Friday 23rd October, 2020
Hi
Snowdrifts... snowballs.. in spring? Viburnums, just magical!
I have learnt about a new family called Adoxaceae, well to be fair I had never really thought about what family Viburnums belong to. To me they were just
Viburnums... apparently, they used to belong to the Honeysuckle family or caprifoliaceae but after careful morphological analysis (botanical speak) they were moved to Adoxaceae. Maybe I'll just keep them as Viburnums, LOL, but they certainly don't belong to the hydrangea family!
This family comprises both evergreen and deciduous species but at this time of year the ones that lose their leaves are certainly, eye poppingly, beautiful. The snowball tree (Viburnum
opulus sterile) is a classic with white pompom flowers, just like a snowball, and is probably a classic that most are familiar with.
Then there are the plicatum types that tend to have a
layered form, some mimicking snow laying on branches, and flat white flowers in absolute abundance.
Summer Snowflake is quite a popular choice, and looks pretty cool au naturale or, as we have done on our roadside garden,
coned so they look like Christmas trees... keeping them trimmed helps maintain their size so they don't get too large.
Viburnum plicatum
roseace offers a different leaf colour with the green leaves tinged with bronze and these complement the pretty, white, snowball flowers that then turn to pink.
Viburnum
Newport is a smaller
variety, getting to around a meter, that just, absolutely, smothers itself in clusters of snowy, white blooms in late spring.
Use up those leeks in a Chicken and leek Pie
My dilemma was what to do with a heap of small leeks that I'd dug from the garden, but which don't quite make the supermarket grade, and I'm making way for the first crop of beans! That's what I asked the neighbour and he brilliantly suggested chicken and leek pie with mushrooms.
Well I haven't made a pie in years and so had to grab some pastry (the flaky sort) from the supermarket because I draw the line at making my own. A quick google to see how to go about it and the rest was left to my imagination about what and how.
Leeks were sliced, and there were a lot, sautéed in butter until they were nice and soft, even threw in some chopped asparagus... just because it was in the fridge... salt and pepper to taste. My herb of choice was French tarragon so I added a whole lot from the garden, all finely chopped. A can of kernel sweet corn and a packet of real, LOL, chicken stock completes the brew. Don't ask me for measurements, I just guessed throughout the whole process. (and while I'm on Tarragon, French is the only one to grow. We have limited numbers right now but more should be available soon. I have grown this herb in a pot for the last couple of years and it is just, amazing. And lets not forget the test, it's only French Tarragon if you have a tongue numbing experience when you eat it raw!)
I cooked chicken thighs in the oven then cubed the meat and added it to the mix of leeks and stock and cooked for a while to reduce. Chopped mushrooms added and simmered a tad longer and then thickened with cornflour to a good pie filling consistency. By now I'm starving so the first night we had it with rice and fresh asparagus, as I ran out of evening to actually make the pie.
The next night I rolled out the pastry and made the pie with the chilled filling, baked in a hot oven until the pastry was golden brown... got to say that it was yummo. Had enough pie to last the next two nights. Perfect!
Kumara are in and Gold and orange will follow soonish
Red Kumara are here by the bucket load, literally, so if you have these ordered come on out and pick up your plants, or complete your online purchase once you get your email, and get them in the ground. I know that some of you have gold and orange ordered as well but, unfortunately, these are still a few weeks away as it hasn't been warm enough yet for the slips to get away strongly enough. We cant hold the reds until the others are ready as they are tender and won't hold their quality that long.
Kumara do best in the ground, not in a bucket, so don't wait for the other varieties to be ready because, by then, the reds will be past their best. It's the same story in the plant world, it's all about quality and shelf life and sadly Kumara slips don't keep their quality for a long time.
Last call for potato varieties, these are the last available this season so if you don't have your crop in then now's the time to get it done. Check the current varieties
here and the crop info
here.
Herbs are now in stock, in limited numbers to begin, some are still waiting for it to warm up but the temperatures in the last few days have been promising and there will be more available soon so pop your orders in online to get the varieties you are wanting.
Cyathea Medullaris, Black Punga, Black Mamaku or even Black Tree Fern, all names for the same plant which isn't often in stock so thought a mention would be helpful. We have some small specimens available, standing up to around half a meter. These like filtered light and grow well in humus rich, moist soil. These have those gorgeous large fronds and the black trunk.
Until recently we had a chicken coop at the nursery, but the chooks all relocated to new lodgings out the back, so it is about to be transformed into a superb, central, nursery spot for our garden team to keep their tools. I've had a spot of ground work done and some, long overdue, inground, drainage to clear the runoff from the bank and some gravel added to the bay below for levelling the area, still a bit of work to do but it should be looking the picture very soon.
I sprayed the roses last night again. When you spray before rain and after rain, which is quite a good practice, it poses a problem when you have to irrigate every night, to keep enough water in the pots, to keep them going and coming up to flower... so a regular spray regime for us is the name of the game. We also have just respaced them as they are getting so large (some almost too big to box) and so there is a bit more air movement between them. Just a thought though if you are planting perennials with your roses then allow the rose its own space... again in the home garden situation to allow plenty of air movement which will result in less pest and disease. Aphids are hungry little suckers at the moment so if you are seeing these in your roses then you will need to spray with an
insecticide spray at least 3 times with 2 days between sprays. Make sure you spray thoroughly as these little critters can multiply their numbers rapidly and it only takes a few to survive to get the infestation happening again.
If you have a hankering to see roses in flower then now is the time to start coming out as there is some real colour starting to happen. Another week to ten days will see a lot more colour, but they certainly are on a roll.
Spring events reminder
Remember to check out the events page as there is plenty going on at the moment and of course it is rose time so keep in mind the Waikato Rose Society rose show being held at the Hamilton Garden Pavilion on 21st & 22nd Nov.
Have a fabulous weekend after all it is a long one and, if the weather is anything like today, it'll be a goodie. Don't forget that we are open throughout, as always, from 8.30am to 5pm daily. If you are travelling to enjoy the NZ country scenic tour or just heading out with the boat or caravan, drive safe, remember to be patient and enjoy the drive.
All the best from Lloyd, Tony and the Wairere team.
