The Wellington Garden Club celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. With more than 90 members, the club meets twice a month and its membership includes a number of the best-known celebrity gardeners in the Western Cape.
Gardening in Wellington is not for the faint-hearted. Blistering summer heat with temperatures exceeding 40ºC for days on end is not uncommon. As such, shady gardens and landscaped patio areas in the garden where you can have outdoor meals on a moonlit summer night are the key to survival.
Next Friday (October 21) and Saturday (October 22), the club will open eight top gardens in Wellington and host an expo at Langkloof Roses with more than 30 exhibitors. There are two farm gardens, two large gardens and four small town gardens. The oldest of the farm gardens was established in 1699.
Tips from the best:
Lizette Siderfin is a top gardener and member of the Wellington Garden Club. These are her tips on how you can create a magnificent garden in a region that sizzles in summer:
Shade Gardens:
In the heat, a shade garden is critical. “Keep in mind that the roots of big trees will compete for water and nutrition with other plants when planning your spot,” she says. Water regularly and deep. Vary the plant feed to include nutrition for leaves in order for the plants to benefit.
Plants that thrive in ashady garden include clivias, ruscus, aspidistra, spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum), dracaena, alocasia, philodendron, begonias, plectranthus, azalea and the indigenous forest bell (Mackaya bella). Scatter leaves, fallen tree trunks and thick branches among your plants to create a forest effect in your shade garden.
Water.
Never water your garden between 10am and 4pm, as the water evaporates during the hottest part of the day and leaves with water droplets are scorched by the sun. Water thoroughly and deep; in so doing you can save water by irrigating less frequently.
How long should you water for?
“Water a spot in your garden for 30 minutes. Then dig up some soil and check up to how deep it remains moist and whether it reaches the roots. Depending on your soils, adjust the irrigation time to a longer or shorter time,” says Siderfin.
* Mulching is critical. The thicker the layer of mulch across your garden, the cooler the soil will remain underneath. It will also keep weeds at bay, and in winter it will protect the roots against very cold conditions.
* Lawns. Adjust the blades of your lawn mower to a high setting when mowing in summer. “If you cut your grass too short, the roots will burn, leaving big brown patches”, she advises. “If your grass grows quickly, rather cut more regularly,” she adds.
* Roses. “The three most popular roses in the Wellington area are the hybrid tea roses, ‘Just Joey’ and ‘Esther Geldenhuys’ and the white ‘Iceberg’, a floribunda rose,” says top rose expert Emiël Krause from Eden Rose Nurseries, Paarl.
The key to rose survival in the hot summer is simple. The more lush green leaves your roses have in summer, the more protection they will have against the heat. Mulching will also keep the roots cool. Water deeply during the early mornings and apply a rose fertiliser to all your bushes once a month.
* Attract birds to your garden. Keep dishes filled with clean water under trees. If you have feeding trays with fruit, place them in the shade as well as the sun quickly causes fruit to ferment.
* Work with nature: “To work with the climate rather than against it will prove to be cheaper in the long run than replacing plants which do not do well in spots where you want them to grow,” she says.
Favourite plants
“October is really the time to enjoy the results of your work,” says Jennie Ferreira, a Wellington Garden Club member who has gardened at Klein Optenhorst for decades.
“But I think one should keep a critical eye open for things that can be improved upon and keep deadheading the roses.”
It is also a time to prune back all spring shrubs such as weigelia, May bushes (Spiraea) and mock orange.
What plants should you buy for a sizzling hot garden? Ferreira’s favourites include:
* Trees: Celtis africana (15m), Magnolia grandiflora, the deciduous Magnolia soulangeana and graceful fever tree (Acacia xanthophloea) which thrives in Wellington.
* Shrubs: Deutzia, abutilon and the Easter camellia (Camellia sasanqua), which is autumn flowering and can take quite a lot of sun.
* Perennials: “I have to say Salvias as I have over 60 species in my garden,” says Fereira. “They are heat tolerant, and irresistible to birds and insects,” she adds.
Also Plectranthus and columbines (Aquilegia) which are short-lived but will self-seed.
* Ground covers: Catmint (Nepeta), sutera and scabiosa.
* Biannuals and annuals: Delphinium, poppies and verbascum. - Weekend Argus