Ask an expert

YOUR GARDENING QUESTIONS THIS MONTH

QAN APPLE A DAY The article on the best fruit for school orchards in the April issue is great. What's the best way to get my children's school to start an orchard?

ANARU BICKFORD, AUCKLAND

ASchool orchards are now so common it is unlikely that staff at the school are unaware of the idea but it may not be high on their priority list as there are so many other calls on their time and resources.

You'll need to do the hard yards so think about what you can do to get a school orchard underway.

Talk to teachers, other parents and the Parent Teacher Association to gauge if there is interest and commitment to the idea and a pool of volunteers.

Think about a possible site for the orchard, funding, sponsorship from the community, any possible safety concerns and who is going to do the work including ongoing maintenance.

You may then have an opportunity to present your plan to the staff and parents.

No space at the school? Consider trying to start a neighbourhood community orchard instead.

Barbara Smith

QSCENT OF SUCCESS I have had no success with luculia cuttings. The few cuttings that sprout new leaves die despite their sheltered, warm, semishaded position. When is the best time to take cuttings? Which part of the plant should be used for cuttings and what is the best rooting hormone?

HANS BAKKER, AUCKLAND

AWe asked Janica Amoore from Woodleigh Nursery in Taranaki for advice. Janica says that you are on the right track but luculia cuttings are a bit temperamental.

Here is Janica's method. Propagate from semi-hardwood cuttings taken in late December or early January. She uses Dynaroot (IBA) rooting hormone #2 for semi-hardwood cuttings.

Tip cuttings are the best, she says, approximately 1-15cm in length with three to four nodes.

Remove the lower leaves and reduce the leaf area of remaining leaves to reduce transpiration loss.

The cuttings are best kept under mist or in a cold frame to maintain humidity at all times.

The scent of luculias in full bloom is glorious. Better luck with another batch of cuttings next summer.

Barbara Smith

QDON’T BOTHER ME This plant grew in soil that came from a market garden where vege plants were being trialled. The pods look a bit like gooseberries and a friend thought it might be tomatillo plant and the fruits could be cooked and eaten when green. What is it? VICKI BECK, ALBANY

AIt’s shoo-fly ( Nicandraphy-salodes) also known as apple of Peru. Despite this misleading name and its similarity to gooseberries and tomatillos it is not edible. It is a member of the nightshade family and all parts are poisonous.

Shoo-fly has a mixed reputation. It is highly sought after by some gardeners who grow it for its pretty flowers and its reputed ability to repel flies. Get Growing reader Mari Hewson grows a pot of shoo-fly just inside her greenhouse door. Mari says she still gets bees and ladybirds visiting but hasn’t had whitefly or aphids for years.

However, she does warn that the seedheads should be removed before they dry and split open as they contain hundreds of tiny seeds that quickly become a weedy pest. It is seen in pasture and on waste ground as a weed.

Garden writer Wally Richards reports shoo-fly is said to work by attracting white fly away from your other plants. It certainly attracts clouds of white fly but may act as a host plant from which they spread to other nearby plants. Barbara Smith

QRELATIVE RISK I saw the beautiful climber Actinidia kolomikta in England and have searched for it ever since. World Seeds in UK stock the seed but said I’d need an import licence to bring it into New Zealand. Are plants or seeds available here? PAMELA PUTLAND, DRURY

ANZ Gardener writer Neil Ross also has a soft spot for Actinidia kolomikta because of its unique leaves that look like they have been tagged by graffiti artists. Not every leaf, but most, bear white tips which age to pink.

This twining vine is long-lived and vigorous, ideal for a shaded wall if it is well wired. But protect the base from cats, who find it irresistible.

Originating in Korea, China and Japan, it is an unusual relative of kiwifruit ( Actinidia deliciosa) and kiwiberries ( Actinidia arguta).

There are Actinidia kolomikta plants in New Zealand and they used to be available from several nurseries. However, as a kiwifruit relative, it has the potential to host the virus Psa which has had such a devastating effect on our kiwifruit industry.

Karen Lowry, Compliance & Surveillance Advisor at Kiwifruit Vine Health, confirms that the Psa-V National Pest Management Plan covers all Actinidia species so there are movement controls and requirements for those who grow such plants. Only certified nurseries who supply commercial growers are currently growing kiwifruit varieties for sale. Barbara Smith