SEEDLINGS

Plant Guides
Written By California Garden

SEEDLINGS

 Whether you dream of harvesting a bumper crop of fresh homegrown vegetables bursting with flavour, or a flower garden radiating with the colours of the rainbow; using seedlings will help provide a starting point to your vision and success. When in season, nothing beats the satisfaction and convenience of growing your own fresh vegetables.

This gives 6-8 seedlings per punnet. A great start to your own vegetable production line.

VEGETABLES

Choose a sunny, sheltered spot in your garden which has at least 4-6 hours of sunshine per day. If you are making a new garden, first clear the area of grass and plants. The better the soil, the better your plants will grow. Raised gardens assist with providing good drainage and allows you to “make” your own healthy soil. Dig in organic matter like compost or sheep pellets and add a layer of Vegetable Mix. This contains nutrients for your vegetables to have the best start and sustained growth during the season. If planting in pots, fill completely with Vegetable Mix.

Your choice of vegetable seedlings changes with the seasons. Warm weather varieties in summer and cooler selections for winter. Growing suggestions are printed on the punnet labels to help you decide. For the best chance of success, plant vegetables at the appropriate time of the year.

Around Wellington in Autumn/Winter some vegetables to plant: Beetroot, brussel sprouts, bok choi, cauliflower, cabbage, garlic, kale, leeks, lettuce, mesclun, onions, peas, radish, silverbeet & spinach.

Around Wellington in Spring/Summer some vegetables to plant: Beetroot, beans, broccoli, carrots, capsicum, celery, courgettes, cucumber, lettuce, rhubarb, rocket, silverbeet, spinach, spring onions & tomatoes.

Planting Seedlings:

  • Soak seedlings in bucket of Seaweed Plant Tonic to help prevent transplant shock. Allow to drain.

  • Make hole twice the width and depth of rootball of seedling and plant in hole.

  • Top up with vegetable/flower mix and press around plant. Water in well.

  • Feed your plants and they will feed you. Feed every 4 weeks with Tui Vegetable food during growth periods. The weather, weeds, pest insects and diseases can all affect your success of your garden. Use Tui Quash if slugs become a problem. Add a layer of mulch to protect plants and keep your seedlings well-watered.

  • Your vegetables are ready to harvest when they are about the size you see them in the supermarket.

  • Leafy crops like spinach can be harvested a leaf at a time – so you can pick as you need.

Common pests and diseases for vegetables:

  • Caterpillars cause holes in leaves or fruit.  We recommend using Mavrik.

  • Aphids are clusters of insects on growing tips. We recommend using Mavrik.

  • Thrips suck up plant juices leaving silvery white patches. We recommend using Mavrik.

  • Whitefly are tiny white insects on the undersides of leaves – fly when disturbed. We recommend using Mavrik.

  • Mites cause mottled or yellow leaves to become dehydrated. We recommend using Mavrik.

  • Tomato Grub tunnels holes through tomatoes. We recommend using Mavrik.

  • Powdery Mildew are white powdery mould on leaves. We recommend using Yates liquid copper

  • Bacterial spot is small black spots with yellow margins on the tomatoes. Remove bad leaves and spray with copper.

  • Blossom End Rot is black rot on the bottom of tomatoes. Make sure you water regularly.

FLOWERS

Before choosing your flower selection consider whether your garden is sunny or shady, humid or frost tolerant, wet or dry, exposed or sheltered. Do you want easy care maintenance or colour coordinated gardens? It can be a formal garden, coastal garden, cottage garden, courtyard, container garden, rock garden or tropical garden. Whatever you choose – the better the soil, the better the plants will grow. Dig in sheep pellets and compost into existing gardens and add a layer of garden mix to improve success. Many flowering punnets are annuals, so they only live for one season. Some can self-seed – meaning you may end up with more flowers the next year, but not where you planned.

Around Wellington in Autumn/ Winter some flowers to plant: Alyssum, Antirrhinums, Cyclamen, Cinerias, Pansy, Polyanthus, Primula, Viola, Wallflowers

Around Wellington in Spring/Summer some flowers to plant: Alyssum, Cosmos, Daisy, Fuschsia, Gazanias, Geraniums, Impatiens, Lavender, Marigolds, Penstemon, Petunia, Poppy.

  • Always deadhead old flowers to encourage fresh new flowers to bloom.

  • For pots use a side dressing of Tui Novatech fertilizer. For continual flowering of Pansys, Polyanthus and Primulas use Tui Dried Blood.

9CM PERENNIALS

Perennials are plants that survive through winter and grow back each year in the garden. Most survive more than two years, and some completely disappear in winter, only to reappear in spring when the soil warms up.

Autumn/Winter Selections: Aquilegia, Bacopa, Delphinium, Gypsophila, Lavender, Lupin, Polyanthus, Primula, Stachys

Spring/Summer Selections: Geraniums, Dichondria, Petunias, Geums.

PERENNIAL PUNNETS

Selections available in this range include: Carnations, Dianthus, Gaura, Gypsophila, Heuchera, Lavender, Osteospernum, Penstemons, Platycodon, Salvias, Sedum, Scabiosa.

These can be planted as per flower punnets above.

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