Spring Bulbs & Autumn Colour for Australian Gardens
May is your last good window to get daffodils, tulips, hyacinths, freesias and ranunculus into the ground while the soil still holds some warmth. The reward come spring is absolutely worth the effort. Plant at about twice the depth of the bulb, growing tip up, and in good free-draining soil they’ll quietly get on with it. For pots, layer different varieties at different depths for a staggered display that just keeps going
While the bulbs do their thing underground, fill the gaps with something that flowers right now. Cyclamen are the standout choice for May, thriving in the cool with cheerful blooms in every shade of pink, red and white. Pansies and violas are equally brilliant and will keep going for months – great value for very little effort.
When planting, water in with Seasol (30mL per 9L of water) to get roots moving from day one. Once shoots appear, feed fortnightly with Seasol and PowerFeed right through until the foliage dies back and once buds form, a weekly half-strength liquid feed will really lift the display. Keep container-grown bulbs somewhere cool and shaded until the leaves push through, then move them into a sunny sheltered spot and watch things take off.
Winter Vegies to Plant Now
Broad beans are the place to start, and if you’ve never grown them before, May is absolutely the month to try. They’re genuinely hard to kill, they fix nitrogen in the soil as they grow, and come late winter when they’re smothered in beautiful black and white flowers, you’ll be very glad you put them in. Sow straight into the ground or a deep pot and mostly just leave them to it. Alongside them, get in silverbeet, peas, broccoli, cabbage, kale, English spinach and lettuce for a patch that feeds you right through the cooler months.
Give them the sunniest spot you have and some shelter from cold winds. Once plants are settled, feed with Seasol Power Feed Plant Food Granules Tomatoes & Veg. It’s a slow-release fertiliser for vegetables with added probiotics that improve soil health, and one application lasts 8–12 weeks (which suits the slower pace of the winter garden perfectly).
Bare-Rooted Roses & Deciduous Trees
Bare-rooted stock is beginning to arrive in nurseries, and if you’re quick you’ll find the best selection of the season before popular varieties sell out. Roses, fruit trees, ornamental pears, flowering cherries and deciduous shrubs are all available, and you’ll find a wider choice at a better price than potted alternatives – it’s one of the great bargains of the gardening year.
Don’t be put off by plants that look like sticks – that’s exactly right for dormant stock, and the energy sitting in those roots will burst into leafy growth and, in the case of roses, a spectacular flush of flowers come spring. Daphne is absolutely worth picking up too. Plant it somewhere you’ll walk past regularly, because the late-winter fragrance stops you in your tracks every single time. Water everything in well with Seasol to give roots the best possible start.
A Garden Gift for Mum
Mother’s Day falls in May, and the season is genuinely on your side.
For the indoor plant lover, a potted cyclamen is hard to beat right now – at its peak, thriving in a bright, cool spot indoors, and flowering happily for weeks. A zygo cactus in a hanging basket is equally spectacular, or go lush and leafy with a fern, anthurium or peace lily paired with Seasol Power Feed Plant Food Granules Pots & Planters.
For the gardener who’d rather be outside, put together a bulb lasagne pot layered with tulips, daffodils and hyacinths. They’ll be watching it come up all winter and thinking of you every time a flower opens – how lovely!
Soil Health for the Planting Season
With so much going in the ground this month, it’s worth thinking about what’s happening beneath the surface.
Seasol Plant Health and Soil Improver Granules combine Seasol seaweed with natural rock mineral Zeolite to improve the soil’s ability to hold nutrients and water, support root development, and help plants handle the frost and cold that’s on its way. Safe for all plants including natives.
At planting, sprinkle into the hole, mix through the soil and water in well. For established beds, apply around the dripline every four to six weeks.
