November gardening jobs

Summer’s just around the corner! Get your garden ready for warm-weather entertaining with these essential tasks.

Use heat-loving plants
Do you live in a hot climate? Plants can suffer in summer, so it’s wise to use plants able to handle the heat – such as those with hard, thin leaves or leaves protected by fine hairs. Many Mediterranean plants grow well in areas with dry summers, including herbs such as rosemary, and thyme, and shrubs like lavender and rock rose (Cistus spp. below), as well as capers and pomegranates. Native gardeners could make an entire garden out of Western Australian plants, including the large and diverse range of emu bushes (Eremophila spp.).

Phase out fungi
As warmth and humidity increase, so does the activity of the fungi that cause diseases such as rust, powdery mildew and black spot. However, there are a few strategies you can use to help protect your plants:

Space plants to allow good airflow.
Water in the morning, rather than the evening, so foliage dries during the day. Feed plants with a fertiliser that has a good potassium content (check the label), such as a rose food, as potassium improves disease resistance.
Apply a seaweed tonic every couple of weeks to build plant resilience.
Pick off, bag and bin affected foliage.

Identify and protect the native fungus-eating ladybird (Illeis galbula), which particularly enjoys grazing on patches of powdery mildew.

Late spring pruning
It’s time to get your secateurs, pruning saw and hedging shears out of the shed to give the garden a late spring tidy up. One important job is to prune climbing roses and heritage varieties that only bloom this season, as soon as they have finished flowering. Give well-established spring-blooming shrubs such as Spiraea spp., Deutzia spp. and Philadelphus spp. an overall trim before removing some of the old shoots completely at the base. This will encourage vigorous new shoots. Tidy jasmine, wisteria, wonga-wonga vine (Pandorea pandorana) and any other climbers that had a winter/spring flush of blooms. Remove any dead branches or frost-damaged sections. Once you’ve finished pruning, fertilise everything, water well and mulch.

Pamper lawns for summer
Some preparation now will have the lawn in good shape to cope with the heat:

Spike the lawn with a garden fork, mechanical aerator (these can be hired) or a pair of those funky lawn aerator sandals.
Spread a liquid or granular soil wetter to encourage water to penetrate the surface and reach the grass roots.
Raise the mower height to allow grass to grow a little higher. This strengthens the grass and helps shade its roots. Avoid cutting off more than one third of the grass blade each time you mow.
Fertilise the lawn with a slow-release, preferably organic-based, lawn food.
Dig out flatweed, or cat’s ear, or burn it out with well-aimed sprinklings of sulfate of ammonia.
Watch for new dead patches in the lawn. They may indicate insect attack. If in doubt, seek expert advice. Fill bare areas of lawn by sowing grass seed or patching with grass runners.

In the edible garden

Liquid feed your vegies
As spring warms, vegies are raring to grow, and a regular feed of liquid nutrients will help them power ahead with strong, healthy growth. These fast-growing crops love a fortnightly boost to maintain their energy. Start by watering the soil so the nutrients soak in evenly, then apply a diluted liquid fertiliser blend of fish emulsion and seaweed extract. Do this every two weeks and you’ll notice healthier leaves, stronger stems and tastier harvests. It’s a simple routine that will make a huge difference in the spring vegie patch, especially if your plants have struggled to perform in the past.

Feed, water and train raspberries
Raspberries are such a treat, and a little TLC ensures bumper returns. Feed now with organic fertiliser and compost, then water well. Keep the soil consistently moist, especially as berries form. Mulch to help trap soil moisture. Train the canes on a trellis to keep tidy. For summer varieties, which fruit on two-year-old canes, tie new canes together as they appear and arrange to one side, ready for next year’s fruiting. With autumn-bearing varieties, which fruit on the first year’s growth, trim 10cm off the top of this season’s canes when they reach 60cm tall to encourage branching and better fruiting.