Woodleigh Nursery newsletter November 2015
Spring Sale time here at Woodleigh Nursery. We have many lovely looking hydrangeas in our shade houses that are about to burst into flower. I’m sure these would look even better in your garden or perhaps someone else’s for Christmas.
It has been a busy spring for us. We were open for the recent Taranaki Garden Spectacular and had many garden enthusiasts visit our nursery. It is a great opportunity to spread the word. Speaking of spreading the word, we have recently set up a Facebook page; please do ‘like’ our page.
We have the following cultivars on special until the 13 December or until stock runs out.
- Bloody Marvellous (Merveille Sanguine)
- Blue Diamond
- Gartenbau Kunhert
- Grayswood
- Hornli
- Kyushu
- Madame Baardse
- Nightingale
- Paris
- Redstart
- Todi
- Viridus
These are usually $14 each plus freight. For the duration of the special buy 5 of 1 cultivar for $50 ($10 each).
Regards
Janica and Quin
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373 Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Frogs!!!
We have been having quite a spring clean here at Woodleigh with our buckets, brooms and gloves. Weeding, pruning, controlling liverwort with baking soda (yes it works) and shifting plants around.
This is when we discovered our little friends hiding amongst the plant pots. Frogs! Big ones, little ones, green and brown ones, we had to be quite careful not to stand on them. They weren’t that happy with us moving their homes around so we shifted a few to the old cow trough (now fish pond).
Frog at Woodleigh Nursery
We use very few chemicals in our nursery (hence the use of baking soda as we look for alternatives). Frogs are very sensitive to chemicals so it has been exciting and rewarding to see so many; it indicates to us that we run a fairly environmentally friendly nursery. Each year we see a few, this year we have certainly seen the most.
Spring is definitely here now.
Our Rosa Roseraie de L’Hay is in flower with its scent wafting around the nursery. This is one of the best rugosa roses, with large, double, wine-purple flowers and a strong perfume. It repeat flowers well.
The Leucothoe fontanesiana is smothered with masses of cascading white Pieris like flowers at the moment. This plant comes from southeastern USA. It is a very easy care plant, providing a beautiful floral display through spring and summer.
Purple anise, Illicium floridanum is another flowering shrub from the southeastern USA. The starry red wine coloured flowers have a heady port-like fragrance. Another easy care shrub with tough waxy leaves.
The macrophylla hydrangeas are bursting into lush growth now with many starting to show flower buds. The new season is upon us.
Janica
October 2014
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Hydrangea Pruning
Yes it is that time of year again, the time for winter pruning; a job that both Quin and I really enjoy. In our earlier life when we had an Arboricultural (Tree Surgery) business. We covered the full range of pruning from large trees, shrubs, to fruit trees, roses and even hydrangeas (those were the jobs I loved).
The winter here has been very mild, confusing for many of our plants. Recently though, we have had a few really good frosts, followed by gorgeous sunny days. It has been a good winter chill to kill some of those bugs, and hopefully delay the spring growth. I just want to get out into the garden to start the winter pruning and renovation – remove some of those unwanted plants to make room for new plantings.
We are sometimes asked ‘Why do we prune?’ & ‘Do we have to prune?’
There are 3 reasons that we like to prune plants:
- To remove dead and diseased wood.
- To improve or maintain the shape of a plant
- To increase flowering and fruiting – when pruning hydrangeas we aim to reduce the number of individual flower heads, enabling the plant to produce larger better quality flowers.
No it is not essential that you prune your hydrangeas each year. The new growth will emerge and eventually smother the old flowers. The bush will be covered in many small flowers.
Now is a good time to prune your hydrangeas; though if you are in an area that receives late spring frosts you may like to wait a few more weeks.
Winter pruning of Hydrangea macrophylla and Hydrangea serrata types:
- Remove all dead, damaged or diseased material
- Remove thin, spindly, crossing or crowding stems
- Reduce the height of the remaining strong stems, keeping 1 – 2 pairs of fat flower buds.
The flower buds are usually in pairs near the top of the stem and vary in size with different varieties. The leaf (growth) buds are below these and are smaller in size.
The Hydrangea paniculata types like to be treated differently. These do need to be pruned each winter, and pruned quite hard to ensure that the plant puts out strong stems that can carry the heavy flower heads.
For the first 3 years after planting prune to create a strong framework of 3 or 4 strong stems in a vase shape. In subsequent winters remove all growths back to the base shape leaving 2 or 3 buds at the base of each stem.
Happy pruning.
Janica
August 2014
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Woodleigh Nursery June 2014 newsletter
You may have noticed that we have not posted out a Hydrangea catalogue this year. We have instead decided to email through a link to our website and attach a Woodleigh Nursery June 2014 catalogue [PDF] of our catalogue for you to view or print as you wish.
This past year we have received a fantastic response to our website it has enabled our customers to view photographs of the majority of the lines that we have available. It also allows us to keep you up-to-date with available stock. We add new varieties as they become available and likewise update as varieties sell out.
We have quite a few new treasures available this year, of both our hydrangeas and our ‘MANY OTHER PLANTS‘. Please take the time to explore our website, you are bound to find something of interest.
We have had a busy summer and autumn here at Woodleigh. We have added a new dimension to our business selling trays of native seedlings. This has involved building a new shade house, and many hours collecting seed. The majority of which has now been sown and is starting to germinate which is very exciting.
I intend to send out a fresh email update each spring and autumn.
Please let me know if you would like to receive this email newsletter.
Janica
June 2014
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Climbing hydrangeas and their relatives
There are very few hardy, flowering climbers that tolerate difficult, shady environments. Climbing hydrangeas and their relatives are one such plant that will grow in that shady spot where other plants seem to struggle.
Climbing hydrangeas can be used in a multitude of different ways. They look fantastic climbing a tree such as a ponga tree, it clothes the whole trunk and becomes smothered in white lacecap flowers in summer. They can be planted to cover unsightly walls, fences or sheds. They do not need a frame to climb as they have aerial roots that attach to surfaces similar to ivy. So consider this if you want to paint the shed etc in the future.
These climbers will grow as high as their climbing support allows whether this is a tree or a wall; it typically will not flower until it has reached the top of its structure. If planted on a 2m high fence it will climb then flower. If planted at the base of a 20m tall ponga tree, it will take a long while to climb to the top and when it eventually does flower most of the flowers will be near the top. So consider whether the floral display is important when selecting your planting site.
All the climbers have lacecap type flowers, typically white, or creamy white, some even have a scent! There are a couple of evergreen varieties, though most are deciduous or semi-deciduous. The growth of some of the varieties can be slow in the first few years; they then take off once they become established.
They are not too fussy about soil conditions, as long as it is well drained and has plenty of humus. They will grow in either full sun or shade, though they are more floriferous when grown in full sun. Some are more cold tolerant than others.
The climbing hydrangeas and relatives that we currently have available at the moment are:
- Hydrangea petiolaris
- Hydrangea seemanii
- Decumaria sinensis
- Pileostegia viburnoides
- Schizophragma hydrangeoides ‘Roseum’ (limited numbers)
- Schizophragma integrifolium ssp. Faurei (limited numbers)
pileostegia viburnoides
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
So what are some of Woodleigh’s ‘many other plants’?
Begonia luxurians
Over the last weeks I have been adding new plants to our website. A few more hydrangeas and lots more ‘other’ exciting plants. Our range is definitely increasing as we discover more treasures. A big thank you to those customers who have provided suggestions regarding plants that they would like us to grow. And thanks to those who have provided us with propagation material.
Many of these new plants on our website are currently flowering in our garden, just as our hydrangeas are finishing for the season (though some of these are still producing new flowers).
Dombeya ‘Pink Cloud’, or Cape Wedding Flower as it is commonly called, is a large shrub from South Africa. It is covered in masses of soft pink flowers. It flowers consistently from autumn through until spring.
Justicia aurea, or Golden Plume is in full display in the shade house. The golden yellow flowers look fabulous, brightening up that shady dell.
Another great plant for brightening these early winter days is Leonotis leonurus ‘Lion King’. This is an evergreen shrub from South Africa and likes a sunny spot.
You may not see the flowers of Osmanthus x fortunei as you wander past, but you will certainly smell them. The small white flowers release a powerful gardenia-like scent that can be smelt 100m away.
And I still have more plants to add to the website such as the Marmalade plant, Streptosolen jamesonii, and Begonia luxurians. I hope to get these added soon.
Dombeya ‘pink cloud’
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Pink hydrangeas
Last August I wrote a post about Blue Hydrangeas and promised that soon I would write one about Pink Hydrangeas. I didn’t intend it to take seven months, but we have achieved a lot at the nursery in that time.
Anyway lets uncover the mystery of pink and red hydrangeas.
Pink and red flowers are produced when there is no aluminium in the soil. This can be achieved in a number of ways:
- Lime or alkaline soils (pH of 6.5 or above) – these are great for growing beautiful pink and red hydrangeas as there is no available aluminium. In these soils certain plant nutrients are locked up and are unavailable to plants. Aluminium is one such nutrient.
- Applying lime – if you have acid soils (with a pH of below 6) one option is to add a couple of dressings of lime (spring and summer) each year to increase the pH. Care needs to be taken though to avoid other acid-loving plants such as rhododendrons. Note – over application of lime can cause chlorosis or leaf-yellowing.
- Phosphate fertiliser – is another option for acid soils. Application of a fertiliser with an NPK ratio of 10-30-10 should be sufficient to change the flower colour. Phosphate also locks up aluminium making it unavailable to plants.
- Coastal sandy soils – the aluminium is readily leached out of sandy soils.
- Pots and tubs – potting mix generally does not contain aluminium. Check fertiliser to ensure it does not contain aluminium.
- Planting near a spring or running water – the aluminium will be washed away or leached out of the soil.
- Planting near concrete – the cement in concrete contains lime which leaches into the soil raising the pH and locking up aluminium.
Some areas of New Zealand have naturally alkaline (limey) soils such as the peat soils around Cambridge, parts of Te Kuiti and Palmerston North and typically grow brilliant reds and pink without effort.
Note – if you want a pink hydrangea select a good pink variety such as Madame Plumecoq, Madame Cayeux or Masja; rather than attempt to turn a blue variety pink. While some varieties will produce either a good blue or a good pink this is not always the case. Some varieties such as Paris, Harry’s Red and Red Emperor try very hard to stay red in acid soil.
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Our new shade house
Finally, we have a new shade house and a whole lot more space to grow our increasing range of hydrangeas and other interesting plants. It has been a really busy week for Woodleigh Nursery, building the shade house ourselves with the help of our local fencing contractor, Maurice Salisbury. This house is bigger than our previous two at approx. 480m2.
Maurice arrived first thing Monday to thump the poles in; this is far easier than digging the holes and is far stronger. We are wanting this shade house to be both rabbit and bird proof as we have been having problems with rabbits nibbling some of the species, particularly the H. quercifolia’s, and H. Annabelle. We will also be growing trays of seedlings in here which the birds like to dig in, hence bird proofing.
Woodleigh Nursery January 2014
So Tuesday was spent burying shade cloth. This involved hand digging a trench around the perimeter (100m), burying the cloth and stretching it 0.5m up the sides. Wednesday we started attaching the sides, Thursday we took a break from the shade house and laid concrete instead for the floor of our new potting bins. Friday we were back working on the sides and preparing for the roof to go on. Finally Saturday and Sunday the major job of fixing the roof on, thankfully the hideous winds we had had all week eased.
Woodleigh Nursery January 2014
Our great children have been on site for most of the week, helping out hammering in nails, fetching tools, digging holes and entertaining themselves. As a treat we spent Sunday afternoon at the beach kicking the ball around, making sand castles, and paddling our Canadian canoe around the harbour at Port Taranaki.
Woodleigh Nursery January 2014
Now we’ve got the big job of filling it. We will be using approx. 1/3 of the space for hydrangeas, the remaining 2/3 will be used for our new nursery venture which I will elaborate on in the next post.
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
A lovely Christmas gift
Our hydrangeas are all coming into display right now. Our stock beds are in full flower and look stunning. My mother in-law who lives in Katikati has just been to stay and had a lovely time walking around with her camera, trying to decide which ones she could fit into her garden back home.
Our garden produces beautiful blue and purple hydrangeas; there are a few pink / red varieties that are holding their colour well in our acid soils. The whites look lovely too at the moment though they will start to burn a little as we do not have shade for them yet.
Our shade houses though are all pink and red as they are growing in pots. This is a great way to grow pink and red hydrangeas if you live among blue hydrangeas growing in acid soil, as potting mix generally does not contain aluminium.
Woodleigh Nursery Stockbeds Dec 2013
I was walking through the shade house and thought what a lovely Christmas gift they would make as they are coming into bloom. Varieties that I would recommend at the moment include:
Arthur Billard Bloody Marvellous Bridal Bouquet Paris Sabrina Sensation
Hydrangea macrophylla Paris (P-Red)
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373 Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
The Powerco Taranaki Garden Spectacular
What a wonderful 10 days we have had with the Powerco Taranaki Garden Spectacular. Our nursery was open for the period with visitors from all over New Zealand, from as far as Northland, Greymouth and Invercargill. Our neighbours Betty McDonald & John Treweek opened their garden – Mangaoraka Terraces for the first time this year. A garden with established trees, river views, and newly developed terrace gardens. It is well worth a visit to Taranaki to partake in this annual Premier Spring Festival.
Summer is here along with our first hydrangea flowers in our display garden. The first to flower are generally the lacecaps, the serratas usually appear before the macrophyllas. At the moment we have H. lobbii (we will have a few plants available later in the year), H. macrophylla Trophy, H. serrata Glyn Church (new release available December) and Dichroa Summer Skies.
We have a few varieties on special, 5 plants for $50 plus freight, while stocks last:
Alpenglow, Gartenbaudirektor, Holstein, Renate Steiniger, Princess Juliana, Todi, Together.
Woodleigh Dichroa Summer Skies
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Wedding hydrangeas
Every year we get requests from a number of customers for wedding hydrangeas. They are after good strong plants in full bloom that match or compliment the colour theme of their wedding. Hydrangeas make a stunning display arranged in attractive pots. The great bonus is that after the ceremony the newly married couple can plant them in their garden as a lasting memory of their special day.
Woodleigh Nursery wedding hydrangeas
Colour choices range from pure white, to pink, red, purple and blue; with various shades in between. For a late summer or autumn wedding the antique shades are popular, this is when the flowers change colour with some turning to light-green, others a smokey-pink or metallic colour, while others deepen to rich reds and burgundies.
Some popular varieties for weddings include:
- Whites – Bridal Bouquet Agnes Pavelli and Princess Juliana.
- Reds – Masja and Alpenglow
- Pinks – Birgit Blue Holstein, and Todi
- Blues – Renate Steiniger and Vibraye
We are growing some larger grade white hydrangeas for this purpose.
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373 Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
We would like your help!!!
Propagation season is upon us again. It is an exciting time of the year – deciding what to propagate. Quin and I are always looking for new plants to grow, plants that we think you might like to grow in your garden or landscape. You will notice our website has changed slightly with new photos on our front page, and a new tab – ‘& many other plants!!’ which we hope you will explore.
Our aim is to inspire you with the selection of plants at Woodleigh Nursery. We are increasing our range of ‘other plants’, including rare and unusual, scented, less common native plants, plants for bees and birds, the list could go on. These are in addition to our large collection of hydrangea cultivars and species. This brings me to the question – what would YOU like us to grow? What plants would you like to buy but cannot not find?
We think mail order works really well for our customers – having the convenience of shopping at a time that suits you and receiving quality and sometimes hard-to-find plants right at your doorstep. We are actively seeking to expand our range to suit your needs! Please email us with your suggestions. We would really appreciate hearing your thoughts.
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Spring is here!
I had an operation (nothing sinister) at the end of August and have been on light duties and confined to the house for the past couple of weeks. It is great being able to go outside again, enjoy the lovely spring weather and see the garden emerging from its winter dormancy. Spring is definitely here, our clematis is in full flower, the plums are in blossom and our hydrangeas in the garden are bursting forth into growth. It does seem very early this year.
Clematis paniculata
It is a busy time of the year with the weeds starting to grow, and all the potting to do. It is exciting too though finding all the cuttings that we propagated last year and seeing them emerging as new young plants. Many of them are new species or varieties that we have not grown before such as Illicium henryi a lovely evergreen shrub with salmon pink coloured flowers; Dichroa ‘Pink Candy’ and Hydrangea ‘Glyn Church’ an outstanding new serrata variety. We will have these and many more available on our website and in our catalogue later in the season.
Illicium henryi
Hydrangea serrata Glyn Church
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Blue hydrangeas
Hydrangea macrophylla Renate Steiniger
I recall my grandmother talking about putting rusty nails beneath some of her hydrangeas to make them blue and egg shells around others to make them pink. In reality it is more difficult than this to change the colour of your hydrangeas.
It is the presence of available aluminium in the soil that makes hydrangea flowers blue.
Most acidic soils (pH 5.2 – 5.5) in New Zealand have freely available aluminium. In soils with a higher pH (lime or alkaline soils) the aluminium is locked up and is less available to plants.
There are a couple of things you can do to amend the soil to achieve blue flowers if you do have alkaline soils:
- Adding aluminium sulphate will lower the pH and add aluminium to the soil. Apply little and often to avoid burning the roots of plants; 2 – 3 times through the growing season is recommended. Ensure plants are well watered prior to applying. Apply at a rate of 30g (2 Tablespoons) per square meter, and water it in. It may take a few years for the plants to accumulate enough aluminium to achieve full blue colour.
- Adding organic material will also help to acidify the soil (lower the pH) thereby increasing the availability of aluminium – grass clippings, leaves, fruit and vegetable peels, animal manures. This may be a slower and less reliable method than that set out above.
Areas of New Zealand blessed with volcanic soils have allophanic soils (allumino-silicate clays) and typically present beautiful blue hydrangeas.
Note – if you want a blue hydrangea select a good blue variety such as Adria, Blue Meisse, Gentian, Renate Steiniger or Vibraye; rather than attempt to turn a pink variety blue. While some varieties will produce either a good blue or a good pink this is not always the case.
I will do another post soon on achieving and maintaining pink hydrangeas.
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Hydrangea hedges
Wow we’ve had some strong, cold winds blowing through lately. As they say it is winter time and what we should expect. Our shelter cannot grow fast enough for us; neither Quin nor I can tolerate wind. We have been here four years now and our initial shelter plantings are establishing nicely. We have planted native trees and shrubs with specimen trees, and temporary tree lucerne, pines and poplars. We have started removing some of the tree lucerne this year to allow space for the other plants to fill out. We are planting more tree lucerne where we can, as it is a favourite with the native pigeon (kereru); our pair has just arrived back this week. They spend a good couple of months here feeding on the flowers of the tree lucerne through winter; the kids love to watch them and can get up quite close.
Tree lucerne (Tagasaste)
Yes shelter is important, though the value of our plantings extends further, they provide screening from neighbours / roadways; create spaces and a sense of enclosure; provide habitat for birds, bees and other wildlife; and are lovely to look at. A fence can never achieve this.
There are many different species that you could plant for a hedge. But have you ever thought of a hydrangea hedge? Not only would it provide a screen but a stunning display for at least 6 months of the year. Imagine the masses of flowers, plenty for the vase, for drying and to enjoy as you look out on your garden from your window or while on a stroll.
Hydrangea hedge
Hydrangeas come in a great range of colours and sizes, I am sure there would be something to suit almost any situation. Some examples include:
- Adria or Elbe – Smaller varieties that would make a lovely low hedge (1m) to border a garden or pathway.
- Ayesha, Altona, Gentian & Hamburg – Hardy varieties tolerant of full sun, wind, even coastal situations. These varieties are taller growing to approx. 1.5 – 2m, and would provide good boundary screening or could be used to create a cosy space within a larger garden.
- Agnes Pavelli & Princess Juliana (whites); or Vibraye (pale blue) – Would look fantastic beneath a row of trees, along the shady side of the house or in a woodland dell.
- Dichroa versicolor – For an evergreen hedge. Dichroa is an evergreen relative of the hydrangea, with a similar leaf and blue flowers.
So how many plants will you need? First measure the length of your desired hedge, then decide on the variety you would like and find out the size that it grows to. As a guide the width that hydrangeas grow to is generally equal to their height. Divide the length of your hedge by the width of the plant, this will give you the number of plants you require. If you would like a more compact hedge reduce the width of the plant by approx. 1/4 and recalculate.
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Planting season
The sun is here again, yeah! I think we all need a good week of winter sun after the recent weather extremes. Our soil moisture levels are well up again in Taranaki as I guess they are in the rest of New Zealand; it is a great time for planting and giving our gardens a good makeover.
5 June 2013 has just past and for those of you who were not aware it was World Environment Day & Arbor Day. Arbor Day is held annually throughout the world; it is a day for planting trees and to recognise and remember the importance of trees in our society. The first Arbor Day was held on the 10 April 1872 in America, founded by Julius Sterling Morton. He was concerned by the deforestation of the Great Western Plains of America. New Zealand’s first Arbor Day planting was in Greytown in the Wairarapa in 1890.
Arbor day planting
I recently helped Oakura School with their Arbor Day project. They were the recipients of a ‘Treemendous School Makeover’, funded by Project Crimson, the Mazda Foundation and Taranaki Tree Trust. The project involved transforming the kikuyu and gorse covered back hillside into an outdoor classroom with a small orchard, a camp site and a native arboretum. It was pouring with rain, but still we had 300 people turn up to help plant 1000 plants. Yesterday our family helped with another planting of 900 plants – with a vision to establish a rimu forest.
So yes, now is most definitely a good time for planting, it enables plants to establish good root growth before the dry of summer. Our plants are mostly grown in pots rather than open ground, so it is possible to plant all through the year, though if planting in mid- summer greater care is needed to ensure plants are kept well watered.
We have had some really good orders coming in and unfortunately have sold out of some lines (we always have more stock coming on). A couple of varieties that we have good numbers of and are worth considering are:
- Altona – fantastic pink or blue flowers, is happy in sun or shade, great for a windy site or a coastal garden, or planted as a hedge. As a bonus the flowers age beautiful antique tones in the autumn.
- Renate Steiniger is another wonderful variety, it should be a standard for anyone wanting a ‘top’blue hydrangea. It achieves its blue colour very quickly, when other varieties may take 2 or 3 years. This variety too has striking autumn colours of crimson, green and metallic blue.
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
A Late Summer Display
The majority of our Hydrangea macrophylla’s in the stock beds are now displaying their autumn tones in a range of colours from pale greens and metallic blues through to maroons and wine-reds. One exception is H. ‘Gartenbaudirektor Kuhnert'(don’t be put off by the name – let’s just call it Gartenbau). This photo was taken yesterday in our garden. The plant is in its second season, and is still establishing. It flowered earlier in the season (January) and is flowering again now. This is usual for this variety often providing a heavier display in autumn which extends through to early winter. In Glyn Church’s garden I have seen it still providing a colourful display in late June / July.
Hydrangea macrophylla Gartenbaudirektor Khuhnert
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
A dry summer
Another 10 days of beautiful fine weather ahead at least. What a summer we have had in Taranaki, the capsicums have been fantastic, we are loving the corn and we haven’t seen a sign of blight on the potatoes – oh how I wish we had planted tomatoes this year, we gave up after the past 3 summers, fighting the birds, blight and wind.
We were very lucky to get 50mm of rain on Sunday morning, though the westerly winds that followed soon dried it up again. Our recent plantings of hydrangeas are handling the dry very well, the majority are growing in full sun as our framework trees have not yet established having been planted at the same time as the hydrangeas. We spread a woodchip mulch around the plants immediately after planting, I highly recommend this. I had a group of ladies here last week and were discussing the dry period and how many plants were suffering. Out of interest I scraped back some of the mulch to see what the soil moisture was like beneath and was pleasantly suprised at how moist it was. Adjacent we have our vegetable garden where we have recently been digging potatoes, here it is powder dry to a spade depth at least. Mulch provides many benefits for both the plants and gardeners, certainly helps to conserve soil moisture, adds organic matter to the soil, and a major benefit for us is the suppression of weeds.
I do hope we all receive some good general rain soon.
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
A bouquet of hydrangeas!
What a fantastic display hydrangeas make! Our stand of hydrangeas in full bloom has certainly drawn alot of comments at the markets we have been to recently. At home, our shade houses and stockbeds are in full bloom too. It is a great time for you to visit the nursery to familiarise yourself with the individual varieties up close.
Bouquet of Hydrangeas
The markets have been a new experience for us. So far we have been to the local SPCA market held in New Plymouth on a Saturday morning, and we had a stand at a recent fair at Tupare Gardens. Tupare is an iconic heritage garden with a Chapman-Taylor house, now owned and managed by the Taranaki Regional Council. The garden is situated in New Plymouth and has wonderful drifts of hydrangeas, which complemented us and our stand on market day!
One thing we noted with markets is that customers tend only to buy what they can carry, where our door-to-door mail-order customers have no such limitation.
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Powerco Taranaki Garden Spectacular
Isn’t it great to have some lovely sunny days. I think it was in the twenties yesterday! We can almost see the plants in the nursery and our vegetable gardens growing before our eyes (and the weeds).
The weather has been great for visitors to the ‘Powerco Taranaki Garden Spectacular’, which is on this week. Our nursery is open for customers to visit, our advertisement is in the brochure map. I’ve got to say, it has been really nice to have customers coming to visit the nursery, as the business is typically mail-order and most customer contact is via phone and email. It’s great to spend time discussing the pros and cons of plants face to face.
We will open again for the festival in future years. We are otherwise open by appointment throughout the year.
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Decision time – what to propagate this year
Monday morning and we are back into the school routine. Farewell to these holidays, the children are all looking forward now to the next lot. Only 10 weeks till the lovely long Christmas break.
Back to work for me too. I spent the morning collecting cuttings, enough to keep me going for the next few days. We have around 150 species and varieties of Hydrangea’s in our collection. It is always a difficult decision, deciding which varieties to grow and how many of each. There are always the favourites, the ones we know will sell in large numbers, then there are the varieties which are popular in small numbers; and finally there are the more unusual varieties that a few collectors look for. We try to introduce a slightly different selection each year. If there is a variety that is not on our list, please ask as we may have it in small numbers; if not we are happy to grow to order or add it to our list for next year.
An important aspect for me though is labeling and record keeping. I need to be extremely vigilant when I am collecting cuttings; many look remarkable similar if not the same when dealing with a short stem with a few leaves. It can be very difficult to tell the varieties apart by their foliage. While we have a great range of distinctive flowing cultivars, a few are remarkably similar even when in flower. So if the variety you were after is currently out of stock, sometimes a similar substitute can be had.
So what have we decided? Yes we are propagating a selection of climbing hydrangeas. We are trying the aspera types again. Our selection of serrata’s – Blue Deckle, Kyosumi, & Miyama-yae-murasaki are a lovely combination. And then there are the miniatures – well suited to front of borders, small gardens or pots for courtyards and even indoors! Miniatures P. red, Hornli, Madam Baardse are always popular. Remember that pot culture is a great way to bring out the best of the red cultivars.
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Are we staying home Mum?
Yah! It is the school holidays, Lodi (6) our son is home from school. ‘Are we staying home today Mum?’ is a common question asked as he loves spending time on the farm / nursery. Miro our daughter (3) still has two days of kindy through the holidays which gives Lodi and me valuable time together.
Miro Potting
It has been my mission to finish potting this season’s first batch of GOL’s (growing on lines – last years rooted cuttings) before the school holidays. Time enough after the holidays to catch with potting season in the nursery. Miro is a very able helper, she enjoys filling the planter bags with potting mix for me, and pots the odd plant albeit a little slower. We achieved our goal and the plants are making new growth already.
So what have we been up to for the holidays so far? A picnic in our bush down on the river boundary having boat races with montbretia leaves; Lodi and I spent a morning in town together – swimming and a visit to the Govett Brewster Art Gallery where we watched a movie of ‘Opo the Dolphin’ from the NZ Film Archives. Lodi is a real nature boy; he loves birds and animals and really enjoyed this film. He is very keen on chickens and ducks and is in the process of starting his own duck enterprise. He has a pair of Peking ducks and an Indian Runner who are laying eggs. There was great excitement on Tuesday morning as he put his first 11 duck eggs into the incubator – 28 days is a long time for young children.
We have just added two new plants to the catalogue – Hydrangea angustipetala and H. angustipetala (yellow). Both are wild species from China, with lacecap flowers. The outer bracts are cream coloured, with the later species having distinctive yellow true flowers a colour which is highly unusual in hydrangeas.
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Hydrangeas – snippets of Japanese culture
Hydrangeas are largely a northern hemisphere plant, or at least those popular in garden cultivation are derived from wild species from north of the equator. They can be found growing in East Asia, especially China, Japan and Vietnam, the U.S., Mexico, Central America and a little below the equator in Andean Equador and Peru. This post focuses on aspects of Japanese Hydrangea culture.
Hydrangeas have been cultivated and appreciated in East Asia for centuries, though it is understood that popularity increased there in the 17th and 18th centuries. Some species native to Japan and popular in world hydrangea cultivation today include H. macrophylla, H. paniculata and H. serrata.
Michael Hawarth-Booth in his well-known book ‘The Hydrangeas’ (1950) wrote;
“Among the wooded hills and shores of Japan, among the beautiful Red or Black Pines leaning picturesquely away from the wind, among the fretted lava rocks or the myriad tiny islets often planted by nature with blood-red Azalea, smoke-blue Wisteria and the wild white Rose, like the scene of a fairy story, the ancestral wild Hydrangeas grow”.
Reading a Japanese local contributors blog site (TsukuBlog from Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan) I learned that Japan experiences a month long rainy season (tsuyu), ending in mid-July when appreciation of natural beauty is ripe. Many Japanese consider AJISAI (or Hydrangea) to be the quintessential flower of this season, when wet and enshrouded in mist. While numerous modern varieties include pinks and whites, the original Japanese name Ajisai means a GATHERING OF BLUES.
The preceding paragraph provides context to a July 2012 GREENPEACE feature story I stumbled across on the web while researching this post – ‘The emerging power of Japan’s ‘Hydrangea’ revolution’. This is a protest against the Japanese government’s decision to restart the Ohi nuclear plant, just 18 months after the devastating tsunami and resulting nuclear Fukushima nuclear disaster.
‘… [the Hydrangea is] a flower the Japanese have traditionally loved because it blooms in June and July, giving hope during the dark, rainy season. Born out of the aftermath of arguably one of Japan’s darkest hours, the movement offers hope and is gathering in numbers – similar to how the Hydrangea forms its flower; each small flower bunches together to form a bigger, more vibrant, flower’.
Who would have thought the Hydrangea would take on this edgy symbolism!
Referred to in preparing this post; C & D Van Gelderen, Encyclopedia of Hydrangeas (2004); G Church, Hydrangeas (2007); Michael Hawarth-Booth, The Hydrangeas (1950); Green peace website (The emerging power of Japan’s ‘Hydrangea’ revolution, 24 Sept 2012); TsukuBlog, Hydrangea in Japanese History and Culture (20 June 2012).
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Living at Woodleigh Nursery
Here at Woodleigh Nursery we live, work and play on a few acres of land; 5km from the coast and 12 km from central New Plymouth. The land is well suited to horticulture with a good balance of flat loamy volcanic soils, a few easy sidlings, some bush and a nice sized stony stream on the back boundary. Our main limitation would be wind, and we can assure you that Taranaki is a somewhat breezy place. And that has been a key task for us over the winter months around selling plants – managing shelter plantings.
In three years we have established a network of shelter belts and other plantings to provide shelter function, coupled with other values such as an arboretum or collection of trees and shrubs, habitat for indigenous birds etc, amenity, stock fodder and fuel wood. Part of the weekend just past was spent crown lifting and dead-wooding an old existing belt of pohutukawa in order to optimise under-plantings of native shrubs and to generate mulch for our stock beds and open ground beds of Hydrangea paniculata. A future post will be dedicated to brushwood mulch, an important resource in any garden, landscape or park.
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
A touch of spring 2012 at Woodleigh Nursery
Welcome to our first ‘news’ post since the launch of our website earlier in the year. This post will be followed by regular informal updates of the ‘goings on’ at Woodleigh Nursery, of Hydrangeas, and the other lines of plants we are in the process of developing or simply interested in.
It has been a busy year; building nursery infrastructure, moving existing stock to our new nursery, propagating and managing stock, planting and mulching stock beds, establishing and upgrading admin systems and databases, implementing marketing information such as catalogues, advertisements and this website, and of course working with you, our customers, to the best of our ability.
While we are already quite familiar with them, we have become immersed in the whole world of Hydrangeas and are thrilled with where we are today! And so it is good to feel the onset of what is our second spring as Woodleigh Nursery; the positivity of the new season with promises for a good year ahead. The sales stock and stock plants are initiating new growth, and their fat buds will soon flourish into lush foliage, to be followed later by their terrific floral display. The nursery when in bloom is a real picture.
Janica and Quin Amoore Woodleigh Nursery 300 Mountain Road RD 3 New Plymouth 4373
Tel 06 752 0830 | Cell 021 072 7394 (phone or text) | Email janica@woodleigh.co.nz
Woodleigh Nursery 