Eruption a distraction from the gardener's work

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 13, Issue 610, 31 October 1995, Page 10

Eruption a distraction from the gardener's work

After another spell of rainy, cloudy weather we can only hope that the weekend will be fine and sunny

" so that we can do some much needed work in the garden and some more planting for the summer months. Always supposing of course that the mountain will not choose that time to put on another mammoth display and we will spend more time watching the activity up there than on the activities we should be attending to down here. It has been so well worth watching and I wouldn't have missed it for anything. We were only saying the other day that if someone had told us 30-odd years ago that one day we would be living in the shadow of an erupting volcano we would have replied "that would be the day". Now we accept it more or less as normal like everyone else. It has been a spectacular year for all the blossom trees which seem to have excelled themselves, putting on a wonderful display of rich blossom. Malus "Ballerina" is thick in bud on all branches and I am eagerly waiting for it to burst into full flower. It will be a lovely sight. Flowering trees of most kinds can be pruned if necessary immediately after flowering. Usually a light prune is all that is really necessary, removing any dead looking branches or any wayward growth which will spoil the shape of the tree or interfere with something else. Even magnolias will accept a light prune to contain them. As with most of the deciduous varieties they seem to have a habit of shooting branches out from the sides of the tree at odd angles. Trim the tree to shape and where it is inclined to sprawl encourage the new growth towards the centre of the tree or bush if space is at apremium. Do it carefully and treat all the cuts with pruning paste or a coating of petroleum jelly to prevent any disease spores taking hold. Camellias should be pruned out immediately after flowering, trimming the bush to shape and clearing some of the thick growth in the centre. Some growers say a camellia should be pruned so that a bird can fly through it. My pruning is not that enthusiastic especially here where the weather is more vicious, but to prune out some of the growth enabling buds forming on the inner branches to have space to flower properly is an advantage. If the outer buds and flowers are spoiled by frosts those formed on the

inner branches do have some protection. Any such pruning should not be left too late or it may upset the flowering process for the next season. Varied spring Spring flowering bulbs seem to have varied in performance this year. Some people have told me of the wonderful display they have had with daffodil varieties and with tulips while others have found the results to be very disappointing. Last year I grew some special varieties of narcissi and tulips in large tubs and had a very good result. The bulbs were carefully stored over winter and the tubs emptied and scrubbed and refilled with a completely new mix before planting the bulbs in them. The results were distinctly disappointing. My special daffodils had few blooms, most of them coming up blind without any buds at all and the tulips were all attacked with borytis. The only thing to do is to dispose of any bulbs so badly affected. The bulbs growing in the garden are quite healthy so however roomy the tub it is best to grow fresh bulbs in the tubs and put the grown ones in the garden for the second year. Two things which seem to grow happily in pots year after year are trillium and frittilaria. Providing they have a large enough pot and a regular change of growing mix they will grow for years making fresh bulbs and increasing the number of flowers. Rhodohypoxis is another good pot subject and makes a rich display in reds, pinks and white.