It’s hot and often humid in January, which is great growing weather, so you’ll need to be vigilant keeping weeds in check and vines under control.  Also, watch out for fungal problems and pests as now is the time when they can quickly explode in numbers to devastating effects. 

And here’s the tip; don’t dig, stay out of the sun during the hottest part of the day and instead use the time to do things that work best in hot weather, or at least can be achieved in the early hours of the morning or cooler evening hours.

Weeds

Summer weeds are luscious.  So well do they grow it almost seems a shame to waster them…so don’t, turn them into great compost instead.  Many weeds are full of nitrogen and break down quickly in a hot compost to provide a rich feed for your garden – but you have to make sure you’re not including pernicious weeds…keep your system turned regularly and it should be hot enough to kill of most weed seeds, but leaving out onion grass, onion weed and oxalis bulbs is prudent!  Our Hungry Bins are great at turning your weeds to feed in no time.

Gardening indoors in summer has its advantages.  When it’s wet, you’re dry, for starters!  If its too hot outside, indoors is shaded and often you can even have a fan or aircon on.  So what are the best things to sort out, snap up and get cracking on during summer for the indoor gardener?

Feeding:

If you’re after flowers from your orchids again, feed them from January onwards with Campbell’s Special Fertiliser B – that’s the blue one.  Other indoor plants love to get some liquid plant food in with their weekly water, but its best to dilute to half strength if you’re going to be this frequent with your fertilising. .. 

Have you spring-cleaned your courtyard yet?  Spring is a great time to garden, see things afresh and take stock of what is working and what’s not.  The great thing about a courtyard is the speed in which transformations can take place.  It is literally a weekend’s job in most cases, so think about a few of these ideas to revitalise your outdoor space.  And for renters, remember some of these elements can also be packed up and moved if you change abodes.

Clean – before you get to work, give everything a good clean.  Water blast paving, weed, remove cobwebs and freshen paintwork with some sugar soap of a fresh coat  Remove dead foliage from plants, trim overgrown shrubs back and then start your rearrange without the conforms of your previous design, seeing each space with fresh eyes.

Colour – We are all motivated by colour.  It can calm, inspire, and activate us.  Choose a colour that’s going to bring you joy and make it a feature, repeating it with flowers, pots, soft furnishings and so on.  You may choose to add a contrasting colour or complementary colour to build on the scheme.