Hopefully all who read this have had some decent falls of rain recently.
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The current hot topic is the weeds that seem to grow overnight in spring and even faster after rain!
Common vetch is a climbing annual with opposite leaves and purple flowers. It will grow quickly along the ground and over other plants and can weigh them down as it covers them.
Long flat pods produce many seeds that flick out far and wide when the pod splits open, so it can spread quickly.
Its root system is deep and so is best pulled by hand. The stems are quite weak, so hold the stem right at its base to help get the roots and avoid breaking the stem off.
If you choose to leave it in your garden, it will fix nitrogen in the soil and will die down in winter.
Jobs for now
Continue to enjoy the burgeoning growth and spring flowers.
Many spring flowers have lovely scent and are worth picking for a vase. One spray of Syringa (lilac) can perfume a whole room.
Make use of the extra time with daylight saving and get your spring veggie garden going. Sow lettuce, radish, carrots, silver beet, peas, broad beans, celery, broccoli, chicory, potatoes and turnips.
Prune evergreen hedges of box and euonymus now that the likelihood of severe frosts has passed.
One spray of Syringa (lilac) can perfume a whole room.
Continue to deadhead spring bulbs that have flowered to divert the plant’s energy to forming next year’s flower inside the bulb, rather than forming seeds. Feeding them before they start to die down will also promote a good flowering next season.
Watch out for emerging liliums and other summer flowering bulbs, to avoid damage while weeding or cultivating beds. Mulch well, keep well-watered and protect against snails and slugs.
Keep pruning any shrubs that have finished their early spring-flowering to keep them in shape. Cut out any dead branches, then cut long shoots back by about a third, cutting just above a new shoot.
If you have been fortunate to have had good rain, start mulching to keep the moisture in and before the summer heat starts to take the moisture out.
Did I mention keeping on top of the weeds?
The Armidale Garden Club’s next meeting is on Thursday, October 25 in the Uniting Church Hall. Now that daylight saving is here, meetings start at the later time of 7:30pm – everyone is welcome!
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