HIGH COUNTRY GARDENER

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 10, Issue 440, 16 June 1992, Page 4

HIGH COUNTRY GARDENER

by

Bea

Barnes

I can well imagine all the activity that went on in the lovely sunny weather we all enjoyed over the Queen's Birthday weekend. Everyone seemed to be making the most of it, including us, and one could hear motor mowers and chainsaws going at full speed. We certainly had the opportunity to do the final clear up before the winter sets in. If you haven't yet planted all your bulbs don't delay any longer or you will find they will be going soft, especially if they are shooting. Planted out now they will still come up and flower although they will be later than usual. Winter hardy annuals and perennials cah still be planted out now to flower in the spring and summer. Now is the time to plant out your new liliums in a sunny or semishaded position in a well drained soil. There are some very lovely varieties available. In the aurelian hybrids the variety 'Elizabeth' is quite striking with large blooms 15 -20cm across

speckled red at the base and with very prominent gold stamens. I think my choice would be speciosissima White Opal' its pearly white blooms very finely speckled at the base and prominent dark red stamens which stand at right angles on the pistil. A tall lily, the strong stems from 50100cm. All too soon we will be hibernating for the winter (probably literally if the proposed power cuts come about) and our gardening will consist of browsing through gardening books and catalogues and promising ourselves all the adventurous things we are going to do next season. Of course in the few fine days we can expect even in winter we can always warm ourselves up digging over the vege garden and opening it up to winter frosts to sweeten and clean the ground, or perhaps prepare new flower beds for next spring. Having weeded the rose bed, lightly hoe the soil to open it up to the air

and give the bushes a spray of winter oil to kill off any disease spores which can winter over in the soil. A good mulch spread over the surface of the bed about 10cm deep will do a lot to prevent the frost getting down to the roots especially if the bushes have been subjected to wind rock. No heavy pruning - it is far too early up here but any die-back should be removed and any broken or damaged stems cut back. Perhaps you are thinking of planting some new bushes or climbers for next season during this month there will be bare root roses on sale for winter planting. In my opinion, these roses have a very hard time to adjust in our cold wet winter climate. I much prefer to buy those bagged roses 'in bud and bloom' for planting in late October or November. These settle in very much better in the milder conditions and will bloom almost straight away, whereas the winter plantings still seem to

be trying to catch up and invariably miss the first bloom altogether. However, whichever you buy do try to get your roses from a proved rosarian who will put out top quality stock properly packed to reach you, the customer in the best possible condition. You will pay a little more it is true, but like everything else in life you get what you pay for. After all you plant a rose to last a number of years and a good quality plant to begin with will perform much better and give you years of pleasure.