DFB's Greenthumb Project

[Tonz]

If buying by the bag are the standards (number of ticks) still relevant or just a safety net, How does a business get their bags ticked ...if they care.
I recently say mitre 10 selling compost 4 bags $20. couple were looking at them and as I walked passed, quietly mentioned buy that and your plant will be dead in few weeks.

[Citroënbender]

Is it possible the sand used in this Premium mix, includes a portion of envirosand? That would explain the alkalinity, being from mortar.

[DFB FGXR6]

Originally Posted by Tonz

If buying by the bag are the standards (number of ticks) still relevant or just a safety net, How does a business get their bags ticked ...if they care.
I recently say mitre 10 selling compost 4 bags $20. couple were looking at them and as I walked passed, quietly mentioned buy that and your plant will be dead in few weeks.

Garden soils don't get graded like potting mixes do. The composition of soil and potting mix is also different.

Bulk garden soils obtained by a landscape supply yard are a blend of various components including raw soil, sand, compost and manure.

Potting Mix is made from composted bark chips.

There is a two-tier system for grading potting mix in Australia, Standard and Premium. Each potting mix must be tested and approved to display those logos. If a bag of potting mix does not have either logo, it is not considered to meet Australian Standards.

"Standard" potting mix will have the black logo and generally contains no added fertiliser or wetting agents. These mixes are of course cheaper and are best suited to short term plants, say for flowering annuals. It's then up to the buyer to add fertiliser if using the mix for more than 6 - 8 months.

"Premium" potting mix will have the red logo and are suited to longer term plantings. Think a lemon tree or perhaps a potted feature tree. These mixes contain slow-release fertiliser and wetting agents.

Each mix, standard or premium, will offer different properties to tailor to application. For example, there are specific mix's for natives or even one best suited to Camellia's. However, I tend to just buy a general-purpose mix with the premium logo and then tailor the feed to a plants requirements.

It's also important to note that potting mixes are just that, for using in pots. Don't use potting mix when planting in the ground, they do nothing for the soil and encourage a plants root system to stay in that "happiness" zone and not develop deeply.

Also never add other elements to a potting unless otherwise required. Each mix is designed to offer a balance of water and nutrient holding ability and at the same time, drain correctly. Adding garden soil or compost alters that fine balance and, in some cases, block the drainage holes as the soil and potting mix settle. The only time this would differ would be adding something like Perlite or Vermiculite to increase drainage for sensitive plants, think African Violets.

In terms of price, you get what you pay for. A cheap mix will last months and will often become hydrophobic, an expensive mix will last 5 - 7 years. Always consider how long a plant will be in the pot and choose a potting mix to suit.

For context, we only sell Debco premium potting mixes as we believe it's money well spent, especially if the plant will be a feature or indoors.

Our base line mix is this, suitable for shorter term plantings. (12-18 months) -

https://www.lovethegarden.com/au-en/...otting-mix-25l

Our ultra premium mix is Pot Power. This is expensive but by far the best available. Use this for longer term or indoor plants. (Up to 7 years) -

https://www.lovethegarden.com/au-en/...otting-mix-25l

[DFB FGXR6]

Originally Posted by Citroënbender

Is it possible the sand used in this Premium mix, includes a portion of envirosand? That would explain the alkalinity, being from mortar.

That's something I forgot to expand on in my previous post.

Three components make up this soil, which is blended and then sold to the general public -

Sand - this can be either range from alkaline to acidic, most often alkaline though.

Cow Manure - when aged and composted, this is pH neutral.

Composted Green Waste - unknown pH.

As I alluded to, it's either the sand or compost that is causing this alkalinity. Obviously these companies, both the blenders and retail level suppliers, don't like being told their product is not fit for purpose, finding the actual culprit would be very difficult.

[Citroënbender]

Surely compost is likely to be acidic-to-neutral?

The more I consider it the more I reckon they’re using sand with a blend from crushed recycled masonry. See if the crushers will tell you who buys it.

[DFB FGXR6]

Originally Posted by Citroënbender

Surely compost is likely to be acidic-to-neutral?

The more I consider it the more I reckon they’re using sand with a blend from crushed recycled masonry. See if the crushers will tell you who buys it.

Generally, yes.

I wonder if the composting method could be a factor as well, as in have they been adding something speed up the process.

This is the compost supplier -
https://www.westerncompost.com.au/

Myself, I have always tended to suspect it was the sand they use in the blend. Either way, these companies have shown no indication they intend to fix the issue, knowing for sure what is causing the alkalinity is not going to solve the problem. Important to note this has been going on for over 10 years now.

[DFB FGXR6]

Catching up on work today after being rained out two weeks in a row.

Last job of the day was one I didn't want to do. I got this small job next to my number 1 customer last year, as such I thought it would be a convenient add to my run. Except she only contacts me when the grass is more than ankle deep and I don't make any money out of it. You can see where I mow regularly on a diagonal in this pic.



That pic is after smashing the edges back into shape and slashing down any taller growth to help the mower out a bit. It's a rare occasion where I run the brush-cutter at wide open throttle for extended periods. Most of my work is regular services, so I'm really only maintaining an edge rather than beating it into submission. This is the only occasion where I would want a little extra grunt from the machine, it's lightness wins overall though.

I would normally do this job with a two-stroke Victa, I just did not have the time or space on the ute for a second machine today. The Bushranger went better than I thought. Using the brush-cutter to smash down the taller stuff helped. The nature strip I had to double cut, as in cut on the highest setting then adjust down to the desired height.



Cuts are now out to 3-4 weeks so I will hopefully have a lighter workload next week.

[DFB FGXR6]

It's that time of the year again, this Camellia from my garden is on full show now.

[DFB FGXR6]

Our secondary supplier delivered today, most of which were fruit trees.





Wearing my new apron, a little out of place I suppose, I don't care though! Maybe I'll pick up some business from it.







Most of it is now buried, with a little bit to go tomorrow.

[DFB FGXR6]

One of the few native plants that I really like, Grevillea lanigera ‘Mt Tamboritha’ is in it's element at the moment.



This plant is considered a groundcover, but it can reach 50cm in height and can cover up to 1.5 meters. It's also very adaptable, tolerating frost and drought as well as a wide range of soil types, from sand to clay.

What I like about this plant though is the soft and dense foliage, its pretty little flowers and the ability to blend into non-native plantings.

[roKWiz]

Originally Posted by DFB FGXR6

One of the few native plants that I really like, Grevillea lanigera ‘Mt Tamboritha’ is in it's element at the moment.

image

This plant is considered a groundcover, but it can reach 50cm in height and can cover up to 1.5 meters. It's also very adaptable, tolerating frost and drought as well as a wide range of soil types, from sand to clay.

What I like about this plant though is the soft and dense foliage, its pretty little flowers and the ability to blend into non-native plantings.

The three (Billy, Dusty and Frank) planted down the front last year are starting to go crazy finally. Little Eastern Spinebills are flocking to them in Winter.

[DFB FGXR6]

Cleaning off a decade's worth of funk from the concrete paths at work. Slow going but I have the patience to do it. Nearly halfway through it at the moment.

[roKWiz]

Originally Posted by DFB FGXR6

Cleaning off a decade's worth of funk from the concrete paths at work. Slow going but I have the patience to do it. Nearly halfway through it at the moment.

Man, You're dedicated.

[Citroënbender]

It’s given me a Parliament earworm. “We want the funk”…

[Citroënbender]

Propagation question for you.

Do any of the tree suppliers offer propagation of one’s own stock - eg, grafting from cuttings of your existing trees?

[DFB FGXR6]

Originally Posted by Citroënbender

Propagation question for you.

Do any of the tree suppliers offer propagation of one’s own stock - eg, grafting from cuttings of your existing trees?

Not that I'm aware of. It would be a matter of finding someone who do such work.

[DFB FGXR6]

Continued my way around the path this week, turning them from black to red/grey.





These sections were the worst and slowest going. For whatever reason, being in the direct sun seemed to bake the funk onto the concrete more than shaded areas. I'm not crazy about the visible lines left by the process, but I feel this looks much cleaner and safer to walk on. I also spent time yesterday raking the adjoining gravel back up to the concrete edge to cover up the black sludge deposited during the process.

I would have finished the whole thing, but our year's supply of Citrus trees turned up and therefore diverted my attention.

These trees are grown by a very old school horticulturalist who would have to be in his late 70's. The trees are field grown, dug up by HAND, potted and then left to settle for a period of time. This gentleman also grows a selection of bare root trees, again all field grown and all hand dug. I don't know how he does it, especially at that age!





Processing them once unloaded and sorted into varieties, any weeds are removed, a small amount of fertiliser is added along with a topping of potting mix. I then prune each tree to shape before loading them onto pallets. Putting them into stock, I use stringlines to get a neat appearance and price labels are all faced in the same direction for easier shopping.

I did not take a final pic though as a second load will arrive mid-week, along with bare rooted birch, weeping Mulberries and weeping Apricots. Busy, busy..........

[FTE217]

Love doing the same type of gurney work - so satisfying when done looks great DFB.

Well you got to do what you got to when living in a bush environment like us and this motha has concerned us being not even 10mtrs from the house and the bedrooms being first point of contact.
Been a challenge getting loppers not just for the amount of work they have today but also the access doing this job another so we were ghosted as I’m told nowadays a few times but finally got a crowd willing to get on with it + 3 other medium size ones being another gum and 2 turps.
Massive job as you can see and I commend the climbers for needed 2 being the large tree really tested his stamina and by the end they suffer muscle cramping as expected.
Dropping the large limbs watching was a work of art - a inexperienced crew surely would have damaged the house and likely our pathways - pretty impressive overall.







The above stump is left to do in the morning……
Next pics are the baby’s being cut



As you can tell a bit of culling won’t take away from the amount of trees around us…..
And some left overs that they put on FB and pretty much all gone by tonight to many homes with fireplaces


DFB I have enough work ahead of me now with rebuilding 2 small sandstone retaining walls and re do the garden bed - looking forward to it but I wish roKwiz was close by to quote on some of his Great Wall work


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[DFB FGXR6]

Originally Posted by FTE217

Love doing the same type of gurney work - so satisfying when done looks great DFB.

Well you got to do what you got to when living in a bush environment like us and this motha has concerned us being not even 10mtrs from the house and the bedrooms being first point of contact.
Been a challenge getting loppers not just for the amount of work they have today but also the access doing this job another so we were ghosted as I’m told nowadays a few times but finally got a crowd willing to get on with it + 3 other medium size ones being another gum and 2 turps.
Massive job as you can see and I commend the climbers for needed 2 being the large tree really tested his stamina and by the end they suffer muscle cramping as expected.
Dropping the large limbs watching was a work of art - a inexperienced crew surely would have damaged the house and likely our pathways - pretty impressive overall.
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The above stump is left to do in the morning……
Next pics are the baby’s being cut
image
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As you can tell a bit of culling won’t take away from the amount of trees around us…..
And some left overs that they put on FB and pretty much all gone by tonight to many homes with fireplaces
image

DFB I have enough work ahead of me now with rebuilding 2 small sandstone retaining walls and re do the garden bed - looking forward to it but I wish roKwiz was close by to quote on some of his Great Wall work


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I get scared being on the third step of a ladder let alone being up a tree like that, better them than me!

[FTE217]

Agreed - they are a breed and a half, no fear !


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[Tonz]

dang some nice timber in that lot for sealing up, letting it dry then wood turning...fireplaces what a waste

[FTE217]

Not wasted one bit Tonz......
Apart from me keeping a tonne or so, my brother taking a tonne the rest on the nature strip has all been picked up by hungry fireplace owners.
Every single piece might I add - gone.
Loppers post it on FB markplace - I had to fend off people now and then looking to take my bro's stash lol......unbelieveable but so glad all gone to good use for next winter.

I'm sure some people will not use it all for firewood.
I have kept pieces to make some stools, my wife likes me to screw on coasters on some, decent size out door table tops etc, I'll rub them down and varnish or oil pieces.
She even didn't want to take the trunk to ground, its left standing around 3mtrs, she wants to make a feature. Well more like get me to work on her "vision"

[Citroënbender]

A feature? Are you going to farm white ants?

[prydey]

I've had 3 palm trees removed and watched the same crew take out a gum tree the next street over. Definitely not for the faint hearted and amazing to watch them work, especially how they tie off branches to give them a controlled fall. Impressive stuff. Great pics FTE.

[roKWiz]

Originally Posted by FTE217

DFB I have enough work ahead of me now with rebuilding 2 small sandstone retaining walls and re do the garden bed - looking forward to it but I wish roKwiz was close by to quote on some of his Great Wall work


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Looks like Avalon ? Always fixing stuff there.

[DFB FGXR6]

Cleaning up leaves from 13 ornamental Pear tree's, a three-hour job with two trips to the green waste tip.











This will be the last time I do this job as the property has just been sold. I was quietly hoping it would be sold and settled before having to this clean up.

[DFB FGXR6]

The result of two adolescent Golden Retrievers............





This chewed up one only lasted a week! Was not impressed!

[Citroënbender]

Lab experiment? Or did they just want two inches of hose because adolescents?

[FTE217]

Originally Posted by Citroënbender

A feature? Are you going to farm white ants?

......
Mate already here long ago and obviously typical bush areas, that trunk centre they been at it about a qrtr of it worked on from the centre, hence why glad to get it down before one of those mad storm nights again - been a lottery tbh.

[FTE217]

Originally Posted by roKWiz

Looks like Avalon ? Always fixing stuff there.

nah not far from Terry Hills.
Yep always doing repairs be it rain hail shine in these parts.