Water Saving Tips

With the use of the smart gardening water site (http://www2.smartgardenwatering.org.au) I was able to work out how much water my front garden bed needs. Even though I do live on a 2 acre property this small area is the only area that my household waters. In the past, we would only water this garden bed in the summer time, but this past summer was an exception for this.

My front garden consists of:
-4 Camellia sasanquas in pots
- 4 Azalea varieties
-1 Crepe Myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica)
-6 medium sized nandina domesticas and 8 small nandina domesticas
-1 Iceberg Rose

Additional Information:
-Emerald typically has a Loam soil with the average rainfall being 1016mm.
-About a 10m2 area size, including the pots.
-It is usually watered with a common garden hose which on
average uses 23 L/minute
- All of the plants are covered with coarse organic mulch
-The area is mostly flat maybe with a gentle slope
-The garden bed is mainly covered
-The position of the garden bed is in full sun but with wind protection.



With all of this information the website calculated that supply of water needed does meet with the demand of the plants. This graph shows that I would only have to water the garden bed once for the whole year; in the month of January.

Now that I know this site exists I might use it again in the future summers. Even though the drought in Melbourne seems to have broken, saving water should still be in the mindset of all Victorians and Australians.

Here are some more reasons why water saving is beneficial:
-Water efficient gardens can reduce your water bills and running costs.
-Water efficient gardens reduce the need to build more dams, which may have to be situated in environmentally sensitive areas.
-A water efficient garden contributes less to stormwater flow, reducing the need for costly public stormwater projects.

Winter Vegetables

Today is the first official day of winter but this still doesn't stop the 'amateur' gardeners of Melbourne still having a go to grow food in their own garden. Although it is cold and it seems like nothing will survive; let alone thrive, there are vegetables out there that do tolerate these conditions quite well. In saying this, it still isn't easy growing healthy vegetables all year round. If you don't have the right knowledge of plants to grow and the correct gardening techniques most likely the crop will fail.

In order to have a vegetable crop that is full of life year round, even in the depths of winter, the most important thing u can do is select the best winter tolerant plants.

Typical Winter Vegetables are:
-Pisum sativum (peas)
-Spinacia oleracea (spinach)
-Allium cepa (onions)
-Lactucu sativa (lettuces)
-Ampeloprasum subsp. porrum (leeks)
-Asparagus officinalis (asparagus)
-Allium sativum (garlics)
-Beta vulgaris var. Crassa (Beetroot)
-Brassica oleracea (Broccoli)

All of these plant species listed above are vegetables that can be successfully grown in the harsh winter climate. It is with this information to an 'amateur' gardener that may save them the disappointment during winter when they realise that the summer vegetables they planted have died.

Growing vegetables in winter also comes with it benefits:
-Decreased evaporation
-Many plant pests and diseases aren't as active due to the cooler temperature
-Sunlight isn't as strong
-Generally increased rainfall

But it also comes with it negatives:
-Frost which can kill plants, especially younger ones
-Reduced sunlight may affect the plant's photosynthesis properties (slower growth)
-On some days there may be hardly any sun light at all

Growing vegetables in the winter may seem risky business. However with the right knowledge, preparation and maintenance anybody can enjoy the benefits of home grown vegetables throughout winter.

Where I Live

Before I forget I better tell where I’m from and why I enjoy horticulture. My house is located in the small town of Emerald, located in the Dandenongs which is about a 40 minute drive South-East of Melbourne. The reasons why I love living up here are because of the awesome colours of the autumn trees, the green grass (instead of a concrete jungle such as the city), the famous Emerald bakery and also my property. This is probably the reason why I have an interest in horticulture, as I just love maintaining my property and try new things to try and improve the aesthetics of the property.

Another great thing about Emerald is the ‘Emerald Lake Park’. This is one of the main attractions of the area, the main reason being Puffing Billy; it runs from Belgrave to Gembrook via Emerald and the Emerald lake park. With this tourist attraction in mind, the streetscape environment is normally well maintained and therefore presented. Although there are some areas of the town that do degrade the town’s the visual appeal, not only to the tourists but also the locals.

For example the former land where ‘Chris & Marie’s Plant Farm’ use to located. Since the business moved out of town about 8 years ago there has been nothing to replace this site, not even a nice park!!! Another reason to why this land lets down the town’s look is because nothing is done to maintain the wild weeds and grasses; action is normally taken when the issues can’t be overlooked due to weeds.

For the town of Emerald to still be a tourism destination in the future more needs to be done to keep the town presented at its best. Because let’s face it nobody like any weeds in a town, let alone a whole acre of them.

RAIN, RAIN, GO AWAY

After many years of drought it finally seems like the dry conditions across Victoria and Eastern Australia has been broken. For many years these areas saw the negative effects of El Niño but now with these sometimes freak weather conditions it certainly appears that La Niña is upon us. El Niño is characterized by unusually warm temperatures; causing droughts whereas La Niña by unusually cool temperatures in the equatorial Pacific; causing floods, massive cyclones and endless rain.

In recent times there has been much evidence that this is the case. For example widespread flooding in areas that in recent years have been barren landscapes. Probably the best known examples of this are the floods of Northern New South Wales and Queensland and also the floods of Victoria. Cyclone Yasi is another example of this.

In Melbourne we have also seen this climate shift. In the month of May we have seen a higher than average rainfall with 64 mm falling to date (23/5/11) whilst the average is 56 mm.

Great Train Race

Last Sunday the 1st of May was the 30th annual great train race. This race is a very iconic for the Dandenong Ranges area, it is a 13.2 km race from Belgrave to Emerald Lake park. The aim of the game is to race the icon of the hills "Puffing Billy" and try and beat it. On the day 2,784 runners took part in the event, with 55 males beating the first train and 280 females beating the second train.

This is all good for the economy for the area but because i live next to the Emerald Lake park traffic was hectic as! Every year it is a problem that the race organisers try and fix however in future years the traffic issues need to be taken care of properly!