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166 Wilson Road, Middle Swan
Perth, Western Australia
08 9250 4575
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OPEN 6 DAYS
Monday - Saturday 8.30am - 4.00pm
Closed Sundays
HAPPY NEW YEAR & welcome to our first newsletter of 2019..JPG)
Remember our 2019 Moon Planting Calendars are in store - grab one for $11 (two for $20) while they last! Come on in & see us soon. Here's a photo of mine on my desk at home - not too sure when I'll get a chance to put it on the door, at this rate! (And for those of you who remember Missy; the [former] shop cat? Here's proof she's enjoying her retirement at home.)
Check your soil moisture. From time to time, actually POKE YOUR FINGERS into the soil in various spots around your garden to check how much moisture it is retaining. Plants will vary in their water requirements depending on growth cycles and weather - so you do need to monitor them regularly. If you have water repellent soil, use a soil wetting agent (we recommend Eco-Wet) or Sand Remedy and/or Charlie Charcoal & Cassies Clay to help increase the water holding potential of your garden. Increase watering (by hand) for sensitive plants that are struggling. Keeping a check on the soil moisture means you don't over water either - which is wasteful, but also harmful to your plants. 
Dunk your pots! If pots are dried out - soak them in a weak seaweed solution to perk them up and re-wet the soil. Leave them in the water until air bubbles stop rising from the soil - which means that the soil is completely saturated. This is a great time of year to treat your indoor plants to some TLC too. Don't leave them outside on hot days if they're not used to it; but on a milder day or in the cooler part of the day, take them outside, give them a hose down and/or soak and a light feed. Some indoor plants may benefit from misting with water in hot weather. Make sure your indoor plants aren't copping reflected heat from being too close to windows, or too much of a draft from airconditioning vents.
Feed your summer vegies. A light liquid feed every few weeks will keep your crops coming. Rotate your fertilisers (eg. fish, seaweed, worm whizz) so that plants can enjoy a variety of nutrients over time. We love our .JPG)
Check out our 
It's baaaack! Our Tomato competition for 2019. Bring in your tomatoes by 1.30 pm, Sunday 3rd February to enter.
Each Spring, we encourage you to mulch your garden. As this lovely organic material breaks down it adds goodness to the soil; but it can also support a huge population of slaters. These critters primarily eat decaying matter; however they can also ringbark plants, and kill seedlings. There is some debate whether they're eating plant material, or minute fungi on the plant's surface - but the end result is the same, as healthy plant tissue is harmed regardless. The best way to reduce their numbers is to use traps, and to remove/clean them out regularly to make a good dent in the population. Beer traps & cream/yoghurt traps work well. Recycle a plastic container to bury into the soil (with an opening at soil level) so insects attracted by the liquid will fall in and drown. Upturned citrus halves after juicing, or pile of potato peelings also work - collect them in the morning and dispose of them. Use a wet, rolled up newspaper with the edges outwards. The slaters will crawl between the sheets of paper and the whole roll can be removed. Slaters like protection, and will crawl under cardboard, newspaper, upturned pots etc. in the daytime, so use this to your advantage. If you have chickens, ducks or quail they will enjoy scoffing them in large numbers. .JPG)
Whether you get little leaf hoppers, or HUGE flying locusts attacking your crop - they can be a nuisance in the summer garden. They are chewers, ripping holes in plant leaves and spreading disease. This little guy was looking all innocent on a tomato plant; but I have caught them chewing my strawberry leaves recently. Insect netting will protect vulnerable plants. 
Based on the number of enquiries we receive; ants are a common problem in homes and gardens around Perth. While they don't usually cause damage to plants; they DO farm aphids (as these ones are doing in my garden), scale and mealy bug which damage plants, and ants can tunnel in pots and paving causing problems. Barriers of horticultural glue or vaseline will help; if you can put a ring around tree trunks, raised garden beds - etc. They often proliferate in dryer soil, so by increasing the moisture holding capacity you will encourage them to go elsewhere. Baits tend to be successful with ants, because they will take the poison to their nest, where it can have a dramatic effect on numbers. The trick is to determine what species of ant you have - because different types prefer different baits (some go for sweet, some go for savoury!). 
A wide range of beetle-type insects are crop pests. Most are sap suckers, and weaken plant health and can spread diseases. Again - go out in the morning and try to hand pick or knock off the bugs into a bucket of soapy water. Watch out for some that can squirt irritating and/or foul smelling fluid as a defence mechanism. Wear gloves and/or glasses! Hand held vacuuming will also work for some plants, and exclusion netting is also handy. If they're getting into your soft fruit, consider fruit fly bags to protect individual fruit or clusters/branches. A range of predatory wasps, lacewings, hoverflies, birds & spiders can help - so avoid sprays unless you really need to use them. Neem oil/Eco-Oil will work as a contact spray on the bugs, and it may be worth a garlic/chilli spray as a general deterrent, applied every couple of days. Keeping weeds out of the area will help remove hiding & breeding spots, and pick up any fallen and overripe fruit - the sweet scent is thought to attract them. Make sure you correctly ID the "pest" - targeted treatments are more effective and may have less impact on other insects.
These are sap sucking pests that are invisible without magnification. They live in colonies - some produce a fine webbing you can see on the leaf underside. Because the mites are hard to see, sometimes the symptoms are thought to indicate a plant disease. Mites have a short life cycle, and tend to breed up quickly in optimal weather conditions (dry and hot), but can be wiped out naturally once those conditions change. Again, mites have many natural predators, so hopefully the'll do the job for you. As a last resort, wettable sulphur or neem oil can help; but you must make sure you're treating the underside of leaves or where the mites are actually present. Pest oil, natural soap sprays, vinegar sprays & DE may also be helpful; and always remove badly affected plant material & dispose of in the bin. Unless composting at high temperatures, mites can survive and you can re-infect your garden. 
Another beetle-type insect, these critters are active at night and chew holes in plant leaves, usually around the leaf edge; or some can damage roots & root crops underground. They can also ring bark seedlings (with the damage mostly blamed on slaters), Larvae are caterpillar like, and the adults are small (7mm - 12mm long), narrow 'beetles' that have a distinctive long proboscis. Adults of some varieties are flightless; a few can fly. During the day they are usually under mulch or just under the surface of the soil, and at night they come out to feed on your plants. There are a wide range of weevils, and a wide range of their preferred host plants! If you suspect a weevil problem, the only way to be sure is to go out at night with a torch and observe. If they're present, knock them off into a bucket of soapy water, or hand pick them off. Crop rotation will help, and you can try traps. Place bits of hessian around the garden and you may well find adults will use it as a hideout. Shake out the hessian to your chooks (if you have them). It may be worth trying a chilli & garlic spray as a deterrent; and as a last resort try neem oil. (Photo courtesy of the Ag Dept of WA).JPG)
The manufacturers of Eco-neem claim it is safe for bees (unless sprayed directly on them). Neem oil comes from the Neem tree - a relative of the Cape Lilac Tree; and it has been used in India for centuries for a multitude of medicinal treatments (quite fascinating if you look it up). Native to the Indian subcontinent, it grows so well in Australia that it is on the weed list. It works on insects quite strangely; scientists are somewhat unsure of how it works differently on different species. For some; it effects their appetite and they stop feeding. For others, it stops their eggs from hatching. For others still, it affects how the insect moults and therefore the insect can't complete it's life cycle. .JPG)
Soap sprays work as a direct contact spray onto the insect - they are not effective once they have dried, so repeat treatments are usually necessary. The fatty acids in the soap react with the insect's outer shell; causing their internal cells to collapse. If you're making your own soap spray, use pure soap rather than most commercial soaps or dishwashing liquid. While these may still be effective on the pests, there is much more likelihood of damage to your plants. The potassium component is not in all soap products, and appears to be the effective ingredient. .JPG)
In its original form, this is a product sourced from a member of the Chrysanthemum family; however these days the active ingredients are synthetically manufactured. Often, they include piperonyl butoxide - a compound added to enhance the active ingredient, and as a stabiliser (to extend the product life). While it's claimed this is safe for mammals - it has meant a number of pyrethrum products are unable to be Certified Organic. Pyrethrum without additives has a very short active life - less than a day. Pyrethrum is a broad spectrum insecticide and is very toxic to bees. It is a contact spray so needs to be applied directly to the insects. It affects their nervous system leading to rapid death.
Time to improve your soil! Whether you're having issues with wettability, or whether you're contemplating improving your soil for Autumn planting once the weather cools down - we've got a great package deal for our VIP members.
Charlie Charcoal & Cassies Clay (and our Premium Compost) are all Certified Organic. Charlie & Cassies are both Smart Watermark Approved/Waterwise Endorsed - so you know you're going to be helping your garden and saving water.
Congratulations to Lesley G. from Jurien Bay who shared this photo on our FB page recently, of a garden bed exploding with tomatoes, watermelon & chillies.
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