Autumn Gardening Essentials

Mums, Grandmothers and the special women in your life can be pampered on Mother's Day with a beautiful plant or gardening gift. Here are some gift thought starters to help make it easy.

• Herb pot - a rustic terracotta pot planted with a combination of Mediterranean herbs like rosemary, thyme, sage and oregano is a practical and beautifully fragrant gift. These herbs like a full sun position, keep the potting mix slightly moist and feed every 1 - 2 weeks with Yates Thrive Natural Vegie & Herb Liquid Plant Food to promote lots of leaf growth.
• A 'mum' for a Mum - chrysanthemums, often called 'mums', are a Mother's Day favourite. From pale pastel pinks and mauves to vibrant yellows and oranges, you can choose the recipient's favourite colour. Dwarf chrysanthemums arepot-perfect and team beautifully with a lightweight terracotta or dark grey coloured Yates Tuscan pot.

• Gift tip! A gift of some gardening time for Mum will always be welcome too. Offer to prune some hedges, spread some mulch, plant a flower bed, mow the lawn or prepare a vegie patch.

Cast your mind forward to spring when you could be burying your nose in a posy of fragrant home-grown sweet peas. Best grown from seed, autumn is the time to sow sweet pea seeds. St Patrick's Day (March 17^th) has been the traditional time to sow sweet peas, though if the weather is still warm it's best to delay sowing untilApril. To cover a fence in sweet peas, look for tall growing varieties like heavily perfumed Yates Sweet Pea 'Old Fashioned' or for pots and hanging baskets, Yates Sweet Pea 'Bijou' is delightfully colourful and compact.

Wet weather or poorly drained soil can lead to the development of collar and root rot diseases. These diseases affect the ability of plants to effectively absorb moisture and plants can, confusingly, appear wilted. Citrus and avocado trees and many Australian native plants can be particularly susceptible.Yates Anti Rot Phosacid Systemic Fungicide can be applied as a foliar spray during autumn and the fungicide travels down through the plant and into the stems and roots to target root and collar rot diseases.

Moth orchids (Phalaenopsis spp.) are at their floral best as the weather cools down and are a gorgeous gift option for Mother's Day. To create the perfect foundation for orchids, choose a specially formulated and free draining potting mix like Yates Specialty Potting Mix Orchids. And feed orchids every two months with Yates Thrive Plant Food Spikes Orchids, which promote healthy leaf growth and lots of beautiful flowers. Keep your moth orchid in a brightly lit position indoors but away from direct light.