Winter gardens in Australia are never drab with plenty of flowers to plant, plants to prune and winter vegetables to grow whjile its cold. Here are some essential winter gardening tips for maintenance during the cooler months and the jobs to do now in order to prepare your garden for spring.
How should I prune plants during winter?
Sharpen the secateurs! The first chore, in all but frosty areas, is rose pruning. Be bold, leaving only an open framework of three or four main stems. Spray these and the surrounding soil with lime sulfur to clean up pests and diseases.
Other plants to prune when bare include hydrangeas, wisteria and grapes.
The peak cold of early August is the best time to give gardenias their main pruning. Cuttings of frangipanis will make instant new trees; leave them to dry for a few weeks, then pot or plant into a sandy mix, adding stakes for support.
Cut ornamental grasses almost to ground level to rejuvenate and spray lawns for bindii as soon as their ferny leaves appear.
What flowers should I plant in a winter garden?
Although many plants are resting, spring bulbs, winter-flowering natives and flowering hedges are growing actively, including the coastal tea tree, Grevillea ‘Fire Cracker’, Grevillea ‘Deua Gold’, heath-leaved banksia, and silver princess eucalyptus. Keep these watered and fertilised for peak performance through the cold season.
Other flowering plants perfect for winter gardens include lavender, hardenbergia, daphne, paper daisy and snowdrop.
What jobs do I need to do in my garden during winter?
- Feed citrus in late July, using an all-purpose citrus fertiliser.
- Keep sowing carrots, spring onions, leeks, broad beans, radishes, English spinach and peas.
- If you haven’t planted asparagus and rhubarb crowns yet, don’t delay.
- Strawberries can also go in now.
- Start seeds of tomatoes, eggplant and capsicum on a warm windowsill, ready for planting when the soil warms.
What vegetables can I grow in a winter garden?
- Carrots: Grown all year round, carrots can withstand a large variety of temperatures including cold. However, these veggies go great in those winter broths and soups. To ensure you get the best out of your carrots make sure that your soil doesn’t dry out, water regularly and keep the soil moist for the first two weeks of germination.
- Broccoli: Broccoli loves to grow in a nice sunny spot, so make sure you position your growing produce where they will receive some rays of sunshine. Remember to give your veggies a good drink of water and keep the soil most.
- Garlic: A great tip for growing garlic is to not water your soil until your cloves have germinated, which will occur approximately two weeks after planting. Following this, ensure you water the soil often enough so that it remains moist but not wet.
- Spinach: Don’t forget to water your growing spinach regularly and feed once seedlings begin to emerge with a plant food and soil improver that feeds your crops above and below the ground by creating a balanced and sustainable growing environment for bigger, healthier crops. Depending on the type of spinach variety you’re growing, it should be ready to enjoy in six to eight weeks.
Carrots are easy to grow as long as they are planted in loose, sandy soil.
(Photography: Mark Roper)Turns out, it’s pretty easy to grow a variety of fresh herbs in winter! Try your hand at these:
Herbs to grow in a winter garden
- Thyme
- Rosemary
- Parsley
- Basil
- Mint
- Winter Savory
