket, which is the best way to provide masses of colour in the smallest possible space.
Baskets take up no ground space at all, so are suitable for patios and entrances in even the smallest apartments.
Because everything is growing so rapidly at this time, it is important to give your plants everything they need to help them grow.
This includes water and fertiliser. Do not rely on rain only – our spring rains are often just a misty drizzle, and so watering is still needed, says Burgess.
“ Fertilising is a necessity – and if you only fertilise occasionally or once a year, now is the time.
“The results will be immediate and noticeable. Your [local nursery] will advise you on what fertiliser to use.”
Burgess suggests that gardeners ask at their nursery about slow-release fertilisers, which are longer lasting, will not “burn” and do not need immediate “watering-in”.
“This makes them so easy and convenient to apply. You can apply slow-release fertiliser today, and if it only rains next week, not a problem – it will only start working then.”
Lawns also need work now. They need to be fertilised, and top-dressed if necessary.
“Use a good lawn dressing for levelling out and filling in. Mix it with coarse river sand (Umgeni sand) to bulk it up. If your lawn is sparse and needs help, a ‘wake-up’ fertiliser, such as 2:3:2, is needed.
“If your lawn looks okay, then a regular lawn fertiliser is what you need. Ask [someone at your nursery]. Try a slow-release fertiliser as they work very well on lawns.
“Weeds grow quicker than grass, so by feeding the lawn you will help the grass grow stronger and be able to compete with the weeds.
“You will also help the weeds grow, but this is not always a bad thing if you use a chemical weedkiller spray, as these work best on actively growing lawns.
“It is a complete waste of time and effort… to remove weeds in your lawn by hand. If you pull up one weed you leave pieces behind which then grow into more weeds, so you are multiplying the problem.
“There are very good… weedkillers available that will kill all the weeds in the lawn without affecting the grass (except for a bit of yellowing sometimes). Ask at your nursery for advice, and read the instructions before use.
“Get a product with three active ingredients in it, as this will obviously kill as many weed varieties as possible. Do not mow for a few days before applying weedkiller, nor for a few days afterwards, to ensure you have lots of leaf area to absorb the spray, and to allow the spray to be absorbed by the weeds.”
Burgess says weedkillers that kill some plants (weeds) and not others (such as grass) are called “selective weedkillers”.
There are also “non-selective weedkillers” that kill everything green, and these are used in paving and driveways and to clear vacant land, he says.
“There are other weedkillers that kill trees and stumps. Your nursery will know all about these.
“Remember to mow your grass long as it is the leaves that are the food factory, and you want your grass to grow as strongly as possible to out-compete the weeds. Also, the longer the leaves, the bigger and deeper the root system.”
There are so many plants coming into flower now – the list goes on and on, says Burgess.
A visit to a nursery now is a must. A springtime favourite is Chinese jasmine, a gentle climber with fern-like foliage that is covered with very sweet-smelling, white, starry blossoms.
Clivia, which are indigenous to KwaZulu-Natal, are also useful plants, particularly for shady areas. They have large clusters of orange flowers, give a magnificent show, and are very easy to grow.
Pelargoniums or geraniums are also indigenous and very colourful.
The trailing types are famously grown in windowboxes all over Europe and do just as well here – just remember not to overwater them as they come from the Cape and need hot, dry weather.
“Many trees flower now – the indigenous Erythrina or coral tree is a truly inspiring sight, especially when you see the bright orange-red flowers against the blue African sky – and not a leaf on the tree!” - Independent on Saturday