January is normally too hot to undertake any major gardening tasks. Keep to the essential tasks such as watering, weeding and mowing. Work early morning/evening and set yourself small manageable tasks. Please remember to protect yourself by wearing 30+ sunscreen, cotton long-sleeved shirt, hat and sunglasses.
Watering is perhaps the most important job this month. New plants, pot plants, small plants and shallow rooted plants require frequent watering. Large, deeply rooted established plants require heavy drenching. Avoid watering during the heat of the day (unless a plant is wilting) as most of the water will disappear through evaporation. Get into the practice of watering in the early morning or evening and concentrate the water onto the root system rather than all over.
Add some herbs to your garden – many are very ornamental as well as drought hardy, aromatic and handy for fresh garden food. Plant some parsley, oregano, thyme, sage, chives and mint among your shrubs and perennials.
TIPS AND TASKS:
- Remove dead flowers and leaves from Agapanthus, Day Lily, Wild Iris etc. Feed with a complete fertiliser.
- Trim your hedges. Prune lightly as newly exposed leaves may be susceptible to sunburn.
- Plant in the flower bed Alyssum, Calendula, Marigold, Snapdragon, Verbena etc.
- Plant in the vegetable bed beetroot, broccoli, cabbage, radish, silver beet etc. Water well to avoid vegetables becoming bitter.
- Control fruit fly by regularly collecting ripe fruit and disposing of fallen/rotten fruit. Purchase a fruit fly control kit.
- Spray roses to control Black Spot and Aphids. Use a rose fungicide to control Black Spot and a pyrethrum based spray for Aphids. Prune and fertilise for Autumn flowers.
- Non-chemical control of Black Spot – mix one part full cream milk and nine parts water. Spray twice weekly. Use soapy water for the control of Aphids.
- When creating a garden, walk your neighbourhood and see what grows well. Take note of prevailing environmental conditions such as sun, shade etc.
- Start spraying to control Lace Bug on Azalea. These insects make Azalea leaves turn a silver colour. Spray with Confidor, Rogor, Folimat or Mavrik.
- Begin watering cymbidium orchids with bloom-promoting liquid fertiliser.
- Time to divide and replant Bearded Iris. Using only young healthy rhizomes, cut back leaves and plant with rhizome tip just above ground.
– Water well - Silvery lines on citrus leaves or distorted new leaf growth indicates Citrus Leaf Miner.
– Control with Pest Oil. - Control scale on citrus, gardenias etc. Use Pest Oil or white oil with Malathion.
- Insecticides and fungicides are best used late in the day to avoid chemical sun damage.
FLOWERING PLANTS FOR JANUARY:
TREES AND SHRUBS
Abelia
Abutilon (Chinese Lantern)
Fuchsia
Gardenia
Hebe (Veronica)
Hibiscus
Hydrangea
Lagerstroemia (Crepe Myrtle)
Lavandula
Murraya (Orange Jessamine)
Nerium (Oleander)
Pentas
Plumbago
Plumeria (Frangipani)
Rose
ANNUALS AND PERENNIALS
Alyssum
Aster
Felicia (Blue Daisy)
Geranium
Heliotropium (Cherry Pie)
Impatiens
Tagetes (Marigold)
Petunia
Rudbeckia (Yellow Cone Flower)
Salvia
Stokesia (Blue Thistle)
Zinnia
BULBS
Canna
Crinum
Hemerocallis (Day Lily)
Hymenocallis (Spider Lily)
CLIMBERS
Allamanda
Bougainvillea
Campsis (Chinese Trumpet Vine)
Lonicera (Honeysuckle)
Pandorea (Wonga Wonga Vines)
NATIVES
Acacia elata
Ceratopetalum (NSW Christmas Bush)
Hibbertia (Guinea Golden Vine)
Tristaniopsis (Water Gum)
Owner/operator of Artview Landscapes, Brian Baker is a talented landscape designer who has been managing, designing and building structured landscapes in Sydney for twenty five years. He has personally built or managed over 800 landscape construction projects ranging in value from $5,000 to $250,000 for residential projects and between $10,000 and one million dollars for commercial projects.