Many lawns will contain moss after such a wet winter so now is the time to give the lawn a thorough raking to remove the moss.
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Feed the lawn to give it a boost and help stop the moss from re-growing.
Plant Brussels sprouts, leeks, cabbages, cauliflower, lettuce, silver beet, peas, beans, kale, onions and beetroot. Wait till the frosts are over before planting tender plants like tomatoes.
It’s also time to plant flower seedlings like aster, salvias, poppies, carnations, cornflowers, dahlias, nemesia, phlox, snapdragon, stocks and zinnias.
Add colour to the shaded areas of the garden with impatiens, pansies, violas, polyanthus, primulas, cinerarias and coleus.
Beet up the garden
Seeds of beetroot can be sown into drills 10 millimetres deep.
Thin plants to about 10 centimetres apart.
Baby beets or freshly-grated raw beetroot add a splash of colour to salads while the mouth-watering marmalade is a hit served with cheese.
Leaves can be eaten and are a source of calcium and iron.
Scent-sational
Perfume is the soul and essence of a flower and it’s usually the older species that we find still have the most delicious scents that linger throughout the garden.
Daphne odora is still true to its origins and so is the brown boronia, Boronia megastigma which has a perfume like no other.
The lingering fragrance of lavender stands on its own and floats over and around other scents neither mixing nor overpowering them.
The old tea roses still have a delightful, heavy perfume.
Among the annuals sweet alyssum, petunias, stocks and marigolds have scents of varying strengths while carnations, sweet Williams, phlox, some species of geraniums and viola odorata are fragrant perennials worth growing in a ‘scent-sation’ garden.
Citrus care
Citrus plants require a well-draining soil and must have protection from frosts and severe winds. Before planting, dig in lots of compost.
Mulch around the base of the plant to protect roots from drying out in summer but keep mulch away from trunk.
They don’t like being overcrowded so allow sufficient space to grow.
Currant affairs
Black, red and white currants are self-fertile, fruit prolifically and require a relatively small area in which to grow.
Black currants like a rich, well-drained, moisture-retentive soil.
Red and white currants like similar conditions, but can tolerate dry conditions better.
They tend to blossom early so need protection from frosts.
Something to remember is that black currants fruit on the previous season’s shoots while red and white currants fruit on spurs formed on old wood.