Enjoy the cooler weather and a busy time in the garden!
April means a welcome respite from the extremes of summer and early autumn which has been a challenging time in many areas following cyclones and flooding in parts of Queensland and New South Wales and a long dry spell in much of southern and western Australia.
Change is in the air as hopefully autumn rains arrive where they are needed and abate in the north to allow saturated soils to dry and swollen rivers to recede. It’s time to repair gardens and plan for the year ahead.
Five clever designer tricks to improve your garden
If your garden is looking a little disjointed, there are several clever tricks to borrow from professional designers to help unify plantings.
- Edge garden beds with a solid border for a clean look, or use low-maintenance evergreens like liriope, mondo grass or dwarf lomandra for a softer touch.
- Limit small garden beds. Opt for one or two larger ones to enhance aesthetics and simplify mowing, giving plants more room to grow and thrive.
- Mass planting by replicating successful plants throughout your garden rather than a lot of different plants. Water in with Seasol to aid plant establishment.
- Create features to draw the eye either with a carefully positioned sculpture or seat or a feature plant.
- Cover bare areas with mulch or mass plant ground covers.
New plantings in autumn
The old hands know that autumn is the best time to plant, especially in frost-free climates. This is because soil conditions are still warm, but the bite has gone out of the sun so daily temperatures are mild. Before planting add homemade compost or organic matter and/or Seasol Liquid Compost to the soil.
These conditions encourage root growth and get plants settled into their new home. While plants may not show much above ground growth, they’ll be ready to send up a spurt of growth once the longer and warmer days of spring arrive.
Autumn is a good time to plant all native plants and evergreen shrubs including tibouchinas, which are blooming now with rich purple flowers, and sasanqua camellias. This is also a good time to repot potted plants into slightly larger containers with fresh premium potting mix such as Seasol Advanced Potting Mix.
Vegetables to start now for winter harvests
Once the soil is moist but not too wet or parched, start planting vegetables for winter. If the soil is still wet, begin growing from seed planted into seed trays or small pots, ready to plant out later this month.
Crops to start in autumn as seed or seedling include broccoli, brussels sprouts, beetroot (best grown from direct sown seed), cabbage, kale and turnips. Also sow snow peas, peas and leeks for tasty home-grown vegetables right through the cooler part of the year. In areas with warm winters, also grow broad beans.
For bumper, tastier harvests, apply new Seasol Organic* Worm Fertiliser to the soil when planting and every three months to promote root growth and support healthy plant growth. Water it in thoroughly after application and ensure vegies receive full sun but are sheltered from cold winds. If the vegie bed is shaded through autumn and winter, try growing vegies in containers in the sunniest part of the garden.
*This product is allowable for use with plants or gardens certified to the Australian Certified Organic Standard
Annual flowers for autumn and winter
It’s not just the vegie garden that needs a refresh. Autumn and winter flowering annuals add splashes of colour. Pansies and violas are favourites at this time of the year as they love cold weather and have brightly coloured flowers that look like happy and cheery faces. They are planted in autumn as seedlings to flower right through winter and in cool climates flowering continues into spring.
Other annuals to plant now include snapdragons, Iceland poppies and colourful flowering bulbs such as ranunculus and anemone. All are great for picking.
To grow flowering annuals, select a sunny spot then enrich the soil by digging in compost or well-rotted manure before planting. Where digging is a problem, apply Seasol Liquid Compost, your no-dig solution to help revitalise and improve soils. Water seedlings in with Seasol to kick-start healthy growth.
Five important jobs for mid-autumn
- Harvest kiwi fruit. They’ll feel hard but ripen indoors.
- Give the lawn a light mow before winter sets in and apply Seasol Lawn + Soil Booster to improve lawn and soil health and reduce stress from frost.
- Prune and trim hedges to maintain a compact and bushy shape from the ground up.
- Feed autumn flowering plants regularly every fortnight with PowerFeed PRO SERIES for Roses & Flowers for vibrant blooms and to promote healthy budding & flowering.
- Take cuttings from native shrubs and evergreen plants including lavender, rosemary and salvias.
Greening up autumn lawns
For those who’ve experienced a long, hot and wet summer, it may seem that the grass has not stopped growing. If you’re tired of mowing, you may be able to relax as cooler conditions mean lawn growth slows over winter as warm-season grasses such as kikuyu, soft buffalo and couch, begin to enter their winter dormancy.
Where summer and autumn have been dry, lawns may be looking brown and dry. If there are bare patches, over sow with lawn seed to help keep the lawn looking green. Having clover in lawns also keeps them looking green through winter and clover has the added benefit of adding nitrogen to the soil.
To get good germination from seeds, rake over the soil, water and scatter seeds. Keep germinating seeds moist and free of foot traffic and apply Seasol Lawn & Turf Starter to help improve seed germination and promote strong root development and healthy green growth.
If birds are likely to steal the seed, cover seeded areas with shade cloth or fine netting. Remove once the green shoots appear. Hold off mowing until the new grass is well established.
Indoor plant care in autumn
While shorter days outside help plants recover from summer’s stresses, indoor plants may need to be moved into more brightly lit locations as light levels fall. When selecting a new more brightly lit location, avoid placing plants too close to cold windows as the chill, especially overnight, may damage foliage. Also, keep plants away from heaters.
Where extra light isn’t available, invest in a grow light to provide extra winter light. Using artificial light in autumn and winter helps keep plants growing well and avoids pests and diseases that might otherwise attack stressed plants. As a general rule, cut back on watering as the weather cools. Always check soil moisture before watering by feeling the potting mix with your fingers. Apply PowerFeed Indoor & Potted Plants trigger spray to the soil to boost the health and growth of all potted plants.
Follow our autumn indoor plant guide for more tips.
