Saturday 25th July, 2026
Hi
My daughter and I went to see the movie "The Odyssey" last week. It's an epic adventure tale from Greek mythology which revolves around the voyage of Odysseus on his return home to Greece. There are lots of references to Greek history and luckily we are all familiar with the Trojan horse story; although it is from mythology it is part of our modern vernacular - if someone refers to it people understand what it means.
For us in horticulture, Greek and Latin plays a big part in the naming and understanding of what plants do and where they are from. The
Pear family, or Pyrus, has an ancient connection to parts of the Mediterranean and it is thought the name originates from "pirius" which was the name for the pear in that part of the world back then. This week I was interested to see that the pears, which we were root pruning, have started to sprout with new growth. Here are some pictures of roots starting to grow. We see these as we prune the roots of the trees to fit them into the bags so you can take them home. Another key reason we root prune is to tidy up any damage which occurs (inevitably) when the trees are undercut to allow them to be lifted from the fields. Here's an American
video about how they harvest trees using mechanical equipment, just in case you are interested. Here in New Zealand we don't refrigerate our trees because the climate is milder and the trees are dormant for a shorter period.
Fragrance of roots
Believe it or not, different plant roots smell different. As a root pruner with some thousands of trees under my belt, it is something that I have noticed over time when pruning different species and families. My favourites are
Michelia and
Magnolia roots. They have a kind of cross between a sweet and spicy fragrance when you cut them. I like it. Plants are all a bit different in their response to pruning also. Some, such as
Cherries and
Apples, are what we call promiscuous with their root growth. Before you send in your complaints, another botanical term which we use for plants which grow roots vigorously is "
adventitious". This means the plant can form roots on other body parts as well, e.g. stems and branches, so even when the roots are cut back hard they will generate new growth and roots on the stem which is left, as well as shooting into growth to replace the roots which have been cut off.
The nose has it
We really need to talk to the IT guys and gals about inventing a "fragrancemail" so I can share with you the heady scent which has been enchanting my nostrils from the
Michelias at work. These are just starting to flower on the driveway: the one I walk down every day, on my way to and from my car. The plant in question is probably Michelia doltsopa which, sadly, we are finding hard to source. Michelias have recently been reclassified to be a subset of an enlarged genus that has retained the name "Magnolia". All the plants in that large genus are really closely related based on both analysis of the flower and the plants' DNA. These days there are several cultivars which are a cross between Michelia doltsopa and the popular
Michelia figo. This latter is a great plant for slightly warmer areas. Some of you may know it from its distinctive bubble-gum-flavoured scent, which tends to be more obvious in afternoons and evenings, when it flowers in late winter.
These cultivated varieties of Michelia were bred by Os Blumhardt from Whangarei in the 1990's and include
Bubbles,
Mixed up Miss and
Touch of Pink. These are all fairly similar, with Mixed up Miss having a slightly more colourful flower. Mark Jury from Taranaki used the Bubbles and Mixed up miss extensively in his breeding programme, which resulted in the super popular
Magnolia Fairy Cream,
Blush and
White. The fairy varieties are eminently suitable for hedges or for standardising, or as stand alone specimens, because of their small leaves and fragrant flowers. These evergreens that have Michelia figo in their ancestry are quite different to the larger, leathery-leaved evergreen Magnolias such as
Magnolia Blanchard or
Magnolia Ferruginea. These are both varieties of Magnolia Grandiflora which grow to form medium to large trees and they have very large, white flowers and leaves with distinctive brown undersides.
David Austin (1958-2026)
Speaking of amazing breeders, we acknowledge the passing this week of David Austin, a famous rose breeder in England, at the age of 67. He was the son of the original founder (also David Austin) who lived until 2018. We have been blessed by the work of this amazing family, which continues with David's daughter, sons and grandsons who continue in the business. This is part of their tribute: "First and foremost, Dad was a gardener,” they said "He carried our grandfather's vision with humility and an unwavering sense of responsibility, always putting the roses, the family business and its people before himself." Thank you David, Rest in Peace. His legacy is the fantastic variety of Austin roses which are grown and enjoyed world wide.
The journey of a tree
As you may be aware, we send plants here there and everywhere in New Zealand as people order using our online system. We have a dedicated group of dispatchers who carefully, pick, pack and send your tree or plant on its way. At the moment they are flat tack as this is the best time to purchase and plant your deciduous trees. Here are some shots of the trees as they are selected from the nursery (only the best specimens of course!) wrapped and loaded carefully into the Aramex courier van. For larger plants, we send them on horticultural carriers (i.e. via truck) which generally incurs a higher fee. However they are sent, you can bet they will be looked after like they were for our own garden.
New at the Nursery
Helleborus Seedlings just arrived from Clifton Homestead. These popular little plants are seedlings grown from the breeding programme in the deep south (Balclutha). They may take a couple of years to flower, but you will be rewarded with some unusual colours and forms. Plant in rich moist soil and dead head when blooms have finished, to discourage aphids, or allow to seed and discover your own interesting "hybrid".
Fresh stock of our popular landscape range at $9.99 has just arrived. These are mainly native plants which are on a multibuy-special where if you buy 10-29 they are $8 each and if you buy more than 30 of any mixture of this size (0.5l pot) then they become $7 each. These are a great grade for planting out a gully, stream edge, hedges, or any area where cost becomes an issue for the space you have to fill. Hardy and quick growing, natives are perfectly adapted for our climate, soils and terrain. Here are images of a few that we don't normally have in stock, and you can see photos of the more common lines further below.
Great for small to medium hedging are the genus
Corokia. These can be trimmed to formal (sharp lines) or informal (rough shaping) hedges and are very hardy for coastal conditions, dry, sunny or exposed sites. For more height check out the
Pittosporum Eugenioides (lemonwood) which can grow to 6m or more and are great for establishing quickly. These are adaptable for dry, sandy, exposed sites and can be trimmed to a more compact size (2-3 m) if you wish.
A quick reminder we have our last rose pruning demonstration by Waikato Rose Society on Sunday 26/7 from 11am to 1pm. Come along and bring your questions so you can talk directly with the experts. Everyone is welcome.
Thanks for reading. Hope your weekend is just the way you like it, whether that's action packed or just relaxing. My hope for this one is the latter! Regards Tracy.
Cheers from Lloyd, Tony and the Wairere Team.
