Shahnee Stockigt, Author at Life is a Garden

Sensational Celosia

Celosia, also known as cockscomb is invaluable as a container filler and mixed summer border bedding plant. The flowers show in vibrant shades of orange, yellow, bronze, red, scarlet, pink and magenta, so make for wonderful ‘hot-spots’ of intense, textured colour in the garden.

It can take lots of direct sunlight, and requires only minimal care and watering once established. The plant is hardy and wind-resistant, so is particularly useful in gardens which are exposed to strong winds, or are located in coastal areas.

Celosia can be grown with success in all regions of the country. It will do particularly well in well-drained soil enriched with compost, and with an occasional sprinkling of complete, water-soluble fertiliser.

A1 Poster – Perfect for the Patio: Heavenly Hibiscus

A1 poster detailing the “Perfect for the Patio” plant for February – Heavenly Hibiscus

Preview

Life is like a box of succulents

It is valentine’s day this month, the perfect day to show someone you love that you care about them. There is nothing more special than a gift from the heart, that you made with your own two hands! Today’s activity, our succulent box, is like a tray of chocolates, only so much better because it’s original, and it will last! This is a great activity for tweens wanting to give their parents, teachers or even a special someone a lovely original Valentine’s gift. If you have all the materials you can get started straight away.

All you need to know about succulents

Succulents are fleshy plants that can store a lot of water in their leaves and stems to help them in drought conditions. These plants are often very striking and unusual in their appearance making them a great choice as a gift for a loved one because they are so beautiful to look at, and they are hardy so they will survive being wrapped in a box without breaking or dying. Another nice thing about using succulents for this activity, particularly echeverias, is that they’re more commonly known as “rock roses”, which is great to know if you want to replace the traditional rose and make an extra special impression.

You will need

A wooden or cardboard box. Try to find a box that’s just the right size for your seedling tray so that they fit perfectly and don’t slide around when you’re carrying your box.
Tissue paper. Pick a pretty piece of tissue paper to decorate the inside of your box, make sure it’s a big piece so you don’t run out.
Succulents. Choose a variety of small succulents for the inside of your box.
Colour printout of succulents. If you like, make a pretty colour printout of the succulents you’ve chosen to go into your box.

Water Wise Watch: Feb 2018

This month at Water Wise

"The month of love"
Can you believe it is February already? We hope you have had a wonderful year so far! February is the month of love, and this month we want to encourage you to love your environment.

Whether you live in a lovely little townhouse, a great sprawling house, or a cosy flat, you can encourage wildlife into your home. South Africa has a wealth of beautiful and hardy indigenous plants, shrubs, and trees that are suitable to spaces big and small. When planting indigenous, try and source locally available plants. Localised plants will be naturally adapted to the climate, and wildlife in your area. By growing indigenous plants you are encouraging biodiversity in your area. Indigenous and localised plants also require less water and maintenance as many of them rely only on rainfall to survive.

A diverse and local garden will encourage insects, birds, frogs and small mammals into your garden, increasing the 'environmental health' of your area. Love your environment and love your garden this February! Go indigenous!

Planting indigenous encourages wildlife into your garden:

Aim to create a natural ecosystem in your garden.
Use pots and containers in smaller spaces.
Provide local wildlife with food, water, nesting site and shelter.
Grow a variety of different sized plants.
In small spaces, plant indigenous climbers against walls.
Plant grasses for seed-eating birds, and for butterflies, and for nesting material for weavers.
Build a rockery to encourage lizards, which feed on mosquitoes and flies.

World Wetlands Day
This year's theme is 'Wetlands for a sustainable urban future'. We are encouraged to value our urban wetlands by retaining, restoring, and managing them.

Click here to visit the Water Wise website

February in the Garden

It’s the month of love! Valentine’s day falls in February and while lovers across the land will spend just one day to romance each other, gardeners will take full advantage of summer’s flowering favourites that GCA nurseries will have on offer, to romance their gardens – not only for a day or a month, but well beyond!

Romancing the patio and balcony

Why settle for one short-lived, long-stemmed red rose when you can rather go for intense gardening pleasure in a small space filled with ravishing potted roses? Miniature rose varieties collectively known as ‘patio roses’ are freely available in warm seasons. They flower profusely if kept in a sunny spot for a few hours and are protected at root level with a layer of organic mulch to keep their roots cool and moist. There are also top selling garden roses like ‘Little Red Hedge’ which one can plant in large containers to add a splash of bright colour on a patio. Rose grower Ludwig Taschner describes ‘Little Red Hedge’ as follows: “Imagine a deep red delphinium spike and you have the best description of this rose. The small, pointed buds of clear carmine-red are produced on rigid little side-stems and open into firm, double blooms which seem to last forever. The bush continues to produce basal flower spikes in the shortest time and will form a dense ‘little red hedge’.”

Double up on patio or balcony romance by adding pots and tubs filled with dreamy hibiscus with flower colours so bright, it will feel like you have been carried off to a far-away tropical island paradise! The latest ranges of hibiscus sold includes compact and very floriferous plants especially bred for container growing (although they will do well in the garden too!) They like full sun, do well in semi-shade too and can even be kept indoors as flowering house plants for short periods.

A1 Poster – Perfect for the Patio: Ballerina Flower (Fuchsia)

A1 poster detailing the “Perfect for the Patio” plant for February – Ballerina Flower (Fuchsia)

Preview

Imperial Elephant Ear (Colocasia antiquorum)

This elegant Elephant Ear has a technicoloured coat of rich, emerald green leaves overlaid with velvety black patches giving it rightful claim on the title Imperial Taro! Grows roughly 1 m tall in full sun to part shade with either moist soil or shallow water up to 15 cm deep. Like all Colocasia these love nothing better than hot humid weather and lots of fertiliser. Will die-down to the ground if frost occurs, but will resprout from the tubers. Alternatively overwinter as a houseplant and enjoy year-round.

**Please note that not all stockists will have every plant featured**

Lemon Grass (Cymbopogon citratus)

Lemon Grass is a tropical grass with a sweet lemon scent that will take your Asian cooking to a whole new level! It has both medicinal and culinary attributes in Thai and Eastern Asian cultures.

Easy to grow and very rewarding it thrives in fertile, loamy soil and loves nitrogen rich fertilizers. Ensure it has a full sun position and be sure to cover it against frost if your garden is prone to this. It can also be planted in a container and then brought indoors to a sunny, warm window sill in winter.

To harvest stalks use a knife to slice off the stem at soil level just below swollen ends. Delicious Lemon Grass bulbs can be added whole to stir-fry’s or once peeled can be crushed or chopped. The bulbs also make a refreshing tea.

Eastern Cape Stockists:

Floradale Nursery – Port Elizabeth
Builders Express East London
Builders Express – Jeffreys Bay
Builders Express – Newton Park
Builders Express – Uitenhage
Builders Warehouse – Port Elizabeth

Free State Stockists:

Alma Kwekery – Welkom
Bruwer Kwekery – Bloemfontein
Builders Warehouse Bloemfontein
Greenside Kwekery – Bloemfontein
Urth Garden Centre – Bloemfontein

Gauteng Stockists:

Colourful Splendour – Craighall Park
Garden Pavilion – Eckards
Garden Pavilion – Sunkist
Plant Paradise Garden Centre – Pretoria
Safari Tuinsentrum – Pretoria
Schaffler’s Nursery – Johannesburg

North West Stockists:

Western Cape Stockists:

Cape Garden – Joostenbergvlakte
Cape Garden – Somerset West
Cape Garden – Stellenbosch
Starke Ayres Garden Centre – Rosebank
Starke Ayres Garden Centre – West Coast Village
Stodels – Bellville
Stodels – Constantia
Stodels – Kenilworth
Builders Express – Knysna
Stodels – Milnerton
Stodels – Somerset West
Builders Express – Kenilworth
Builders Express – Stellenbosch
Builders Express – Willowbridge
Builders Warehouse – Cape Gate
Builders Warehouse – City
Builders Warehouse – Constantiaberg
Builders Warehouse – George
Builders Warehouse – Helderberg
Builders Warehouse – Table View
Builders Warehouse – Tygerberg

**Please note that not all stockists will have every plant featured**

Perfect for the Patio: Heavenly Hibiscus

Heavenly Hibiscus

February is the month of love and what better way to say a long and lasting “I love you” than with the gift of a plant for the patio. The hibiscus makes a lovely addition to any patio and is a subdivision of flowering plants that is made up of around 220 different species that are quite diverse, including hot-climate evergreen shrubs and small trees, as well as seasonal temperature-zone shrubs, and some annuals and perennials. The most recognisable of these is the Hibiscus rosa-sinensis, otherwise known as the Chinese Rose, Red Hibiscus or Shoeflower.

The Hibiscus rosa-sinensis, or Shoeflower, is characterised by its blood-red flowers, and while red might be the romantic colour of love, the name Shoeflower comes from the rather unromantic Jamaican use of crushing the flowers to polish black shoes. This species of hibiscus originated from an ancient hybrid from the Indian Ocean region and can be identified as a glossy evergreen shrub that can sometimes be as much as 4,5m high and wide. Its red flowers are the characteristic funnel shape with 5 overlapping petals and a central column of fused stamens. Each flower only lasts a day, opening in the morning and withering by evening, but they appear in long succession, as long as the weather is warm. They prefer a frost-free environment.

Caring for your potted hibiscus

Hibiscus plants are easy to grow and they thrive in sunlight and well-drained soil. They are versatile and can be grown outdoors or indoors. They make beautiful flowering plant bushes and perform best when their roots are slightly crowded, so pay attention to the size of the pot you get for your hibiscus. Read below for details on caring for your patio hibiscus.

Light:

Hibiscus thrives in full to partial sunlight, although in hot climates like ours, you might want to opt for partial sunlight rather, which makes these plants perfect for your patio.

Chinese Water Chestnut (Eleocharis dulcis)

Grow your own Water Chestnuts and add a new dimension of crunch to stir-fries and Asian cooking – your foodie friends will adore you! Chinese Water Chestnut forms tufts of bright green, drinking straw-like leaves that spread rapidly to form large stands. Tuber formation takes place in late summer to autumn as the days are getting shorter and the plants are preparing for their winter hibernation. Harvest tubers in late autumn after the least leaves have gone straw-coloured and died down. The tubers can be eaten raw or cooked, and are noted for their sweetness and distinct nut-like crunch. Remember to save a few tubers to start new plants for next season’s harvest. Chinese Water Chestnuts grow best in moist soil or shallow water up to 15 cm deep and prefer a sunny aspect.

Free State Stockists

Alma Kwekery – Welkom

Gauteng Stockists

Colourful Splendour
Lifestyle Home Garden
Nicolas Plants
Plant Paradise
Safari Tuinsentrum
Schafflers Nursery

Mpumalanga Stockists

Ninfa Tuinsentrum

North West Stockists

Sittig’s Nursery

**Please note that not all stockists will have every plant featured**

What to do about ladybird (lovebug) in your garden

Symptoms

Our “gogga” of the month for February, the “lovebug”, is a friendly visitor and they’re colourful, happy looking bugs in the garden

What does this mean for me/my plants?

The ladybird (aptly named “lovebug” for the month of February) is rumoured to bring very good luck, should you find it in your garden. It also helps to eliminate pests like aphids and mites

Suggested Action

Count yourself lucky if you’ve been visited by ladybirds!

Agapanthus (Agapanthus africanus ‘New Blue’)

The word Agapanthus is interestingly derived from the Greek words ‘agapѐ’ meaning love and anthos meaning flower. Agapanthus ‘Zambezi’ brings a whole new dimension to these ‘love flowers’ with their striking broad variegated leaves and violet flower heads.

Agapanthus enjoy full sun or semi shade where they should be planted in well drained soil .It is important to remember that low light areas can encourage less flowering.

Agapanthus’ New Blue’ grows to approximately 70 cm in height and produces tall strong flower spikes above the foliage. These spikes hold a globular head bearing open faced violet – blue flowers which appear through the summer months, generally from December to March.

Regular deep watering especially during the summer will keep these plants happy however once established they are water wise specimens. For strong leaves and exceptional flowers be sure to feed with a good compost and organic fertiliser.

Agapanthus ‘New Blue’ is evergreen and indigenous and will handle very light frost. They are good for coastal gardening and make excellent cut flowers.

Small groupings make excellent focal points; they cope well in containers and help attract butterflies and bees to your garden!

Eastern Cape Stockists:

Floradale Nursery – Port Elizabeth
Builders Express East London
Builders Express – Jeffreys Bay
Builders Express – Newton Park
Builders Express – Uitenhage
Builders Warehouse – Port Elizabeth

Free State Stockists:

Alma Kwekery – Welkom
Bruwer Kwekery – Bloemfontein
Builders Warehouse Bloemfontein
Greenside Kwekery – Bloemfontein
Urth Garden Centre – Bloemfontein

Gauteng Stockists:

Colourful Splendour – Craighall Park
Garden Pavilion – Eckards
Garden Pavilion – Sunkist
Plant Paradise Garden Centre – Pretoria
Safari Tuinsentrum – Pretoria
Schaffler’s Nursery – Johannesburg

North West Stockists:

Western Cape Stockists:

Cape Garden – Joostenbergvlakte
Cape Garden – Somerset West
Cape Garden – Stellenbosch
Starke Ayres Garden Centre – Rosebank
Starke Ayres Garden Centre – West Coast Village
Stodels – Bellville
Stodels – Constantia
Stodels – Kenilworth
Builders Express – Knysna
Stodels – Milnerton
Stodels – Somerset West
Builders Express – Kenilworth
Builders Express – Stellenbosch
Builders Express – Willowbridge
Builders Warehouse – Cape Gate
Builders Warehouse – City
Builders Warehouse – Constantiaberg
Builders Warehouse – George
Builders Warehouse – Helderberg
Builders Warehouse – Table View
Builders Warehouse – Tygerberg

**Please note that not all stockists will have every plant featured**

Lavender (Laventel Lavandula dentata ‘Elegans’)

Bushy shrub, with fragrant dark green leaves and dark purple flowers from spring to summer. Excellent cut flower. Can be used as pot-pourri. Ideal as focus or hedge plant. Evergreen. Plant in a sunny position. Mature plant size may vary due to growing conditions and climate, ±80cm x 1.5m.

Eastern Cape Stockists:

Floradale Nursery – Port Elizabeth
Builders Express – East London
Builders Express – Jeffreys Bay
Builders Express – Newton Park
Builders Express – Uitenhage
Builders Warehouse – Port Elizabeth

Free State Stockists:

Alma Kwekery – Welkom
Bruwer Kwekery – Bloemfontein
Builders Warehouse – Bloemfontein
Greenside Kwekery – Bloemfontein
Urth Garden Centre – Bloemfontein

Gauteng Stockists:

KwaZulu-Natal Stockists:

Blackwood’s Home of Gardening – Pietermaritzburg
Garden Pavilion Halls – Kingsburgh
Hingham Nursery – Durban North
Builders Express – Amanzimtoti
Builders Express – Ballito
Builders Express – Hillcrest
Builders Express – Pietermaritzburg
Builders Express – South Coast
Builders Express – Umhlanga
Builders Warehouse – Riverhorse

Limpopo Stockists:

Builders Warehouse – Polokwane

Mpumalanga Stockists:

Builders Warehouse – Emalahleni
Garden Pavilion – White River
Ninfa Tuinsentrum – Middelburg

North West Stockists:

Garden Pavilion – Geelhout
Sittig’s Nursery – Hartebeespoort

Western Cape Stockists:

Cape Garden – Joostenbergvlakte
Cape Garden – Somerset West
Cape Garden – Stellenbosch
Ludwigs Roses Winelands – Stellenbosch
Starke Ayres Garden Centre – Rosebank
Starke Ayres Garden Centre – West Coast Village
Stodels – Bellville
Stodels – Constantia
Stodels – Kenilworth
Stodels – Milnerton
Stodels – Somerset West
Tulbagh Kwekery – Tulbagh
Builders Express – Kenilworth
Builders Express – Knysna
Builders Express – Stellenbosch
Builders Express – Willowbridge
Builders Warehouse – Cape Gate
Builders Warehouse – City
Builders Warehouse – Constantiaberg
Builders Warehouse – George
Builders Warehouse – Helderberg
Builders Warehouse – Table View
Builders Warehouse – Tygerberg

**Please note that not all stockists will have every plant featured**

How to feed your plants Watch here

Watch here

Top Plants for February

A list of the top plants per region, for February, to order for your garden centre

Preview

Download here!