Along with the big leaf gathering project mentioned in our previous newsletter, seed collecting has been an important annual off-season ritual at Petal Faire for many years.

The most obvious advantage of propagating plants from saved seeds is of course the cost saving. However, let’s not forget the satisfaction of knowing that your new plants are the ‘offspring’ of parent plants in your garden or the gardens of friends and neighbours – or acquaintances who become friends in the process. There is also the benefit of knowing that your seeds have not been treated in any way. The time-honoured tradition of seed saving is the reason for the wide variety of heirloom flowers and vegetables we have today.

While this housekeeping task is important to us, it is not necessarily particularly formal or organised! I must confess that our seed collections are often little more than an eclectic assortment of unmarked envelopes, plastic bags, canisters, and bottles in various drawers and boxes scattered around the house and potting shed.

Airtight containers like recycled medicine or film canisters, glass bottles or small plastic food storage containers are usually recommended for seed storage, although I prefer paper envelopes myself. Whatever you use, though, make sure the seeds are absolutely dry before storing, and keep them in a cool, dark, dry place. And don’t neglect the tedious task of labelling containers with the plant’s name, the harvesting date, and best sowing time! You might also want to record where the seeds came from if they have special origins. Haphazard or unclear labelling makes sowing rather a hit-or-miss affair. You may be entirely unsuccessful because you sow at the wrong time of year, or at the very least, you may have no idea what is going to come up - with some serendipitous finds if you’re lucky.

IN THE GARDEN

As this newsletter goes out, we find ourselves on the happier side of the winter solstice and can start reminding ourselves of the longer, warmer days ahead in a few months’ time. In the meantime, the nursery is under reams of frost cover.

All the secateurs have been cleaned and sharpened (ideally, they should be cleaned immediately after use, but of course that never happens), and we are starting to prune. No doubt we will have to get the tree feller in; there are a few dodgy branches in some of the trees. All this in preparation for the new growing season which starts around mid-July. We have a busy month ahead!

A lovely Senecio doing well in the winter cold

Seeds of the Psychotria capensis

Dombeya burgessiae

Manettia luteorubra

 

IN THE NURSERY

Click here to view all the plants in this newsletter on one website page.

Indigenous plants

With the delightful common name of yellow rabbit’s ears, Ruttya fruticosa – yellow is a beautiful waterwise scrambling shrub with glossy dark green foliage and two-lipped black-centred yellow flowers that attract bees, butterflies and birds from winter into summer. Evergreen and hardy, it grows on average 2,5m high. Plant in full sun.

The slow growing evergreen perennial Talbotia elegans hails from the Drakensberg and is very hardy. It has creeping fibrous rosette forming leaves and star-shaped coconut scented white flowers in summer, and makes a good container plant. It wants moist, shady conditions.

Tarchonanthus camphoratus is an interesting tough evergreen tree/shrub with narrow, finely toothed leaves that are grey-green above and pale grey and felted underneath, and scented creamy-white, thistle-like flowers at the ends of the branches. It can grow up to 900cm high and likes full sun. Flowering time is from autumn to summer.

The gorgeous deep pink flower spathes of Zantedeschia – Marshmallow are among the spring delights that gardeners and bees alike can look forward to. This evergreen, very hardy perennial has ovate dark green fleshy leaves and is approximately 1m high. It can take sun or semi-shade, but make sure the soil is kept moist.

Exotic plants

Iochroma cyaneum is a fast growing about 3m high evergreen shrub with lax branches, large leaves, and narrow dark purple trumpet-shaped flared flowers in summer and autumn. A hardy plant which originates from South America, it wants full sun.

The fragrant olive, Osmanthus fragrans, is a rare upright evergreen shrub with lance-shaped leathery leaves and clusters of very small scented white flowers from autumn to spring. Also growing about 3m high, it is very hardy and happiest in sun to semi-shade. We have plants in 10L bags.

Strobilanthes hamiltoniana (the Chinese rain bell) is a fast growing evergreen semi-hardy perennial with waxy serrated veined leaves and sprays of tubular mauve flowers from winter to spring. The plants are now in bud.

An upright shrub with oblong shiny dark green leaves, Thunbergia erecta - Fairy moon has white-edged pale blue flowers from summer to autumn. This is a hardy deciduous plant that grows about 1,4m high and wants semi-shade.

SNIPETS

The Aloe Farm’s annual Aloe Festival continues to be one of the highlights of the gardening year. It started on 21 June but runs until 6 July so you still have time to catch these magnificent plants in all their winter glory and maybe acquire a few for your own garden. Entrance is free.

 

FUN FACT

According to University of California Agriculture & Natural Resources, many root vegetables and brassicas have a sweeter taste after exposure to frost.

 

Happy gardening!

Leoné

082 482 0257