Real World Gardener-Horticulture, Gardening, Learning to Grow

Real World Gardener Pool Trends in Design Elements

 

DESIGN ELEMENTS

Pool Trends

 

From pools that seem to abound around urban gardens, they all look pretty much the same.

These days, people are going for the glass fencing, concrete surround and blue tiles for the pool floor.

 

Black tiles in KifsgateGarden, England photo M Cannon

So what else can pool lovers do?

 

Let’s find out? I'm talking wiht Matt Leacy Principal Director and Landscape Designer from Landart Landscapes.

 

PLAY: Pool Trends_3rd May 2017

 

Pool tiling trends really go from one extreme to the other – either dark, close to black tiles or completely white.

“With a complete white tiled pool you get a really natural water colour,” Matt Leacy says.

“A black pool will give you a certain amount of elegance and can sort of act as a reflector.

If you want a point of difference to your pool that’s a great option.” 

Not enough space for a pool this big?

Patterned tiles running along the water’s edge have also seen a resurgence.

And if you don’t have a big backyard, don’t be like some urban households with small backyards who still put in large pools instead of opting for a small plunge pool or custom made spa.

 

Real World Gardener Which Fertiliser to Use in Plant Doctor

PLANT DOCTOR

Fertilisers explained-granular or liquid, seaweed or organic, which is it to be?
How well do you know your fertilisers?

There are two basic groups of fertilisers, solids or granular which are generally more slow acting, and liquids which are fast acting.

Whether you add organic matter or fertiliser to your soil, you provide your plants with three basic building blocks.

 

Controlled release fertiliser and Blood 'n Bone

 

These are nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, often referred to by their chemical symbols of N (nitrogen), P (phosphorus) and K (potassium or potash).

Packaged fertilisers list the amounts of NPK each product contains, often showing it in a ratio format, called the NPK ratio.

But which ones should you use?

 

Let’s find out.. I'm talking with Steve Falcioni General Manager from www.ecoorganicgarden.com.au

 

What to Watch Out For?

For gardeners in cooler climates, the winter period will see plant growth and microbial activity in the soil slow down.

What are the implications?

Nutrient uptake by plants is minimal if you're still using granular or solid type of fertilisers at this time.

The reason?

Bulky fertilisers need to be converted into a useable form before plant roots can take them up. So, if microbial activity, which does this conversion has slowed down to a crawl, so will this conversion and that leads to slow nutrient uptake.

Rock dust is the slowest of all to break down taking up to 6 months or more, depending on when you apply it.

The way plants use nutrients is quite complex and varies from plant to plant. 

Some need lots of one nutrient but little of another, while others need a balanced amount of each. Understanding which nutrient does what gives you a rough guide to selecting the right fertiliser for your plants and garden.

That's why some fertilisers are labeled Citrus and Fruit, or Flower and Fruit, or Azaleas and Camellias. They are specific to those plants.

Seaweed extracts don't have enough nutrients in them to be classed as fertilisers, but they are plant tonics because they increase root growth and stimulate plant cell walls to strengthen.

If you have any questions about fertilisers or have some information to share, drop us a line to realworldgardener@gmail.com or write in to 2RRR PO Box 644 Gladesville NSW 1675 and I’ll send you a packet of seeds.

 

Real World Gardener Fabulous Coastal Pincushion Plant is Plant of the Week

 

PLANT OF THE WEEK

Coastal Silver Edged Pincushion -Leucospermum patersonii

 

Have you ever been stunned by the flowers of a plant that you felt the need to buy one immediately?

Sure you have, it’s one of those things that gardeners get and it’s so very hard to resist.

This next plant falls into that category and I hope you’ll be inspired to rush out and purchase one.

But first, let’s find out about this plant.

Coastal Pincushion bush photo M Cannon

 I'm talking with the plant panel : Karen Smith, editor of Hort Journal www.hortjournal.com.au and Jeremy Critchley, The Green Gallery wholesale nursery owner. www.thegreengallery.com.au

The silver edged pincushion plant is such an appropriate name for this beauty.

The leaves are a feature with their silvery edges but the flowers, are more so coming in clusters of three.

The added benefit of the closely clasping leaves is that the bush is densely covered.

Leucospermum patersonii photo M Cannon

The flowers are bright orange to crimson and very showy and appear on the bush in groups of three.

Flowering is from July to December.

the coastal Pincushion bush does well in limestone derived soils, therefore alkaline.

However it should do well in most well drained soils around Australia.

 

What to watch for:

Root rot or phytophthera can cause sudden death for plants in the Proteaceae family.

This can happen after long spells of dry weather followed by a period of heavy rain.

As a preventative measure drench or spray with Phosacid sometimes marketed as Anti-Rot.

 

If you have any questions about the Silver Edged Pincushion Plant, why not write in to realworldgardener@gmail.com

 

Real World Gardener Collecting Mushrooms in the Good Earth

 

THE GOOD EARTH

Mushroom picking sounds like a great idea, but around the world, people die from eating poisonous ones.

Not only do you need to know where to go but also how to tell which are poisonous and which are not.

Authorities recommend to only forage in the supermarket aisles or buy a mushroom kit and grow your own!

Saffron Milk Cup Mushroom

However, if you go out with a knowledgeable guide, you may be able to enjoy this pleasant past time without fear of keeling over.

 

Let’s find out.

I'm talking with Margaret Mossakowska, Director of Moss House and Living Skills Coordinator of Permaculture North.

In Australia, cool climate pine forests are the best places.

State owned forests have public access and picnic tables for you to enjoy your mushrooms after picking them.

Forests need to be 10 - 20 years old so that the fungal networks have had time to re-establish after the intensive agriculture that's involved in starting forest plantations.

Slippery Jack Mushroom undersides.

 

Saffron Milk Cap mushrooms (pictured above) exude an orangey white sap when cut.

This sap oxygenates to a green colour, so it's not mouldy.

These are the easiest to identify. 

 

Slippery Jack Mushrooms (pictured here) don't have gills on the underside but more of a foam structure.

You can also find mushrooms where horses and cows are pastured. these are mostly button mushrooms and harder to identify.

 

TIP: Cut the mushrooms instead of pulling our digging them out. By doing this you're letting spores for future generations of mushrooms remain in the environment where they grow best.

WARNING: Only ever go collecting mushrooms with an experienced guide.
Do not rely on guide books for collecting mushrooms.
They’re very easy to misidentify.

Margaret says that when she takes people out foraging for mushrooms, that she asks them to tip out their collected mushrooms onto a blanket.

By doing this, Margaret can check each and everyone one of them to make sure that they’re not the poisonous ones.

If you have any questions about mushroom picking or have some advice or photos to share, why not drop us a line to realworldgardener@gmail.com or write in to 2RRR P.O. Box 644 Gladesville NSW 1675.