Yates growing with you - Spring Edition 2019

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10 WAYS

to make your gardening life easier

Get inspired S U S TA I N A B L E GARDENING P L A N T E R B OX T O P L AT E INDOOR PLANTS

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WATER SAVING TIPS

curb

appeal ADD VALUE TO YOUR HOME

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Mor What to grow now, Companion Planting &

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9 WATER SAVING TIPS

WHAT TO GROW NOW

ATTRACTING BEES TO THE GARDEN

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10 WAYS TO MAKE YOUR GARDENING LIFE EASY

TERRARIUMS

CURB APPEAL

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THE SIGHTS AND SCENTS OF SUMMER

COMPANION PLANTING

SPRING INTO YOUR LAWN

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PLANTER BOX TO PLATE

CARING FOR YOUR INDOOR PLANTS

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STARTING A SPRING VEGIE PATCH

FRIEND OR FOE

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good gardening bugs bad bugs

9 tips

for saving water in the garden Water is a precious resource, it’s the life source for all living things, so it’s important to consider ways in which we can conserve it! Here are our top 9 tips to saving water in your garden.

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Choose hardy plants

Check for leaks

Grow plants that have good drought tolerance. Look for plants with small, hard or hairy leaves that have evolved in dry climates.

Great choices include grevilleas, bottlebrush and lavender.

Mulch, mulch, mulch Mulch around the base of plants to keep moisture in the soil. Consider using organic mulches, like sugarcane or pea straw, which break down and help improve the soil.

Organise YO U R PLANTS

Group plants together according to how much water they need.

Chicken poo is your friend Fertilise with an organic plant food such as Yates Dynamic Lifter Soil Improver and Plant Fertiliser. This will help improve soil structure and its ability to retain water.

Make sure all your tap fittings and hoses aren’t leaking.

One way to check this is to turn off every tap in your home, check the water meter, wait a few hours and then check again. If there is a different reading you will need to investigate!

Water lawns efficiently and effectively

Don’t lose your water to evaporation

Lawns will appreciate a deep soaking once a week rather than small daily waterings. And apply a Yates Waterwise Soil Wetter, to help break down the water repellent layer that can form on the soil surface and get the water down into the root zone where it's needed.

It’s best to give your plants a deep drink early in the morning before the harsh afternoon sun comes around.

This gives the roots time to soak up the water before you lose it to evaporation!

Install irrigation and tap timers Help automate watering in your garden and ensure your plants receive the right amount of water at the right time every day.

Smart devices such as the Pope Aquazone Tap Timer has up to 4 programmable watering cycles, with an eco-function to help reduce wasteful water run-off, and watering can even be suspended when rain is forecast.

Check your local Water Restrictions When watering large areas be sure to check the water restrictions in your area to ensure you're abiding by the law.

Visit Waterwise Gardening for more information.

Recycle, recycle, recycle From a glass of ‘old’ water to the water you use to cook your pasta in – it all counts! Before pouring it down the sink, think about whether your plants might be thirsty.

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spring spring planting planting

grow W H AT TO

N OW

With the warmer weather upon us, now is a good time to be thinking of what to sow and grow!

There are so many fantastic vegies & herbs that can be sown and grown during spring.

Here are a few ideas to wet your gardening appetite.

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TO M ATO E S Whether you have room for a big patch of tomatoes or one pot on a sunny balcony, there's a tomato for you.

Yates Tomato 'Grosse Lisse' has large red and tasty fruit on a tall and vigorous plant that requires staking. Yates Patio Tomatoes produces masses of sweet, cherry sized tomatoes which are perfect for salads and popping in school lunch boxes. They're dwarf plants that are great for growing in pots.

H OW TO G R OW TO M ATO E S FROM SEED: »» Seed can be sown direct into a vegie patch that’s had the soil enriched with Yates Dynamic Lifter® Soil Improver & Plant Fertiliser or sown into seedling punnets filled with a good quality seed raising mix like Yates Seed Raising Mix.

SALAD GREENS Salad ingredients like loose leaf lettuce and silverbeet are quick and easy to grow at home, in both the vegie patch and in pots.

These are 'cut and come again' vegies and you can harvest individual leaves as you need them, leaving the rest of the plant to grow more leaves. Yates Lettuce 'Baby Combo' is an interesting blend of green and red sweet baby leaf lettuces. Yates Silverbeet 'Perpetual' has mild flavoured smooth leaves with slim green stalks. Both lettuce and perpetual silverbeet seeds can be sown direct where they are to grow (in the garden or a pot) and you can start harvesting in as little as 6 weeks. Keep the plants wellwatered and feed regularly with a complete plant food like Yates Thrive Vegie & Herb Liquid Plant Food.

»» Keep the soil or seed raising mix moist and seedlings will start to emerge within 2 weeks. »» For seedlings raised in punnets they can be transplanted into their final home, in either a garden bed or a container, when they’re 5-7 cm tall.

Only transplant out once the last chance of frost has passed! »» In a fortnight, start feeding each week with Yates Thrive® Tomato Liquid Plant Food, which will provide the tomatoes with a balanced diet of nutrients to promote lots of healthy growth and encourage lots of flowers which will turn into delicious fruit.

Herbs add vibrant colour and flavour to home cooking and having them readily available at your fingertips makes it so easy.

Yates Basil 'Gourmet Mix' is a culinary collection of attractive and fragrant basil varieties including Thai, lemon, cinnamon and purple basil and is perfect for salads, bruschetta and pasta.

Yates Dill is a versatile and aromatic herb that combines wonderfully with seafood.

Both basil and dill can be grown out in the garden or in pots and can be harvested for many weeks. Regular watering and feeding with Yates Thrive Vegie & Herb Liquid Plant Food will encourage an abundance of fragrant foliage.

Tip: Basil and dill can be attacked by

aphids, which are small sap sucking insects that deplete plants of important sugars and nutrients. Aphids are easy to control with regular sprays of Yates Nature's Way® Vegie & Herb Spray, which is based on natural vegetable oils and is certified for use in organic gardens.

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good bugs bad bugs flowers

Attracting

Bees To The Garden Bees play an essential role as pollinators in the garden and are a lovely sight to watch when they are foraging around your favourite flowering plants and vegetables.

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One way to encourage more bees into your garden is to plant lots of flowers!

These will help attract bees as well as other pollinators and beneficial insects. For example, mixing flowering plants among the vegies not only adds colour to the vegetable garden, it helps to ensure that there are enough bees around to do the job.

Of course the bees aren’t interested in helping the flowers; they’re simply chasing the pollen and nectar that the flowers produce.

Pollination is incidental, and honey bees while important, are not the only pollinators.

Many other insects play a part in pollination, as do environmental factors such as wind. Native bees, of which there are more than 1500 species in Australia, are also critically important.

Tomatoes, for example, are pollinated by what’s termed ‘buzz pollination’.

Buzz pollination is almost impossible for honey bees but can be carried out by certain native bees, like the blue-banded bee.

With so many different flower varieties out there, which ones are the best to attract the bees to your garden? Similar to us, bees have their favourite colours and preferences, and are very fond of yellow, blue and purple coloured flowers. Here are some of our favourite easy to grow bee attracting plants that can be grown both in the garden and in pots on balconies or decks.

BEE F R I E N D LY FLOWERS »» Forget me nots are blue flowering spring annuals that produce copious quantities of seed, ensuring that the plants re-appear year after year. »» Lavender in all its forms is a wonderful bee attractant and because of their long flowering period and range of varieties, it's possible to have lavender in flower for most of the year. Yates Lavender Dwarf Munstead can be grown from seed. »» Nasturtiums, too, grow readily from seed.

Both the bee-attracting flowers and the leaves are edible. »» Catmint, with its grey foliage and soft mauve blooms, makes a delightful edging for vegie beds. »» Salvia, especially the blue flowering varieties, attracts bees. »» Flowering Australian native plants like bottlebrush, banksia and grevillea are adored by bees and winter flowering varieties are particularly important as they provide a food source for bees during the cooler weather.

BEE F R I E N D LY HERBS

Some herbs are also very beefriendly. They have a natural affinity with vegetables and many are said to deter insect pests in the garden. Try these herbs: »» Basil is an annual that grows right through the warmer weather, producing sprays of white, pink or mauve flowers in late summer and autumn. Allowing a few flowers to develop will attract bees. »» Thyme is a perennial mini shrub that, like basil, flowers in late summer. »» Sage, the culinary form of the ornamental salvias, does a good job as a bee attractant. »» Rocket can be classed either as a herb or a salad vegetable. Allowing some rocket to flower and go to seed will encourage friendly insects to visit the garden. »» Borage is a great addition to the bee attracting garden. Not only does it provide an abundance of flowers, they are also edible. Some for the bees, some for yourself!

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good gardening bugs bad bugs

10 ways

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Self-watering Long term pots weeding

Mulching Simply applying a layer of mulch such as bark chips over your garden beds has the magical effect of ‘completing’ the look of the garden. It covers bare soil and visually links everything together, with the added benefits of reducing weed growth and helping keep the soil moist.

Install a watering system

If you love your garden but don’t feel you have enough time or energy to spend hours gardening (or just want more time to enjoy your little patch of greenery) then here are 10 easy gardening shortcuts.

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Self watering pots and hanging baskets have a water reservoir in the base that the plants can draw from. This means that you can increase the time between waterings but still have flourishing, well watered plants. Self watering pots are particularly handy if you’re away from your garden and can’t water for a few days.

Some weedkillers can help prevent weeds coming up in paths and hard surfaces for up to 12 months. So, just one application of a product like Yates Pathweeder can control weeds for up to a year. Now that’s smart weeding!

Regular and thorough watering can be time consuming, so installing a watering system with a timer means you can have a weekend sleep in and be watering your garden at the same time. The Pope Raised Garden Bed Irrigation Kit is ideal – it’s easy to use and can be used with automatic timers. The kit simply attaches to a garden hose and the adjustable flow trickler on spikes allows water emitted to be adjusted to meet individual plant needs.

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Easily fill Grow low maintenance a bed with flowers plants 5

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Including dwarf varieties of plants in your garden means you’ll spend less time chopping and pruning as they’ve been specially developed to remain dense and compact. Hedging and border plants like murraya, nandina, abelia, and viburnum and Australian natives like westringia, lily pily, bottlebrush, banksia and grevillea are all available in dwarf or compact varieties that require less trimming.

Grow long lived vegies

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If you have a bare spot in the garden an easy way to fill it with colour is by mixing some Yates Thrive Natural Roses & Flowers into the soil, scattering some flower seed over the area, gently raking it in and keeping the area moist. Yates ‘Festival of Flowers’ and Yates ‘Wild Flowers of the World’ are 2 very pretty seed blends that can quickly fill a garden bed with a rainbow of colour. Nurture, scatter, rake and water. It’s as simple as that!

Grow long lived vegies - if you love the thought of home grown vegies and herbs but are daunted by the need to replant each season then there are some fantastic edibles that will grow for up to 12 months or more. You can repeat harvest silverbeet, kale, spinach, spring onions, parsley and chives for many months, keeping your kitchen well stocked with healthy greens.

Succulents are the ultimate low maintenance plants, requiring minimal watering and feeding. They come in a multitude of different shades and interesting shapes and a bowl filled with succulents provides wonderful year round colour.

Requiring only intermittent watering and feeding (with a liquid fertiliser like Yates Thrive All Purpose Soluble Plant Food), they’re perfect for time poor gardeners but still help you look like you’re an absolute green thumb!

Succulents

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It’s surprising what a difference just one decorative pot filled with flowers makes. Whether you position the pot at your front door step to welcome you home or feature it on an outdoor table on a balcony or patio, it will bring a happy splash of colour into your world and create a ‘look at me’ focal point.

A well fed and watered pot of flowers can last for a season or longer, so you’ll only need to refresh it a few times a year to have a fabulous ongoing display.

In the warmer months think of planting pretty petunias, geranium and verbena together and in cooler weather combine gorgeous lobelia, pansies and salvia.

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Feeding plants is a very important part of keeping them healthy and productive. Organic plant foods like Yates Dynamic Lifter Soil Improver & Plant Fertiliser are a rich source of organic matter to promote soil health, but also feed plants like flowers and vegies for up to 6 – 8 weeks with slow release organic nutrients. So you can rest easy knowing that just one application of Yates Dynamic Lifter will feed your plants and nurture the soil for many weeks.

Feature pots

Organic feeding

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good succulents bugs bad bugs

creating a terrarium

Terrariums, open vessels or indoor containers, whatever you choose to call them, one thing is for sure – they’re amazing!

And the best thing about them is that anyone can make them.

You can create many different themed worlds that can be enjoyed from your kitchen to your couch, in fact, anywhere indoors that takes your fancy.

There are a couple of things that should be considered before getting out the jar and the plants:

THEME Think about the theme of your small world. Are you after a dry arid landscape, a beach paradise or a lush forest that red riding hood can lose herself in? The best inspiration for designing your terrarium comes from nature itself. Look at photos of beach scapes, rainforests or tropical paradises and think about how you can recreate these images using plant choices and other objects.

VESSEL Once you have your design set, then look at the jar. Do you want it closed or prefer it open? Many understorey ferns, indoor plants or forest-like plants perform well in closed jars and will require minimal care once properly established. These plants can also be grown in open jars as well, but will require slightly more attention to ensure that they get the water that they need.

Succulents, air plants and cacti perform at their best in open jars as they prefer drier conditions and need good air circulation. If you are a sucker for succulents, an open jar is the only way to go.

how to create a

terrarium: You will need: »»Glass jar »»Stones for the base of the terrarium »»Activated charcoal »»Paper or sphagnum moss »»Succulent and cacti potting mix »»Plants (we used Crassula ‘Gollum’, Sedum album and Aloe sladeniana)

D E C O R AT I O N S This is where you can let your creative side out. Think about what stones or features you want to include in your jar. Try out different designs and really let your imagination take hold.

Once you have sorted out the essentials it’s time to create!

(for groundcover)

»»Funnel »»Large decorative stones »»Small pot to scoop potting mix »»Spray bottle filled with water »»Paintbrush »»Paper towel »»Gloves

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Clean jar and ensure that it is completely dry before placing any objects inside.

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Add 1.5-2cm layer of stones to the base of the jar to assist with drainage.

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Cut a piece of paper into a circle or use a small amount of slightly moist sphagnum moss to line the top of the stones. This layer will help prevent the soil moving through to the stones.

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Place a small amount of activated charcoal on top. This will assist with the removal of odours and toxins in the potting mix over time.

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Using the small pot, scoop potting mix into the jar, covering the layer of paper well. Don’t be tempted to place too much soil into the jar at this stage. It is easier to add to the jar after the plants have been positioned.

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Create a small well in the centre of the soil. Remove plants from their pots, tickle the soil to remove excess dirt and cut away at the rootball, if necessary.

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Carefully place a plant into the prepared hole and backfill with potting mix.

Repeat for remaining plants, then water in lightly using the spray bottle.

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Level or create mounds in the soil. Clean the sides of the jar with the paintbrush and paper towel, removing any excess water or soil.

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Funnel the sand into the jar, covering all the soil. Clean any sand from the leaves of the plants and sides of the jar using the paintbrush and paper towel.

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Position large decorative stones on top of the sand. Give the jar a final clean and light water.

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Place terrarium in a sheltered indoor area that receives plenty of indirect light.

Water lightly each week using a spray bottle filled with water.

PLANTS With so many plants out there what ones do you choose? For basic designs it is best to look at ‘thrillers’ (the main star of the terrarium), ‘spillers’ (these soften the edges) and ‘fillers’ (great for filling the space).

»»Decorative sand/pebbles

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add value to your home

Curb Appeal Thinking of selling your home?

First impressions count, so it’s important that you put that extra effort into improving your curb appeal. The best thing is that you don’t need to break the bank or completely renovate to make the most of your space – just a few small jobs and the addition of a couple of plants will really lift the area and make your home look and feel just that little bit more inviting.

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SCRUB + SHINE The walls and windows of your home are one of the first things prospective buyers will see, so take the time to give them a good clean before open day. Dilute Selleys Original Sugar Soap with water, apply to surfaces and scrub with a clean brush or broom. Rinse thoroughly with water, ensuring to remove it well from any glass or steel surface.

LAWN + ORDER Mow your front lawns (including the nature strip), but keep the mower on a high setting to avoid scalping the lawn – you don’t want bare patches on sale day! Don’t forget to control weeds and also feed the lawn (hello lush green lawn!), which you can do in one go with Yates Weed ‘n’ Feed (or Yates BuffaloPRO Weed ‘n’ Feed for buffalo lawns). Lastly, trim the edges along garden beds, paths and driveways to give your lawn and garden a clean, polished finish.

IT’S A COVER UP Mulch is magic stuff. Applying a layer of mulch, such as eucalyptus mulch, around garden beds not only helps to reduce moisture loss from the soil, it also acts as a final unifying touch and brings the look of the garden together.

WEED ‘EM + REAP Weeds are unsightly and can give the impression that your home isn’t well maintained. For a quick fix, spray weeds in garden beds, pathways and driveways with Yates Zero Rapid 1-hr Action Weedkiller. Once they have died down, remove them and either cover up with mulch or plant with potted colour to fill the space.

TRIM + TIDY Sweep fallen leaves, cut back overgrown trees or shrubs and remove any dead plants – sounds like a no-brainer, right? We know, but it’s often surprising how many people forget this point. And while you’re at it, don’t forget to feed any flowering plants to ensure they put on a show come sale day! Use Yates Thrive Roses & Flowers Liquid Plant Food weekly to encourage big beautiful blooms.

LIGHTING It’s good to note that a great deal of viewings take place in the afternoons and evenings, therefore it’s worth investing in garden lighting so potential buyers can get a good impression. Think solar lights along a pathway or a spotlight to help highlight feature trees or focal points.

MAKE A STATEMENT Before buyers step into your home, give them one last WOW factor by including a statement pot plant near the main entrance. Try two pots with clipped topiary on either side of the door or a single pot with filled with a striking foliage plant, like yucca or dracaena.

summer summer flowers flowers

SIGHTS & SCENTS the

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Spring is when gardens can come to life, producing masses of new foliage and beautiful flowers. But don’t just leave it there! Continue the flower show well into summer by sowing seeds or planting bulbs of flowers that will bloom beautifully during the hottest months.

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summer flowering bulbs include hippeastrum, gladioli, spider lilies and liliums. Hippeastrums have large vibrant trumpet shaped flowers, gladioli make fabulous cut flowers up to 1.5 m long, spider lilies have unusually shaped white fragrant flowers and there are lots of different summer flowering liliums that have brightly coloured flowers, some of which are sweetly scented.

summer flowers

that can be grown from seed include California poppy, cosmos, zinna and nasturtium. California poppies are sun lovers that produce an abundance of vivid flowers in shades of red, orange, yellow and white. Yates Cosmos 'Sensation' has delicate ferny foliage and grows up to 90 cm tall and is covered in rose, crimson and white bee attracting flowers. Yates Zinnia 'Gold Medal' gives a dazzling spectacle of scarlet, yellow, orange and pink flowers on large 1.2 m tall plants, making it a perfect flower for growing at the back of a garden border. Yates Nasturtium 'Jewel Mixed' has trailing foliage with sweetly scented orange, yellow and salmon flowers and looks fantastic cascading out of a hanging basket or window box.

summer flowering shrubs,like big and beautiful hydrangeas, with their supersized flower heads, create a spectacular display during the warmer months. The flowers themselves are very tiny, it's the coloured 'bracts' that surround the flowers that are the show stoppers. Hydrangeas come in a wonderful range of colours, including blues, pinks, mauves, lime green and white, and many new varieties are delightfully

PLANTING PREP • Before planting bulbs or sowing seeds, improve the soil in the garden bed by mixing in

Yates Dynamic Lifter Soil Improver & Plant Fertiliser.

• It's a rich source of organic matter which helps improve soil nutrient and water holding capacity, attracts earthworms and beneficial microorganisms and also provides gentle slow release organic nutrients to the plants as they establish.

• When growing flowers in containers, use a quality potting mix like Yates Premium Potting Mix and a pot with good drainage holes.

• Once flower seedlings or bulbs are around 10 cm tall, start feeding weekly with a complete plant food like Yates Thrive Roses & Flowers Liquid Plant Food , which has been boosted with additional flower promoting potassium to encourage healthy plants and lots of gorgeous summer flowers.

• Spray sap-suckers like scale, aphids and mealy bugs with Yates Nature's Way Citrus & Ornamental Spray, which is based on natural pyrethrin and vegetable oil and is certified for use in organic gardening.

multi coloured.

another summer flowering favourite is gardenias, which can be covered head to toe in intensely fragrant white flowers from late spring until autumn. They're hardy shrubs, but do best when grown in a moist, well drained location with morning sun. Planting gardenias near a bedroom window and allowing their beautiful heady scent to waft indoors at night is heavenly. Gardenias can also be grown in a pot, so are a perfect choice for a courtyard, balcony or patio.

t r e p x • E • tip

Remove spent flowers regularly (or cut fresh flowers for a vase) as this will help to keep the plants looking tidy and help encourage a longer flowering period.

good bugs bad bugs vegetables & herbs

Companion Planting Most gardeners have heard of the benefits of companion planting, but many are confused about just what companion planting means and how its principles can be applied in the garden.

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Companion planting involves grouping

garden plants together so that they help each other to grow better. They can do this in many different ways, such as:

Plants that attract beneficial insects Planting a mixture of flowers and herbs among vegies and fruit trees will encourage a healthy diversity of living creatures to move into the garden. Insectattracting plants that grow readily from seed include herbs like thyme, sage, coriander, chives and mint, and flowers such as cosmos, calendula, lavender, echinacea and marigold.

New in the Yates seed range is Yates Bee Pasture Pollen & Nectar Mix, which contains a colourful blend of flowers, like phacelia, zinnia and poppies, to attract and provide food for bees and other pollinating insects.

Masking and decoy plants Masking plants emit an odour that disguises the smell of desirable plants and confuses the insect pests that might otherwise attack them. A good example is planting chives, onions or garlic near roses to deter thrips, aphids and other pests.

Closely related to the masking plants are the ‘decoy’ plants that attract pests to themselves and away from their neighbours. Nasturtiums are one of the best known decoy plants. Nasturtiums act like magnets, pulling pests away from other plants. Plants like this are sometimes called ‘sacrificial’ or ‘martyr’ plants because they’re prepared to suffer in order to protect their companions.

Choosing companion plants Working out which plants grow well together is often a matter of trial and error, however many Yates seed packets include recommendations for companion planting. Here are some favourites: pumpkin loves corn, beans and radish; cabbages love beans, celery and onions; beetroot loves broccoli, lettuce and onions.

Before sowing, always check out the ‘Hint’ section on the back of Yates vegetable and herb seed packets.

Nurturing plants

Other plants improve conditions for their neighbours. The best-known of these are the peas, beans and other members of the legume family that have the ability to capture nitrogen from the atmosphere. Plants growing in close proximity to peas and beans benefit from the nitrogen the legumes have added to the soil.

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spring spring lawn lawn care care

g n i r Sp into the

LAWN

Does your lawn look like it’s in need of a little pick-me-up?

It may not be from a lack of feeding and watering, but rather, a combination of lawn thatch build-up and compaction. This can stop water, fertiliser and even air from reaching your lawn roots, so no matter how much you feed and water it, the lawn continues to suffer in silence. Don’t fret! There are ways to fix this and get your lawn looking lush again.

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remove the thatch What is it, you ask? Thatch is the build-up of living and dead runners on top of the soil. Throughout the life of your lawn, new runners grow and the old runners die off underneath this new growth. After a while, this can build up to form a thick layer. While a small amount can be beneficial to the lawn (it helps reduce general wear and tear), when it becomes a thick spongy layer, it needs to be removed.

You can use a rake, but in the case where it’s too thick, you will need to scarify or verti-mow the lawn.

To do this, mow the lawn and lower the mower on each subsequent cut across the entire area, until you have removed all signs of green growth and the entire area is brown. You may need to lower the mower and cut your lawn 3-5 times in one session – don’t be tempted to lower your lawn too much on the first cut as this will clog the mower and be difficult to cut. Once finished, feed well with Yates Dynamic Lifter Organic Lawn Food.

aerate the soil Heavy traffic areas – like where your kids frequently play or the track from the laundry to the line – frequently become compacted, which prevents water and nutrient uptake.

For small areas, use a garden fork to help aerate the soil. Simply dig the fork in to at least 10cm and move it back and forth to create large holes. Do this every 10-15cm. For heavily compacted soils, coring needs to be undertaken. This can be done by a hiring a coring machine, which removes plugs of soil from the ground. While it can look a little unsightly, after a couple of mows, your lawn will thank you for it!

The best time to do this is from October – December on warm season grasses (couch, buffalo, kikuyu) and September – October on cool season grasses (tall fescue, perennial rye).

ONCE YOUR LAWN IS LOOKING FRESH, NOW IT’S TIME TO TAKE CARE OF IT mow high not low Mowing will keep your lawn healthy and thick. As a guide, it should be mowed once a week during summer and roughly every 3-4 weeks in the cooler months. Look for a mulching mower, because it helps recycle grass clippings back onto the lawn, providing valuable nutrients for sustained growth. And if you find that you have enough mulch, catch it and add it to your compost heap.

Take care not to mow it too low – you don’t want to scalp it! It’s best to mow high and mow often to help maintain a thick, green lawn.

the need for feed A good feed will work wonders for your lawn. Apply Yates Dynamic Lifter Organic Lawn Food (as per directions) and water in well. Keep on top of broadleaf weeds like clover, thistles and dandelions by applying Yates Double Action Weed'n'Feed (or Yates BuffaloPRO Weed'n'Feed if you have a buffalo lawn). You'll have the best lawn in the street.

Your neighbours will be green with envy!

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grow grow your your own own

PLANTER BOX

plate o t

There’s nothing quite like eating produce you’ve grown yourself.

It always tastes better and there’s a certain satisfaction that comes from nurturing a seedling to a full-grown plant. Plus, by taking your food from planter box to plate, you’re also doing your bit for the environment with zero food miles and packaging. You don’t need a lot of room either – just a simple planter in your backyard, courtyard or even on your windowsill will do the trick.

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Choose fruits, vegies and herbs that are compact or dwarf varieties. The naturally smaller plants are better suited to growing in a container. Go for basil, parsley and strawberries as well as leafy greens like lettuce, silverbeet and spinach.

If your planter box is in a sunny spot choose fruit, vegies and herbs that perform best with full sun.

These include rosemary, thyme, sage and fruiting vegies such as tomatoes, capsicum and chillies.

Potted plants dry out much faster than plants growing out in the garden, so it’s important to keep an eye on your soil moisture (it’s easy to test moisture levels with your finger.)

If you have a partly shaded spot, leafy vegies and herbs like silverbeet, coriander, rocket, parsley, basil and lettuce will thrive.

In the cooler months you can also plant Asian greens, spinach and kale to make quick, delicious and healthy salads.

A self-watering planter box or trough is an easy solution if you can’t water every day. They have a water reservoir at the base that can help keep the box watered over several days.

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F E E D YO U R PLANTS

S T AY O N T O P OF IT

WAT C H O U T F O R INSECT PESTS

It’s important to fill your planter box with a quality potting mix, like Yates Premium Potting Mix, to give your plants the best start in life. Once the plants have settled in remember to feed them weekly with a suitable liquid fertiliser, like Yates Thrive Vegie & Herb or Yates Thrive Citrus Liquid Plant Food.

Take full advantage of your handiwork and remember to pick your fruit, vegies and herbs regularly. This has multiple benefits – it helps keep the plants compact and tidy and promotes more fresh and tender new growth or more fruit.

Keep an eye out for insect pests like aphids and caterpillars. A few can be picked off (or squashed!), but a larger infestation can be controlled with Yates Nature’s Way Citrus & Ornamental Spray, which is approved for use in organic gardens.

t c e f r e p r Fo produce...

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our easy guide TO CARING FOR

indoor plants

Do you consider yourself a plant lover, but also find that you’re a serial plant killer? Quite the contradiction, but we can help you fix that – without having to resort to faux foliage (ugh!). Most plants are quite happy indoors, provided you can give them the right conditions (although, there are a few that will tolerate dimly lit rooms and barely any water – here’s looking at you pothos and sansevieria).

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Light As a general rule of thumb, position plants in a well-lit spot, out of direct sunlight, like behind a window with a sheer curtain. Constant direct light, especially from the hot afternoon sun will cause your plants to wilt and suffer. In saying that, each plant will have different light requirement, with a few being able to tolerate low-light rooms, so check the plant label for specifications.

Air Indoor environments can be quite drying for plants, even more so when you have the heater on during winter or air conditioning running during summer. For plants that originate in humid climates, like ferns, it’s ideal to spritz their leaves regularly with water or consider placing them in the bathroom to help maintain constant humidity.

Potting mix Depending on the size of the plant you purchase, you may not need to repot straight away. After a couple of months or when the plant begins to outgrow its container, then you’ll need to repot. Ensure you use a good quality potting mix, like Yates Premium Potting Mix, which is suitable for growing most plants. However, if you have succulents, look for one specially formulated for cacti and succulents – the mix is much more free draining.

Water Plants can often show the same symptoms for over- or underwatering (limp, yellowing leaves), so you can’t always rely on them to tell you. However, you don’t need any fancy gadgets to tell you when you need to water – simply insert your index finger to the second knuckle into the potting mix. If it’s dry, water, but if it’s moist, you can leave watering for a few days. As a general rule, water once every week (until water runs out of the drainage holes), but extend this to 7-10 days during the cooler months.

Feed During the warmer months, when plants are actively growing, feed regularly with Yates Thrive Houseplant Liquid Plant Food. This no-odour product is fantastic for providing plants with the right amount of nutrients to support healthy growth. It will also help green up any lack lustre looking leaves. For succulents, they only require intermittent feeding with Yates Thrive All Purpose Liquid Plant Food.

Pests Indoor plants are not usually perturbed by pests. But, occasionally, you may find sap-sucking insects, like mealy bug, thrips or mites on the foliage. The good news is that you can control them by thoroughly spraying with Yates Nature’s Way Vegie & Herb Spray.

Always read the label prior to application.

Handy hint!

Spray with Yates Leaf Shine to add a glossy finish to the surface of hard-leaved plants.

tropical tropical plants plants

tropic s ' t i e lik hot Love the idea of a year-round tropical getaway?

Uh, yes please! But you don’t need to hop on a plane (good news if you hate flying!), just step into your backyard and plant one. By choosing the right plants, working with layers and playing with colour and contrast, it’s easy to bring a taste of the tropics into your yard. And you don’t even need to live in a tropical climate either to get this look. Plan and plant now and soon you’ll be floating away in your outdoor oasis.

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Tall story

Design To achieve the dense, lush look of tropical gardens, the trick is to plant in layers. Taller plants towards the back, medium sized plants in the centre and low-growing ground covers on the floor. Having this in mind will help you choose the right plants at the nursery. While this is key, you will also need to consider colour, form and the placement of plants to have the right impact.

Centre stage

Palms, bamboo and tree ferns are ideal candidates for height and to help frame your garden. Although palms grow most abundantly in the tropics, there are a few that will cope with cooler conditions. Look for the native Australian cabbage palm, golden cane palm or the New Zealand nikau palm.

More options: »» Slender weavers bamboo

It’s hard to pass up cordylines or cannas for mid-storey accent foliage. These upright growers come in an extended range of varieties, so there’s sure to be one to suit every garden. Look for the trendy red-pink cordyline and team it against the fiery hues of cannas or even hibiscus flowers. Throw in elephant’s ears or ornamental gingers for interesting shapes and textures.

»» Giant bird of paradise »» Frangipani »» Kentia palm

More options: »» Lady palm »» Strelitzia »» Yucca »» Ixora ‘Prince of Orange’

Get down low Clumping, strappy-leaved foliage plants like calathea, lomandra, dianella, lirope and libertia are wellbehaved ground covers that suit all areas. Contrast them with the flamboyant blooms of petunias, calibrachoas and impatiens for a vivid display. Bromeliads can feature too, and they don’t even have to be planted – attach them to tree trunks or use them as a focal point in pots.

Tip! Group plants in odd numbers for a cohesive and complete look.

More options: »» Clivia »» Coleus »» Scaevola »» Mini mondo grass

ultimate care plan »» Improve soil and provide gentle feed with Yates Dynamic Lifter Soil Improver & Plant Fertiliser. »» Mulch with organic mulch like sugar cane or pine bark around the plants to help conserve moisture.

»» Control common pests such as mealy bug and scale with Yates Nature’s Way Citrus & G R O W I N G W I T H Y O U - YA T E S Ornamental Spray

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S TA R T I N G A

Spring

vegie patch

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Grow your own vegies and herbs at home, the natural way.

S T E P 1 : P R E PA R E Prepare your garden bed by controlling unwanted weeds with Yates® Nature’s Way® Organic Weed Spray.

Before you plant, you need to prepare your garden by removing unwanted weeds. Weeds will compete with your new plants for valuable nutrients and water. One of the easiest and quickest ways to control weeds in garden beds is to spray with Yates® Nature’s Way® Organic Weed Spray. This spray is certified for use in organic gardening and is based on two natural ingredients – clove oil and acetic acid – which work together quickly to dehydrate and kill weeds.

Simply spray for visible results within 1 hour on most weeds.

STEP 2: PLANT Use the Yates seed finder to know what you can plant now.

To ensure your new vegies & herb seedlings thrive and produce, prepping the soil is an absolute must. For a bumper crop of vegies, enrich the soil before planting by adding Yates® Dynamic Lifter® Soil Improver & Plant Fertiliser. It’s packed with organic matter which encourages earthworms and beneficial soil micro-organisms. It also contains wonderful slow release nutrients from manure, fish meal, blood & bone and seaweed which gently feeds your plants as it grows. Simply dig the pellets in.

If your soil is difficult to work with or perhaps you don’t have any soil to plant up, then consider using a raised garden bed, like the Organic Garden Co. Square Raised Garden Bed. It measures 90cmx90cmx41cm and is perfect for any sized garden.

Fill with bagged garden soil and mix in Yates® Dynamic Lifter® Soil Improver & Plant Fertiliser before planting.

STEP 3: FEED Feed your new plants with Yates® Thrive® Natural Vegie & Herb Liquid Plant Food To encourage lots of leafy vegies & herbs, feed your plants regularly with Yates® Thrive® Natural Vegie & Herb Liquid Plant Food. It is specially formulated with fish blood & bone and seaweed which are natural plant growth promoters PLUS it contains additional fast acting nutrients to give your plants a boost. Yates Thrive Natural Vegie & Herb Liquid Plant Food is high in nitrogen for healthy green leaf growth. Simply add two capfuls to your nine litre watering and you can feed and water at the same time.

STEP 4: PROTECT Protect your garden from nasty pests with Yates® Nature’s Way® Vegie & Herb Spray.

Your new vegie & herb garden will be a feast for unwanted pests including aphids. Aphids are small green, brown or black coloured insects that hide under foliage, and deplete your new plants by sucking the sap from leaves and stems.

Aphids can be controlled by spraying with Yates® Nature’s Way® Vegie and Herb Spray. Certified for use in organic gardening, it's a natural soap based spray that smothers and suffocates aphids on contact. Best of all it has no withholding period so you can simply wash and eat your produce after spraying. Spray every five to seven days and be sure to spray underneath leaves as this is where aphids can hide.

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www.yates.com.au

Often work in groups to devour plants Can be found on leaves, stems and flowers Visible holes, marks on leaves or droppings (excretions)

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