----- Original Message -----
From:
k*@bigpond.net.au
To: m*@ucdavis.edu
A local guru/mystic/con-man has declared that our
drought is over as of the 23rd Feb. I chose to believe, and so I had a look at
the plantations we planted in early summer. 86% of the acacias, local and
non-local species survived. Only one non local species did badly - 2%, so I
ignored it in the results. The rest survived, not only the dry but attack by
hare, in fact thrived. 60% of banksias, all local species, survived, but they
are not putting out new growth. 100% callistemons, none of them local species,
survived. 115% of the Correa alba, supposed to be a local species survived.
How it comes about that we have more than we planted I don't know but some of
them seem to have pupped. Bits of twig dropped by the hare spontaneously
developing roots??? Strangers breaking in and planting them in the middle of
the night??? I counted incorrectly - more likely, but in my defence I did
propagate them and I counted them several times. Only around 10% of various
eucalypt types, mostly local species, survived. This does not seem to be a
result of the depredations of the hare. Plants not pruned by the animal did
not survive any better than than those that were. We will try replacing
the eucalypts in our autumn planting. All these plants were planted into
very dry soil that had been given one soaking, overnight. The plants
themselves were soaked overnight, planted early in the day, and mulched with
bark. They have recieved no water since planting.
It is a good thing most Australian plants are
already naturally drought-proofed but I am sure your success was at least
partly due to planting fully turgid stock. Initially adequate water is very
helpful in getting plants over planting shock even in naturally
moist conditions.
The poor result with Eucalypts though seems a bit
surprising as you apparently can't blame the hares.Were they perhaps species
which like to grow along watercourses?
The Correas seem very odd, perhaps they did
somehow manage to reproduce!?!
As to the Banksias, my impression of growing them
here is that they like to have al ong period of summer dormancy and a short
period of growth during winter rains. I know local gardening books warn
against giving them summer wateriing. ( I don't have any myself any more, but
wonder how they would have coped with all the unseasonal rain we had over the
first half of summer this year.)
A 'garden' bed of various non local shrubs that
we planted at about the same time has lost only one plant - a grevillia. We
sprayed the area for weeds, covered the ground with weed mat, and then
followed the same planting regime as we had for the 'plantations' and the
plants have done brilliantly. They have in some cases doubled in size. The
weed mat hasn't exactly prevented weeds from emerging and the whole strip
looks lush and green compared to the area surrounding it. Given the extreems
this summer I am staggered at the results in this area. I wish I could afford
to cover the whole place with weed mat. The soil under this covering is not
exactly moist but neither is it so dry it is water repelant, as the rest of
the soil seems to be.
I once shared your enthusiasm for weedmat,
but later experience turned me off it, as in more than one garden I had to do
with the plants were evidently not getting enough air to the roots and most of
them quite quickly developed a secondary set of roots on top of the mat
and tended to become unthrifty if not destabilized. This applied to both
trees and small shrubs.
As you are not using the mat for weed suppression, but rather for moisture retention
you might perhaps try substituting a thick layer of newspaper or cardboard
under a bark or other natural mulch. Paper is often used successfully
here, but I suppose it might not last well if you have trouble with termites.
it apparently does not impede airflow as the plants seem to do well under it
and don't get the urge to climb out over it. if not attcked by insects it will
usually last up to two years by which time many plants will have a sufficient
root system to cope with the dry with just a simple bark or litter
mulch..
Moira
PS Global warming seems to have very odd results,
while Australia is getting massive droughts most of NZ is experiencing more
wet than usual - certainly more than we want in this area where our annual
average is on the high side anyway
