IN YOUR GARDEN

We’re not quite yet done with winter, but it is certainly time to start planning and planting for warmer weather. Remember, spring is just around the corner and Plantland is stocked to the brim with instant colour. Don’t forget to put out seeds for our feathered friends, which are slowly returning to the garden!

Colour In The Garden

Go on the colour run in your garden with annuals: Trays of pretty flowering snapdragon seedlings, both the tall and dwarf varieties, are available now at Plantland. Also remember that you can still plant pansies and violas, which will flower till late summer if set out in cooler areas of the garden with morning sun and afternoon shade – they will be in full flower at your favourite Plantland now, so you will be able to choose the colours you love!

Petunias, whether purchased in trays, hanging baskets or small pots, are always a winner at this time of year. They are not fussy and simply require a sunny spot with regular removal of the spent flowers. Feed them regularly with a liquid plant food (Nitrosol or Guanoflow) and they will go on for months in your garden, providing splashes of colour!

Rose Colours And Their Meanings

A Kiss Of Red Seen as a reflection of the perfect beauty, the classic red rose is a traditional symbol of love and romance. The deeper the red, the more ‘unconscious’ its beauty. And like true love, endures endlessly. Explore our favourite red rose varieties below:

Builders Passion Red: Evocative and fullbodied, Builders Passion roses have a bright red colour that intensifies with age. Grey Kollege Rose: Named after the boys’ school, Grey College, in Bloemfontein, Grey Kollege roses are long-stemmed and have an exquisite red colour.

Blushing Pink Delicate and sweet, the pale pink of a rose denotes feelings of affection and gentleness, and are often associated with admiration and happiness. The

Bloomin Easy Rose: A modern bouquet rose, the Bloomin Easy pink rose plant produces double pink flowers on each stem, with thick, bushy growth.

My Granny: One of our most popular roses, My Granny is a spreading shrub rose, with light pink, rosette-shaped blooms. Princess Charlene De Monaco: Fresh and beautiful, and fit for a South African princess. These roses are pastel pink with a slight ochre tint.

Sunshine Yellow Feelings of warmth and associations of friendliness define the bright and cheerful yellow rose. They are often given in bouquets as a token of friendship and joy. Here are some of our most treasured yellow rose shrubs:

Stodels Beauty: This rose shrub yields distinctive, bright golden-yellow blooms with a small red edge. Germiston Gold: The floriferous Germiston Gold produces a magnificent display of golden-yellow roses with sharp, pointed buds.

Pure white Pure and unassuming, the crisp white rose represents innocence and charm, and is often associated with

GARDENING new beginnings. There are plenty of gorgeous white roses to choose from for your rose garden, but we’ve picked out our top three for you below:

Iceberg: South Africa’s rose garden number one, the free-flowering Iceberg plant yields stunning white roses in abundance. Flower Carpet: As its name suggests, the deciduous Flower Carpet spreads into a thick bush of pure white roses.

Electric Orange The vibrant orange rose symbolises energy and excitement, a passionate desire and romantic connection. If you’re interested in planting orange roses in your garden, consider these:

Nelson Mandela Rose: Named in honour of Nelson Mandela, these fiery orange roses are disease-resistant and grow to more than a metre in height. Just Joey: With its fruity fragrance and large, copper-apricot-coloured double roses, Just Joey is a rose garden go-to.

Perfect Peach A symbol of appreciation, the soft and elegantlooking peach rose expressed gratitude for a relationship. If you love peach roses as much as we do, take a look at this variety:

Bloomin Easy Rose: This scented, climbing rose shrub produces cream-peach blooms with undertones of pink.

Is your rose garden feeling the love?

Now that you know the different rose colour meanings, all that’s left to do is order your flowers so you can get planting. So go on, get on those gardening gloves and show your rose garden some TLC this month.

Go for flower power with Osteospermum, they are great for rock gardens and containers, or wherever bright splashes of colour are needed. Hurry to get yours at your favourite Plantland branch. Then chase away the last winter blues with Nemesia hybrids. Most are compact and sweetly scented and will flower repeatedly after a light trim. Another option

We are blessed with many different types of vivacious vygies, succulent groundcovers and delospermums that can definitely take spring to a more colourful dimension when they smother themselves in luminous, satiny flowers. The Vygie Purple Parade is an all-time favourite.

Pelargoniums are at their best at this time of the year, and there are lots of species and hybrids to choose from. They are great in the garden and lovely for pots, especially hanging baskets, and can supply colour all summer long.

Revive the Lawn

It’s time for the ‘spring treatment’, which means a low cut, firm raking, spiking, generous feeding, levelling out and covering with a nutritious blanket of organic Malanseuns lawn dressing available at every Plantland branch. There are many good, reliable products available that will wake your lawn up from its winter sleep, and 7.1.3 form Efekto or Protek is a firm favourite! This is normally done in August, while September is still fine for colder areas. However, this treatment should only be applied to runner-type lawns like kikuyu. For more tips and tricks regarding lawn Plantland has all the knowledge you will need to get that luscious green lawn you dream of.