Now is an ideal time to get planting, gardening expert Hannah Zwartz says.

While you can plant at any time of the year, even with our recent dry spell in many parts of New Zealand, there is still more moisture in the soil, she says.

“As the days get cooler, even if it’s not raining, we’re getting quite a heavy dew, and so there is more moisture around. So that’s what makes it a better time to plant.”

Planted now, shrubs, trees and veges will still develop sturdy roots, she says.

“It’s a good balanced time to get some stuff in the ground.”

Before you get to the planting stage, have a good look at the roots before taking it out of the pot, she says.

“Turn it over and have a look at the bottom, because if you buy a plant that has been in that pot for too long and is very root-bound, even when you plant it in the ground, it’s going to suffer. It’s like the foot-binding. It’s going to take a while to grow out into the surrounding soil.”

Rather than the traditional advice of untangling those cramped roots, it’s better to make some cuts, she says.

“If you have a plant that’s a bit root-bound, just slice the roots downwards with your secateurs. Once you’ve taken it out of the pot, you just slice, chop a four or five cuts lengthwise or across the bottom if it’s really tangled in the bottom.

“And the roots will grow from those cuts, so you don’t need to get in there and untangle, disturb the whole thing.”

And don’t replicate the conditions of the pot when it comes to planting, she says.

“If you have really heavy clay soil, you don’t want to dig a big hole and then fill it with compost because again, the roots won’t spread out.”

You want the roots to spread out into the surrounding soil, searching for food and water, she says.

“If you put too much compost in the root hole, they will do the same thing and go round and round in a circle and not really spread out, which is what will stabilise them and make them stronger.”

Hannah Zwartz. Photo / RNZ, Sally Round

Spacing and size

Often, it’s better to choose a smaller plant from the get-go, she says.

“People will go and spend a lot of money on quite a big plant, but when you put it in the ground, if you planted one that’s half the size at the same time, it will often catch up in a few years.

“And that’s because of the root system, because it’s unnatural for a large plant to be in a pot and the roots will take a while to get into the surrounding ground. So you don’t need to go for the biggest plant.”

When it comes to spacing, gardeners have to think in four dimensions, she says, and imagine how a plant will look in the future.

“Whether it’s a cauliflower or a lavender bush or a tree, imagine whatever it is when it comes to maturity.

“You want a big fat cauliflower. You don’t want to put it right next to a million other cauliflowers. You want a beautiful lavender bush. You don’t want to put it right next to the path because it’s going to keep, you’re going to have to keep chopping it and then it will look all funny on one side.”

RNZ