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NOVEMBER 2010

SOUTH AFRICAfor everyone who loves gardening

Publisher Lonehill Trading (Pty) Ltd

Editor Tanya Visser

Managing Director Kevin Beaumont

Managing Editor (Editorial enquiries)Wendy Moulton 031 764 0593 [email protected]

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Editorial contributors Alice Spenser-Higgs, Angela Beckx, Anna Celliers, Annette Welsford, Di-Di Hoffman, Gary English, Gerald Schofield, Glynne Anderson, Dr Hugh Glen, Ilona Thorndike, Jenny Dean, Keith Kirsten, Kevin Beaumont, Louis van Aswegen, Ludwig Taschner, Margaret Roberts, Olivia Schaffer, Ruth Brophy, Tim Neary, Tanya Visser, Wendy Moulton.

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Copyright subsists in all work published in this magazine. Any reproduction or adaptation, in whole or part, without written permission is strictly prohibited. The Gardener will not be held responsible for any omissions or errors. Unsolicited material will not be accepted. The Gardener is available at leading nurseries and selected retail outlets nationally.

November 201035 Taking the Plunge

Pool gardens that work in total harmony

40 In Rose and ColumnsMeet the attractive Rosaceae family

49 Gardening is soul food Gardens with a thread

of picturesque elegance

56 Growing Organic A refresher on the basics

from Australian Annette Welsford

62 The Cherry on Top Try your hand at growing cherries

1 Welcome6 Garden Graft Ideas, tips and tasks for November14 Your Letters16 Moon Gardening Following November’s Moon Lunar Gardening Guide18 Plant Profile HOSTA ‘Yellow Spot’23 In the Garden with Gerald Incas, Aggies & Mopheads!46 Wildlife Gardening Attracting birds to your garden52 Diary of a Cape Garden Hardscaping for a Water-Wise Garden54 Combos that Work Verbenas and Bulbines66 Indigenous with Jenny Dean Extraordinary Beauty68 Rose Care Looking ahead to December70 Growing Herbs Herbs for Punch73 The Spice Collection The Curry Tree – MURRAYA koenigii74 Growing Vegetables Time to Harvest77 Bonsai In a (second) Nutshell78 Petpourri Just like Kids80 Koi Tata Ma Tosai Tatagoi120 Tales from the Green Dragon On Being Inconspicuous

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ON THE COVERSTRELITZIA regina

Very soon we will be hearing Christmas carols in a seemingly never-ending sound loop in all the shopping centres – probably mostly by Boney M – and while I don’t have anything against

Boney M (I actually enjoy their music) it really ‘gets under my skin’ when I hear carols being played in the shops. I don’t think the shop owners are playing the carols because they are feeling particularly festive, I think they believe it will induce us to buy more, and I guess that’s why it annoys me. Well, whether we buy more or not, the fact is that that silly season is around the corner and all the madness is about to begin.

The other fact is that summer is here, in full force. In this intense heat we need to make educated decisions when it comes to our gardens – about what we plant and how we care for and get the most out of our little gems, despite the heat.

Award-winning UK horticulturist Chris Beardshaw recently did a whirlwind lecture tour of SA. His visit was at the invitation of Keith Kirsten, and the proceeds from his lectures will benefit the South African Nursery Association Tom Arnold Bursary Fund. A huge thank

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you must go to Keith and the sponsors who made it possible for us to share Chris’s wisdom and be inspired by his enthusiasm. What a privilege it was listening to this truly talented and amazing gardener.

This month Gerald takes a look at another of the plant families. This time it is Rosaceae, which includes the genus Rosa, the rose, surely the most loved member of this family and possibly of all flowering plants, and it also has many other rather good-looking members, including one of my personal favourites, RHAPHIOLEPIS x delacourii ‘Kruschenia’ (Indian hawthorn). It is such a versatile shrub and thrives from the coast to the mountains. Other family members include Cotoneaster, Prunus and, of course, apples and pears ... Mmm, now all we need is the partridge! Do take your time to savour the article on this beautiful family, and all the other goodies in this jam-packed issue.Happy gardening!

W e l c o m e

PS: Along with gardening I also have a passion for good food (and watching cute chefs!) so I’ll be spending some time at the Good Food & Wine Show at the Durban Exhibition Centre from Thursday 25 to Sunday 28 November 2010. Tickets to see the chefs in action are always in hot demand so book yours for the ‘Get Fresh With BBC Lifestyle’ theatre and the ‘Chefs In Action Theatre’ in advance through Computicket (or take your chances and try at the door). For more information, visit www.gourmetsa.com.

Yours truly, Chris Beardshaw and Keith Kirsten – how much more ‘gardening’ could you hope to fit in one photo?

Preparing for the Good Food & Wine Show? Nope! This is how you get your eyes to sparkle just before you’re about to film a slot for another series of The Gardener for the Home Channel.

6 l www.thegardener.co.za

NOVEMBER DIARY

Garden

GraftPrime PlantingIn November the sweet fragrance of TRACHELOSPERMUM jasminoides (star jasmine) fillsthe air. This evergreen climber with polished dark green foliage and star-shaped whiteflowers will grow happily in light shade or full sun. Plant masses of it in the shade ofdeciduous trees as low maintenance ground covers, and plant a few more specimens insturdy hanging baskets so you can enjoy the tumbling branches covered in blooms.They are also rewarding when planted in large containers and trained around elegantsteel obelisks or tepees made of thin wooden poles, or planted in the ground andallowed to trail over wire fences, pergolas and garden arches. These trusty plantsgenerally give no problems, except that the leaves sometimes begin to turn yellow –prevent this by fertilising the soil with a general fertiliser that is rich in nitrogen andpotassium. Star jasmine does best in composted, free-draining soil.

For something really special plant the very exotic STEPHANOTIS floribunda (Mada-gascar jasmine) in a pot close to your patio. This climber has large, leathery leaves and aspreading growth habit and produces the most awesome bunches of sweet-smellingtrumpet-shaped flowers all while growing without any fuss.

Plant nowRed-flowering bedding plants are just the ticket to add that special touch to yourgarden for the festive season. You can use them as an economical option for indoortable decorations too. Start by planting individual bedding plants in small pots now andgrowing them on. By Christmas they should be looking good, and then it’s simply a caseof dropping them into decorative cover pots and using some baubles and glitz aroundtheir feet in place of mulch – they will be fit to grace the table of any festive feast; whatgreat value from a six pack of plants. Pick the red-flowering plants from the options thatfollow.� Bedding begonias are useful for edging off flower beds, and Dragon Wing RedBegonia, the familiar big begonia with cascading growth, looks great in hanging basketsand pots.� Dianthus (DIANTHUS chinensis x barbatus or D. chinensis) is also available in brightred and it only reaches a height of 20 to 25 cm. In the garden it is used to provideedging colour, but it looks equally great in pots. It grows in full sun but light shade willbe tolerated too. To ensure they flower prolifically and continuously you need to feedyour dianthus plants with a soluble fertiliser every two weeks. Also consider planting thevery compact DIANTHUS caryophyllus (pot carnation). There are quite a few fragrant andpretty varieties available now.� Lipstick-red New Guinea impatiens in pots make perfect table decorations.� Petunias love December if it’s hot and dry; if you’re in a winter rainfall area then planta few dozen red-flowering petunias in pots, hanging baskets and window boxes nowand they will be magnificent in December.� SALVIA splendens (red salvia) just has that Christmas feel about it, with its uprightred flower sprays evoking memories of the toy soldiers of The Nutcracker. Salvias makehandy summer bedding plants for full sun and light shade. Use the dwarf varieties

TRACHELOSPERMUMjasminoides (star jasmine)

STEPHANOTIS floribunda(Madagascan jasmine)

DIANTHUS ‘Corona Cherry Magic’PETUNIA SALVIA splendens (red salvia)

IMPATIENS(New Guineahybrid)

www.thegardener.co.za l 7

(15 cm high) as well as the giants, which will grow up to 30 cm. Both are great for festiveChristmas pots.� Vinca (CATHARANTHUS roseus) is the hardiest of all the bedding plants. They love ahot spot in full sun and poor sandy soil, and they detest too much water. The latesthybrids are wonderful for Christmassy pots as they are compact and bushy and bear lotsof red flowers backed up by glossy leaves.

Your lawn� If your lawn isn’t emerald green yet, then fertilise again with a lawn fertiliser andwater regularly.� Set the blades high and mow frequently. Kikuyu, in particular, will develop a muchfiner texture if mown twice a week.

Kitchen gardeningHerbsSow sweet basil, coriander, fennel, Italian parsley, chives, green peppers, chillies and sage.VegetablesSow cabbage, spinach, rocket, carrots, beets, radishes, runner beans, brinjals, tomatoes,celery and rhubarb.

Pest problems� Beetles – CMR beetles and fruit chafers (bigger and nastier!) candevour flowers with ease in a day. These yellow and black beetles aredifficult to miss and the best way to deal with them is to catch themby hand. Serious infestations can be controlled with Ludwig’sInsect Spray Plus (Reg. no L 7631) at a rate of 100 ml to10 litres of water to which 10 ml Spray Stay has been added.

Must do� Continue mulching flower beds with home-madecompost.� Check your irrigation system regularly. Blockednozzles and sprayers that don’t reach the soil whenwatering will result in plants wilting, and dying ifthey are deprived of water for too long.� Prune deciduous spring-flowering shrubs likeSPIRAEA cantoniensis, SPIRAEA x arguta and Deutzia. Cutaway all dead wood and remove about a third of theold growth.� Prune trailing geraniums back after their firstflower flush and feed every two weeks to encouragemore flowers.� Neaten climbers by pruning them lightly. Tie their side branches firmlyto the structures that they have to cover. Bougainvilleas that havestopped flowering can be pruned too.� HELIANTHUS annuus (sunflowers) are easy to grow, and they growfast. Sow the seed in full sun in the back of a bed as most grow quite tall.Dig the soil over and add ample amounts of compost. Press the seeds intomoistened soil, about 2 cm deep and 30 cm apart. Flood the row of seeds withwater and keep the soil moist until they have germinated.

Plant chillies this month

HELIANTHUSannuus

8 l www.thegardener.co.za

NOVEMBER DIARY

In yourregion

Summer rainfall temperate� Plant PELARGONIUM graveolens (rose geranium). It is a small, bushy shrub thatgrows to about 1,5 m tall and produces soft pink flowers from August to January. Whenthe fleshy leaves are crushed they give off a heavenly rose scent. Use the leaves andflowers to flavour and decorate deserts and cakes. You will have more flowers if youplant them in full sun, but light shade is also fine.� Prune shrubs like jasmine, banksias, Dorothy Perkins roses and spiraea when theyhave finished flowering. Hail-damaged plants can also be pruned lightly.� Stake young trees and standard roses properly to prevent storm damage.� Prune azaleas for neatness, feed and renew the acid mulch around them and waterthem regularly.

Summer rainfall subtropical� Downy mildew is different from powdery mildew and a killer in cool but humidweather. Downy mildew causes the outer petals of rose buds to discolour and dry out.To give your roses a fighting chance, you have to grow tougher leaves. A handful ofdolomitic lime per rose plant every two years is a good strategy. Calcium is an importantmineral in the soil and plays a big role in strengthening the cells and membranes ofplants. Adding the foliar fertiliser Magi-Cal to your spraying cocktail will also help tostrengthen the plants.

Winter rainfall� Plant red petunias and alyssum in pots oralong pathways for festive colour and a subtleand sweet fragrance.� Divide irises when they have finishedflowering.� Use the water retentive product Aqua-Soilin beds when you plant out young and softseedlings. It helps to break the water repellentlayer over sun-baked soil and also helps totake water right down to root level. It will keepthe soil moist for much longer too. Apart fromits water retentive qualities, it also conditionsthe soil and contains slowly releasing fertiliserthat will feed your seedlings.� Treat all containers and hanging basketswith Stockosorb water retentive crystals. Youcan also add it to planting holes for newplants.� Fynbos, including buchus, leucospermums,ericas and proteas, can be pruned for neatness after flowering. Renew their mulch.� Prune confetti bushes quite hard. You can cut them into interesting topiary shapestoo.� Plant now for long-lasting summer colour. Red salvias and vincas love hot and drysummers.

Dry continental� A ‘dry pond’, as seen in some Japanese gardens, is the ideal way to create a new focalpoint. Take care and time to place sand, gravel, stone and plants in a natural andinteresting way. Use flat stones as stepping blocks for traversing the ‘pond’ while a thickand final layer of river sand can be raked neatly to be the ‘water’. Use strong focal plantsto soften your scene and to add balance, like ELEGIA tectorum, ACORUS gramineus‘Golden edge’, DIETES grandiflora, ACER palmatum var. dissectum ‘Atropurpureum’ andOPHIOPOGON japonicus ‘Kyoto Dwarf’.� CISTUS ‘Silver Pink’ has small grey-green leaves and is covered from early spring tomidsummer with masses of rose pink flowers. This is a very tough shrub which enduresalkaline soil and full sun. It combines well with SANTOLINA chamaecyparissus (dwarfsantolina), another tough shrub that endures extreme climates. Dwarf santolina has fine,silvery foliage and bears mustard yellow flowers in summer. �

PELARGONIUM graveolens

Inspiration for a dryJapanese pond

56 I www.thegardener.co.za

Growing

www.thegardener.co.za I 57

Until fairly recently organic gardening was generally regarded as the preserve of eccentrics who refused

to accept the self-evident truth that twentieth-century progress had transformed the ancient art of gardening. The attitude was ‘why fiddle around with compost and garlic spray when modern fertilisers and insecticides are so much more efficient and easier to use?’

Opinions have changed because the benefits of twentieth-century technology have come at a price, and now most gardeners regard ‘organic’ as the most sensible way to garden. Chemical sprays and fertilisers have done much damage to the environment. As individual gardeners we might not think that we can do much to change the world, but we certainly can take sensible care of the one part of the environment we control: our own garden. And by doing so, we do make a difference, particularly when you add up all the home gardens in the world – they represent a fair chunk of the environment.

Organic gardening is simply the application of common sense such as people have been practising for centuries. It involves digging manure into a planting bed, putting kitchen scraps onto a compost heap, using blood and bone on your tomatoes instead of sulphate of ammonia. By spreading rich

compost that you have made, rather than a bag of chemical fertiliser, you know that it will benefit not just the growth of your plants, but the health of your soil for years to come. You are working hand in hand with nature, in harmony with its own rhythms.

In order to maintain a healthy organic garden it is worth spending a few minutes reviewing the cycle of life in the garden, so that you understand all the elements and their interdependence on each other. In a richly forested area, where a huge variety of plants grow abundantly without human intervention, you will notice that the forest floor will be covered by a thin layer of fallen leaves. The leaves are decaying and beneath them is the multitude of living organisms that are digesting the organic matter and in their turn adding their own dead bodies to the soil. They range from worms and small insects down to microscopic bacteria and fungi and without them the recycling process could not occur.

HumusThe result of the work of all these organisms is the wonderful substance called humus. It is a sort of black colloid and gives fertile soil its dark colour and sweet earthy smell. It sticks to the mineral particles that form the framework of the soil and fills in the gaps so that water and dissolved nutrients

are held within the structure, to be made available to plants as they are needed.

Humus is gradually digested and yields its nutrients to plants, and unless it is constantly replaced the soil dies. The soil lives as long as the recycling process is not interfered with – but interference is precisely what happens in a garden. We don’t return everything to the soil. We remove weeds to the compost heap; we eat our vegetables and send our own wastes elsewhere. We cut flowers and throw them in the garbage; we burn leaves and prunings. And each of these actions diminishes the humus supply. We may even use poisonous chemicals that kill the micro-organisms. Clearly we need to work to restore the balance.

Unless you replenish the organic matter from which the humus is continually being created, the soil will gradually die. Added chemical fertilisers boost the growth of your plants for a little while, but they do not nourish the living creatures of the soil, nor do they create humus. Chemical fertilisers present other problems as well. To make them soluble they contain things the garden doesn’t need: sulphate of ammonia certainly yields nitrogen from the ammonia, but the sulphate part poisons worms, bacteria and fungi.

It takes time to build up the levels of humus in the soil, especially if it has been depleted by wasteful gardening

and poisoned by indiscriminate use of insecticides, fungicides and artificial fertilisers. It also takes time to get

used to the idea of feeding the soil and not the plants.


Organic matter – material that was once alive – must be added continually to feed the humus, which is why it is important to make your own compost by recycling as much organic matter as possible from the garden itself. Fallen leaves, vegetable stalks, spent flowers – nothing should be wasted. Then bring in other matter from outside: vegetable scraps, animal manure, blood and bone, lawn clippings, hair, newspaper and straw.

Is compost a good fertIlIser?Just how good compost is as a fertiliser depends on how you measure it. The amounts of available nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus (the NPK figures) are rather low and variable when compared to artificial fertiliser. It doesn’t force an instant spurt of growth; its benefit is long term. If your soil is naturally low in a particular element, you simply add the required elements to the heap, preferably in a form on which the micro-organisms can work. Anything rich in protein (blood, bone, urine, manure) will add nitrogen; bone meal supplies phosphorus; potash comes from wood ash or seaweed. The demand for compost in a garden is greatest in late winter, when planting beds are being made up, and through spring, when mulching gets under way for summer, but you can spread your compost as and when it suits you.

growIng tomatoes organIcallyTomatoes love lots of compost and manure. Ideally it should be dug into the bed at least eight weeks before planting to give it time to break down as well as to generate beneficial microorganisms. Time is also required for the nutrients in the compost or manure to be released. Digging the compost or manure into the soil will probably result in a whole lot of weeds germinating, and they can then be weeded out before planting your tomatoes. Around established plants, where you don’t want to dig deep and disturb roots, spread compost onto the surface as mulch. As it decomposes it will settle down into the soil and the earthworms will come up and take it down with them. A more-or-less permanent layer of mulch will keep the soil cool, smother any weeds and conserve moisture.

This article was written by Australian Annette Welsford. Annette co-wrote How to grow Juicy

tasty tomatoes with Lucia Grimmer, a plant nutrition technician and an authority on

plant diseases. The book details everything one needs to know about growing tomatoes

organically, it has step-by-step instructions for the novice gardener and advanced trial-based

information for the professional grower. Visit www.bestjuicytomatoes.com to order a hard

copy or buy and download an electronic copy.

THE CURRY TREE

Murraya koenigiiBy Margaret Roberts

Indian emigrants took their curry trees with them when they went to live in different countries. I was given my first curry trees,

about twenty years ago, by an Indian chef who also taught me how to make ‘real curry powder’, as he put it. He also casually said that the fresh leaves had medicinal proper-ties – his grandmother used them to keep colds and ‘flu away, and they were a good treatment for viruses and some cancers. I was astonished. Later I found out that the medical claims were correct and that the leaf is rich in antioxidants and that it is listed in the phar-macopoeias of Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. Through the centuries every home had a curry tree and its sprays of com-pound leaves were there for daily pickings.

Growing the Curry TreeMURRAYA koenigii is frost tender, so do not attempt to grow it if you do not live in a warm subtropical area or a tropical, frost free area. Tiny trees are grown from clus-ters of seeds that form from the tiny, white, star-shaped flowers. The seeds need to ripen and to dry out before picking and sowing. Press two or three ripe seeds into a pot of moist, compost-rich soil and keep the pot in the shade; do not let the soil dry out. The little seedlings take a few months to become sturdy and strong enough to plant out. At that stage choose an area that gets full sun and prepare deep and wide compost-filled planting holes and flood them with water. Carefully, so as not to disturb the roots, ease the little trees out of the pot and sink them into the prepared holes. Press the soil all around each tree to secure it and keep it moist. Make a strong dam around each tree, in preparation for a long, slow, weekly water-ing and watch over the trees carefully.

Using the Curry LeafThe word curry comes from the Tamil word kari, which means a spicy, intensely flavoured sauce. The curry leaf is a vital ingredient in the Tamil kitchen and has been in use as both a flavouring and a food since the first century AD. It has been used in Hindu medications and Ayurvedic medicine for many centu-ries and it has its place in ceremony and in celebration, and its reputation as a valuable medicine, listed and registered in the highest pharmacopoeias, gives it a unique status that is recognised worldwide.

Modern medical research validates its role in treating diarrhoea, dysentery, vomit-ing, nausea and extreme exhaustion due to trauma. A tea of the leaves – a quarter cup of leaves to one cup of boiling water, stand 5 minutes, stir well, then strain and sip slowly – is greatly soothing for these ailments and is also the traditional tea for diabetes, a use that is coming under the spotlight as research isolates helpful compounds within the fresh leaves. The cooled tea is becoming a popular lotion, gargle and mouthwash, and is used to treat sore throats, flu symptoms, mouth infections, gum ailments and sores around the mouth. Curry leaves are rich in antioxi-dants and antiviral compounds that have been found to have protective effects against certain cancers.

In rural India and Sri Lanka toothbrushes are made from the stems and tender branches by crushing the ends and fraying out the fibres; they help to clean between the teeth as well as massaging the gums to clear up any infections.

Curry leaf is a warming, stimulating, wonderfully flavour-filled herb that eases the digestion, improves the appetite, soothes colic and diarrhoea, lifts constipation and disperses sour belching, burping and flatu-lence. All parts of the beautiful little tree are used and a paste of pounded leaves makes a soothing poultice over insect bites, stings, scratches and grazes. Fresh and dried leaves fried in ghee or oil are the base for curries, and added to chutneys, marinades, sauces, dressings and spreads, rubs and grindings with fenugreek and chilli and cumin.

“Real Curry Powder”This is the basic curry mix the Indian chef gave me on that wonderful day he brought the trees, and I have experimented, added to it and loved every taste. • ½ cup coriander seeds • ½ cup cumin seeds • ½ cup fenugreek seeds • 2 teaspoons cardamom pods, shelled • 1 teaspoon cloves • ½ cup mustard seeds (yellow) • 1 tablespoon tamarind • 1 tablespoon turmeric • ½ cup (or more or less) chilli – finely chopped and seeds removed if preferred• 1 cup fresh curry leaves • ½ cup freshly grated ginger • ½ cup thick brown sugarAll are finely ground and crushed in a pestle and mortar and salt and black pepper are added to taste. This exquisite blend needs to be freshly made every time. Mix it well. The tamarind comes in a paste – mash it into everything. The ginger needs to be really finely grated – add it to the sugar. Carefully spoon the mixture into a hot pan with a little ghee and work quickly. Then add chicken pieces or fish or mutton, or keep it deliciously vegetarian and add chickpeas or lentils or brinjal, and vegetables, then add a little stock or water. You may prefer stronger tastes – add and change and keep notes. Served with rice its pure taste is incredible!

NB! Don’t confuse MURRAYA koenigii with HELICHRYSUM italicum (the ‘curry plant’). H. italicum only smells like curry, but it cannot really be eaten. The scent is the only ‘curry’ part of it, and the leaves are not edible.

Curry trees are available under the Margaret Roberts Malanseuns Herb Collection label. Ask your nursery to order them for you.


plunge

PoolsIde lIvIng

Taking the

summer is here, you’re sporting a golden tan and your bikini fits like a glove once again. But all of this is of no use to you if your swimming pool and entertainment area is not

up to scratch. The gardener visited two great gardens where the swimming pools, their surroundings and the homes work in total harmony with each other.

Old houses, modern poolsideThis Montagu pool garden was designed by Jan Hagen of Zantedeschia Concepts with very specific stipulations; these came courtesy of david Muirhead and Associates of Johannesburg, who managed the project of joining the Krige House (a national monument) and House Biden, and handled the interior design. There had to be complete synergy between the interior and exterior spaces of these two very old properties. The pool garden, which is enclosed with walls on three sides, is the centrepiece and is joined to the rest of the garden rooms with neat stepping stone pathways. Two separate water features of nearly the same design lead one away from the pool – the main expanse of cool water – into other sections of the garden. Balau wood was used extensively around the pool as flooring and there is also a balau deck placed under an old white stinkwood tree.

By Anna Celliers

Working with what you have…There is a large CELTIS africana (white stinkwood) and an old PODOCARPUS falcatus (Outeniqua yellowwood) on the property that are of sentimental value to the owners. Both were pruned neatly to enhance their shape and then draped with strings of fairy lights that create a magical atmosphere at night.

Adding the flairNo poolside garden is complete without reclining chairs and potted containers. Be careful not to overdo your decorating though: there must be enough space around the edges of the pool for family members and guests to enjoy themselves and be safe even when playing boisterously.

A flamboyant chandelier hangs from a thick branch of the white stinkwood.

The tree is surrounded by a wooden deck. The comfortable rattan garden furniture

allows the family to spend long hours outside during the balmy summer

evenings of Montagu.


Potted up in magnificent bright yellow flowering splendour is a lovely dwarf aloe hybrid.


Adding some plants…The plan was to turn this garden into a haven for the owners, who would escape to it for weekends and holidays away from their busy city lives. The decision was to keep foliage colour as peaceful as possible by using mainly green, but in different textures. The plantings of PHILODENDRON xanadu, VIBURNUM odoratissimum, V. tinus lucidum and V. suspensum are still young at this stage, but will eventually grow to soften the walls and create the feeling of deep shade and coolness so needed in the Klein Karoo, with its hot summers of 40 plus degrees C. Jan also experimented with SCHEFFLERA umbellifera (false cabbage tree) as he believes this plant will be ideal to supply vertical height and screening in narrow spaces because of its slender growth habit.

The velvety leaves of TIBOUCHINA grandifolia (velvet-leaved glory bush) are soft to the touch and make it beautiful to look at, even when it is not covered in its deep purple flowers.

The spotted form of Ligularia can always be counted on to supply intrigue amongst other shades of green.

The leathery, polished leaves of the small evergreen MAGNOLIA grandiflora ‘Little Gem’ have

a beautiful brown reverse.


PoolhouseThis house has become so much a part of the garden that one can almost dive from a comfortable couch into the deep coolness of the dark blue swimming pool. Theresa Rabe of Onrusrivier, a windy coastal town close to Hermanus, became tired of her backyard patio because it afforded no protection from the elements. She covered it with a solid roof and installed a white-stained wooden floor and now the folding doors that separate it from the house can be completely opened up every day, allowing her to live closer to nature and inviting her garden into the house. This has become her favourite room and the place where she spends most of her leisure time.

Adding some detailTheresa loves decorating and styling, and she rings the changes according to the weather. If it is cold outside then warm red scatter cushions, throws and small décor items are used to add a welcoming atmosphere to her entertainment area. If it is hot and sunny, room décor in cool blue is used to change the look.

Planting, Theresa style...The plant choice for this small pool garden with its magnificent backdrop of forbidding mountains was deliberately kept simple. Large-leaved ivy covers some of the boundary walls, while those walls in full view of the entertainment room were made interesting with trellis panels upon which TRACHELOSPERMUM jasminoides (star jasmine) grows. Seasonal colour in the form of annuals is planted in wall-mounted pots between the trellises and neatly pruned SYZYGIUM paniculatum and WESTRINGIA fruticosa fill the window boxes and containers.


Planning a pool party • Pick a theme, going for something unusual that will create a buzz. For example, if you call it ‘nearly the end of a blooming great year’ you can use inexpensive floral-patterned material for the table runners and cushions, tie floral ribbons around the trees and hang paper lanterns across the tables.• You can even get by with a modest catering budget: make simple picnic food and pack it in baskets. Friends can also be asked to help. The large snack platters available from most supermarkets are an economical option too – supplement them with fresh breads and spreads.• Use leaves, flowers and succulents from your garden for decorating. Some fruits and vegetables are relatively cheap at this time of year so use them as table decorations too. It is sometimes a simple glossy nectarine in a small clay pot or a bunch of fresh herbs tied with string that gets all the oohs and aahs, rather than expensive blooms from a florist.• Use lots of cheap candles in glass jars or old drinking glasses for lighting.• Fill your wheelbarrow with ice and use it to keep drinks cold.• Create small seating areas for eating, rather than one large table.• Do not be neighbourhood pests; keep the noise and the music at an acceptable level and remember that the best pool parties are those where the neighbours have been invited. If it isn’t possible to invite everyone who might be inconvenienced then warn them ahead of time; do this by making a personal visit, bearing a gift from your garden.


BUY ONESUBSCRIPTION

MTD lawn tractors are available from lawn and garden equipment

outlets and home improvement centres. MTD is distributed in Southern

Africa by Creative Equipment, contact011 8285085, or visit www.creativelp.co.za.

CONGRATULATIONS to Mr A.J. Dreyer, Mrs B. Goldschmidt and Mrs E.H. Altintopi who each won a JoJo SlimlineTM

tank plus R1500 cash to pay for the installation, the subscribe and win prizes for August 2010.

ANDGETONEPLUS stand a chance to wIN an

MDT175 Lawn Tractor worth R22 000 from Creative Equipment


We have something really speciallined up for one lucky subscriber this month, plus a double-up

treat for every single new subscriber. If you subscribe or renew your subscription to The Gardener or Die Tuinier before 22 November 2010 your name will go into the draw for a fantastic MTD175 Lawn Tractor worth over R22 000, supplied by Creative Equipment. New subscribers who take out a standard 12-month subscription for R220 will go into the draw for the prize from Creative Equipment AND get a second subscription absolutely free, to give as a gift.

Creative Equipment has introduced two new models to its tractor range: the MTD135 and the MTD175, and both take care of large areas quickly without any hard work.

MTD135 LAwN TrAcTorThe MTD135 is a lawn tractor with rear discharge, a powerful 10,1 kW (13,5 hp) Briggs & Stratton engine under its hood and a cutting width of 92 cm, making it ideal for lawns of approximately 2 000 to 4 000 m2.

A transmatic transmission transfers the engine power to the rear wheels, which allows you to switch drive positions without interruptions. The MTD135 can be used as a 3-in-1 machine that can mulch, bag and discharge when equipped with a mulch kit and deflector, which are available as accessories. Thanks to its huge grass catcher (240 litre) you do not have to drive to the compost pile often, even if you have a large lawn. A few of the extra features from the comprehensive range are the floating deck, the turf-saving wheels and the pivoting front axle – attributes that are not usually included in this price class. Thanks to the deck that projects over the left side, you can mow especially close to the edge.

MTD175 LAwN TrAcTorThe MTD175 lawn tractor, the prize for this month’s lucky winner, definitely belongs to the top category of rear discharge lawn tractors. Its robust design and construction makes it suitable for continuous use under rough conditions. It can also be used as a 3-in-1 machine that can mulch, bag and

discharge when equipped with a mulch kit and deflector. Its smooth 4-stroke Briggs & Stratton engine performs with 12,9 kW (17,5 hp), which allows you to mow slopes quickly and easily. Even large areas of 4 000 to 5 000 m2 can be tackled in a relatively short period of time thanks to its working width of 105 cm. Another of the distinctive features of this machine is the newly developed automatic transmission from MTD. With it, the transmission is controlled by very robust mechanical parts, making it almost indestructible. You can easily control the speed, forward and in reverse, with a single pedal. There is no need to shift gears as the transmission continuously adjusts itself to the speed. With the new automatic transmission the tractor achieves a driving comfort that was previously exclusive to hydrostatic transmissions. A soft-grip steering wheel, high backrest, front bumper, top-quality rubberized anti-skid foot pads, and the step-through frame for easy mounting and dismounting round off the list of extra features.

Subscribe online at www.rnadistribution.co.za or email [email protected]

call (011) 473 8700 with your credit card details

or SMS ‘Subs TG’ to 41939 (r2/sms) and we’ll call you!

Post a cheque with your details (name, postal address

& contact number) to rNA Distribution SUBS,

Po Box 725, Maraisburg, 1700

Debit order option: call (011) 473 8700 and pay only r48every 3 months.

Deposit your payment into FNB corporate Jhb, code

25 50 05 00, Account number 62104927259 and fax

a copy along with your details to (011) 474 5479

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issues of Die Tuinier, absolutely Free.

Overseas subscribers R678. Rest of Africa R578. Please allow four weeks for processing of orders. All prices include vAT. All prices valid to 30 November 2010.

ANDGETONE

Get readyfor thefestive season

GreAT GIFTIDeA

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