September 2011 Newsletter
SPRING IS HERE and you can’t beat home-grown vegetables for real freshness with all their vitamins intact.
And you don’t have to have green fingers to grow tasty vegetables ... simply hoe or dig-over your vege patch to allow the sunshine and warmth into the soil, add some Nichols Compost and a light dusting of general garden fertiliser or blood ’n bone, remove a few weeds and you are ready to go!
Make the most of these sunny days to sow a few early crops directly into the soil:-
Peas are easier to grow in the cool days of early spring, and they don’t take up much space as you can train climbing varieties up a fence or a tepee. Alternatively plant a row of dwarf peas.
Carrots, beetroot and radishes all do better if sown directly where you want them to grow in your vege garden. There are lots of interesting varieties to choose from, available in the Yates and King’s seed stands here in the garden centre.
Spring Onions are also incredibly easy to grow – plant your first crop now, either from seed or as small plants available in punnets.
It’s also time to get your leafy greens under way. Spinach and lettuces can be planted into your soil as seedlings, plus you can start raising these from seeds if you’re keen to sow your own. Broccoli and cabbages are also now available in seedlings. And the common cabbage has now become a designer plant a choice of round heads, conical heads, some with puckered leafy heads and purple heads, but all packed with vitamins. Then there are our simply superb club-root resistant ‘Success’ cabbage plants. Our customers are singing the praises of this new discovery.
And where would we be without the humble potato? Digging new potatoes fresh from your own garden is part of the magic and mystery of gardening ... it’s like discovering buried treasure!
A huge range of certified seed potatoes are now available in-store. Early varieties such as Jersey Benne, Liseta, Swift, or Rocket can be planted shortly. But first, after you have purchased them, take them out of the plastic bag they come in and spread them out flat in a dry area, allowing the sprouts to develop to 1-2cm in length.
Then, plant them in a row, approximately 15cm in depth and around 25cm apart, with the sprouts pointing upwards. Be carefully when covering them with soil as you don’t want to knock any sprouts off. As the potato grows, it’s really important you keep mounding the soil on top of the plants, burying the green leafy tops under the soil for as long as you can. Other than that, it’s easy! And you’ll be amazed at just how many potatoes you will harvest off each single seed potato!
Don’t forget to lay some slug bait around all your new seedlings because snails love nice tender vegetable plants too, and, believe it or not, they can gobble eight times their body weight in just one night!
TOMATO PLANTING time is here again, and there are so many varieties in all shapes and sizes – just remember, whatever the variety, always buy sturdy plants that have a short space between leaf joints. Plants that are tall and puny have been grown in overcrowded conditions and will never thrive or fruit well. Nichols tomato plants are grown here in the south.
Alternatively, you can sow tomato seeds in small pots or a tray. For greater success, cover your seed trays with plastic to create a mini greenhouse effect which will artificially raise their temperature.
However, regardless of whether you are sowing your own seeds or buying tomato plants, you need to keep them indoors for at least another month – until the weather becomes much more settled.
There are some brand new hybrids as well as the old favourites available as seedlings in the garden centre this year, not to mention my favourite - TastyTom - which is just the perfect ‘snax biscuit’ size and ever so sweet to eat.
The aristocrats of the tomato family are our ’X Generation’ grafted tomato plants which are strong and healthy - and the healthier the plant, the more resistant it is to diseases
MEANWHILE, IN THE FLOWER GARDEN, it’s a glorious time of year with warm sunshine turning the garden into green and gold as daffodils shout ‘we are back again’ as they nod their heads in the breeze.
The Primula brigade are starting their spring performance as well. Our garden centres have a wonderful range of Ballerina and Barnhaven double primroses in shades of lilac, plum and pink which are truly irresistible as well as lovely soft colours of lemon, apricot and white.
Look out for the Candelabra Primulas with tiered swirls of flowers carried on long stems, flowering until early summer, in sumptuous tones of crimson with dark eyes of purple or red to softer pink tints.
Brown Boronia ('Boronia Megastigma') is one of the most loved fragrances of spring and always a winner in our garden centre. Though they have a reputation of being a short lived shrub they are so worthwhile.
And here’s a couple of tips to improve your success ... It’s important to know that the brown boronia are an Australian bog plant and so if planted in a cooler semi-shade position with compost they will grow much better than the hot sunny place most of us choose, where their poor roots frizzle in the heat. The other secret is to cut back the plant by one third, after flowering, then mulch with compost.
Magnolias are among the most glamorous trees or shrubs. They range from deciduous shrubs to magnificent tall evergreen trees. Early magnolias furry buds are now rapidly opening on naked branches so that we can enjoy their lovely goblet blooms. We have a fantastic range now in stock at Nichols, and it’s a fantastic time to plant trees and shrubs, before the heat of late Spring and Summer sets in. (Pictured: Magnolia ‘Ian’s Red’)
Spring suggests blossom and the Crab-apples are charming garden trees that have the prettiest pink and white blossom then later delight us when their autumn fruits appear. Crab apples are the perfect trees for small gardens with their pleasing shapes.
The Clematis tribe arrive this month. If space is at a premium put in a pole or two and this will allow you to grow more than would otherwise be possible as well as adding much more interest to your border. When planting clematis give them a good start in life and dig a decent sized hole, work in some compost and plant so that the stem is at least 10cm deeper than what the base is now.
And while we're mentioning climbing plants, for a large sunny wall there is nothing more beautiful than Wisteria with long racemes of lilac blossoms. Lots of gorgeous varieties of these are also arriving this month.
If the scent of Sweet Peas matters to you we have ten different enchanting varieties of Dr. Hammet's sweet pea plants in a whole range of colours from ‘Almost Black’ and navy to pinks through to bright lipstick reds.
A new consignment of Hostas has arrived with their big expanse of leaves that make scintillating focal points in the garden and soothe the eye. They look superb mass planted in a semi-shaded area in your garden.
And lastly, it’s time to plant Dahlias which are a must for pure brilliance of flower colours combined with beautiful shapes and striking foliage.
So enjoy your month ahead, hopefully with the sun on your back, as Spring well and truly settles in.
Kind RegardsClare ScottNichol’s InvercargillYou can’t beat home grown vegetables for real freshness with all their vitamins intact.
And you don’t have to have green fingers to grow tasty vegetables ... simply give the soil a start by lightly forking in some Nichols Compost, a light dusting of fertiliser, remove a few weeds and you are ready to go! Frequent hoeing of the soil allows the sunshine to warm the soil.
Make the most of these sunny days to sow a few spring onions, early carrots, spinach, radish, snowball turnip as well as some early potatoes such as Jersey Benne, Liseta, Swift, or Rocket. Digging the humble spud is part of the magic and mystery of gardening ... it’s like buried treasure!
Broccoli is absolutely choc-o-block full of vitamins. And the common cabbage has become a designer plant now with round heads, conical heads, some with puckered leafy heads and purple heads but all are packed with vitamins. Then there are our simply superb club-root resistant ‘Success’ cabbage plants. Our customers are singing the praises of this new discovery.
Don’t forget to lay some slug bait around all your new seedlings because snails love nice tender vegetable plants too, and, believe it or not, they can gobble eight times their body weight in just one night!
TOMATO PLANTING time is here again.
There are an astounding number of varieties in all shapes and sizes – just remember, whatever the variety, always buy sturdy plants that have a short space between leaf joints. Plants that are tall and puny have been grown in overcrowded conditions and will never thrive or fruit well.
Nichols tomato plants are grown here in the south. There are brand new hybrids as well as the old favourites, not to mention my favourite - TastyTom - which is just the perfect ‘snax biscuit’ size and ever so sweet to eat.
The aristocrats of the tomato family are our ’X Generation’ grafted tomato plants which are strong and healthy - and the healthier the plant, the more resistant it is to diseases.
Plant each tomato plant at least 5cm deeper than they were in the punnet into fresh clean soil. And don’t over water in the early stages - small plants don’t need much water and wet cold soil is far too cold for tiny new roots to grow away strongly. Space the plants for good air circulation because planted too closely will result in weak spindly plants.
Tomatoes need tying to a stake, or twined up strong strings hanging from the glasshouse roof, and laterals (these are the side shoots at the junction of leaf and stem) should be pinched out as they appear.
It’s a glorious time of year with warm sunshine turning the garden into green and gold as daffodils shout ‘we are back again’ as they nod their heads in the breeze.
The Primula brigade are starting their spring performance as well. Our garden centres have a wonderful range of Ballerina and Barnhaven double primroses in shades of lilac, plum and pink which are truly irresistible as well as lovely soft colours of lemon, apricot and white.
Look out for the Candelabra Primulas with tiered swirls of flowers carried on long stems, flowering until early summer, in sumptuous tones of crimson with dark eyes of purple or red to softer pink tints.
Boronia Megastigma or Brown Boronia is one of the most loved fragrances of spring and always a winner in our garden centre. Though they have a reputation of being a short lived shrub they are so worthwhile.
And here’s a couple of tips to improve your success ... It’s important to know that the brown boronia are an Australian bog plant and so if planted in a cooler semi-shade position with compost they will grow much better than the hot sunny place most of us choose, where their poor roots frizzle in the heat. The other secret is to cut back the plant by one third, after flowering, then mulch with compost.
Magnolias are among the most glamorous trees or shrubs. They range from deciduous shrubs to magnificent tall evergreen trees. Early magnolias furry buds are now rapidly opening on naked branches so that we can enjoy their lovely goblet blooms. We have a fantastic range now in stock at Nichols, and it’s a fantastic time to plant trees and shrubs, before the heat of late Spring and Summer sets in. (Pictured: Magnolia ‘Ian’s Red’)
Spring suggests blossom and the Crab-apples are charming garden trees that have the prettiest pink and white blossom then later delight us when their autumn fruits appear. Crab apples are the perfect trees for small gardens with their pleasing shapes.
The Clematis tribe arrive this month. If space is at a premium put in a pole or two and this will allow you to grow more than would otherwise be possible as well as adding much more interest to your border. When planting clematis give them a good start in life and dig a decent sized hole, work in some compost and plant so that the stem is at least 10cm deeper than what the base is now.
For a large sunny wall there is nothing more beautiful than Wisteria with long racemes of lilac blo
You can’t beat home grown vegetables for real freshness with all their vitamins intact.
And you don’t have to have green fingers to grow tasty vegetables ... simply give the soil a start by lightly forking in some Nichols Compost, a light dusting of fertiliser, remove a few weeds and you are ready to go! Frequent hoeing of the soil allows the sunshine to warm the soil.
Make the most of these sunny days to sow a few spring onions, early carrots, spinach, radish, snowball turnip as well as some early potatoes such as Jersey Benne, Liseta, Swift, or Rocket. Digging the humble spud is part of the magic and mystery of gardening ... it’s like buried treasure!
Broccoli is absolutely choc-o-block full of vitamins. And the common cabbage has become a designer plant now with round heads, conical heads, some with puckered leafy heads and purple heads but all are packed with vitamins. Then there are our simply superb club-root resistant ‘Success’ cabbage plants. Our customers are singing the praises of this new discovery.
Don’t forget to lay some slug bait around all your new seedlings because snails love nice tender vegetable plants too, and, believe it or not, they can gobble eight times their body weight in just one night!
TOMATO PLANTING time is here again.
There are an astounding number of varieties in all shapes and sizes – just remember, whatever the variety, always buy sturdy plants that have a short space between leaf joints. Plants that are tall and puny have been grown in overcrowded conditions and will never thrive or fruit well.
Nichols tomato plants are grown here in the south. There are brand new hybrids as well as the old favourites, not to mention my favourite - TastyTom - which is just the perfect ‘snax biscuit’ size and ever so sweet to eat.
The aristocrats of the tomato family are our ’X Generation’ grafted tomato plants which are strong and healthy - and the healthier the plant, the more resistant it is to diseases.
Plant each tomato plant at least 5cm deeper than they were in the punnet into fresh clean soil. And don’t over water in the early stages - small plants don’t need much water and wet cold soil is far too cold for tiny new roots to grow away strongly. Space the plants for good air circulation because planted too closely will result in weak spindly plants.
Tomatoes need tying to a stake, or twined up strong strings hanging from the glasshouse roof, and laterals (these are the side shoots at the junction of leaf and stem) should be pinched out as they appear.
It’s a glorious time of year with warm sunshine turning the garden into green and gold as daffodils shout ‘we are back again’ as they nod their heads in the breeze.
The Primula brigade are starting their spring performance as well. Our garden centres have a wonderful range of Ballerina and Barnhaven double primroses in shades of lilac, plum and pink which are truly irresistible as well as lovely soft colours of lemon, apricot and white.
Look out for the Candelabra Primulas with tiered swirls of flowers carried on long stems, flowering until early summer, in sumptuous tones of crimson with dark eyes of purple or red to softer pink tints.
Boronia Megastigma or Brown Boronia is one of the most loved fragrances of spring and always a winner in our garden centre. Though they have a reputation of being a short lived shrub they are so worthwhile.
And here’s a couple of tips to improve your success ... It’s important to know that the brown boronia are an Australian bog plant and so if planted in a cooler semi-shade position with compost they will grow much better than the hot sunny place most of us choose, where their poor roots frizzle in the heat. The other secret is to cut back the plant by one third, after flowering, then mulch with compost.
Magnolias are among the most glamorous trees or shrubs. They range from deciduous shrubs to magnificent tall evergreen trees. Early magnolias furry buds are now rapidly opening on naked branches so that we can enjoy their lovely goblet blooms. We have a fantastic range now in stock at Nichols, and it’s a fantastic time to plant trees and shrubs, before the heat of late Spring and Summer sets in. (Pictured: Magnolia ‘Ian’s Red’)
Spring suggests blossom and the Crab-apples are charming garden trees that have the prettiest pink and white blossom then later delight us when their autumn fruits appear. Crab apples are the perfect trees for small gardens with their pleasing shapes.
The Clematis tribe arrive this month. If space is at a premium put in a pole or two and this will allow you to grow more than would otherwise be possible as well as adding much more interest to your border. When planting clematis give them a good start in life and dig a decent sized hole, work in some compost and plant so that the stem is at least 10cm deeper than what the base is now.
For a large sunny wall there is nothing more beautiful than Wisteria with long racemes of lilac blossom and there are lots of these arriving this month too.
If the scent of Sweet Peas matters to you we have ten different enchanting varieties of Dr. Hammet's sweet pea plants in a whole range of colours from ‘Almost Black’ and navy to pinks through to bright lipstick reds.
A new consignment of Hostas has arrived with their big expanse of leaves that make scintillating focal points in the garden and soothe the eye. They look superb mass planted in a semi-shaded area in your garden.
And lastly, it’s time to plant Dahlias which are a must for pure brilliance of flower colours combined with beautiful shapes, some with interesting purple-black foliage.
by Clare Scott,
Nichol’s Invercargill
ssom and there are lots of these arriving this month too.
If the scent of Sweet Peas matters to you we have ten different enchanting varieties of Dr. Hammet's sweet pea plants in a whole range of colours from ‘Almost Black’ and navy to pinks through to bright lipstick reds.
A new consignment of Hostas has arrived with their big expanse of leaves that make scintillating focal points in the garden and soothe the eye. They look superb mass planted in a semi-shaded area in your garden.
And lastly, it’s time to plant Dahlias which are a must for pure brilliance of flower colours combined with beautiful shapes, some with interesting purple-black foliage.
by Clare Scott,
Nichol’s Invercargill
