Episode: #6 7/10/2006
Presenter: Sue McDougall

The sandy soils of WA are some of the least fertile in the world. Many people who move to WA from other parts of Australia and start a garden are often amazed at how we get anything to grow. They have never seen soil like it. Well we can tell them the secret to gardening in WA isn?t really a secret at all, but it is all to do with the soil and improving it.

Spend most of your budget and effort on improving the soil and the hard work is done. It is a pity we can?t look under the soil surface to see what happens to water in unimproved soil.

Once we improve the soil with soil improver, the organic matter holds the water around the roots system of the plant where it is needed and then the microbes, worms and other beneficial bacteria can start work on improving the fertility and converting fertiliser into a form that the plant can take up. The end result is a much healthier plant.

Many landscapers are planting advanced trees to give an instant effect to a garden. These trees can be in large planter bags or grown in the ground and dug out when they are being transplanted, but a few small bags from the garden centre are not going to go far so we have called Need a Bin.

This idea is the brainchild of Biowise. You can get 4 cubic metres of soil improver delivered, it is tipped out and you then have the use of the skip bin for a week to fill up with rubbish. You can put almost anything in the bin except liquids and hazardous waste.

To give a large advanced tree the best start and reduce transplant shock dig a very big hole and then incorporate the soil improver around it. Many landscapers use Biowise because it has the Australian Standards mark and when a client is investing in large advanced trees, they need to know the soil improver is going to give the best results possible. The same goes for when establishing garden beds in your own backyard

Once the tree is in back, fill the hole with a mixture of existing soil and Biowise. At this stage add some water storing granules to hold extra water around the roots.

One of the secrets is getting all the air bubbles out so stick the hose in around the roots.

Next time you have a big clean up planned ring Need a Bin, because you can get the garden thriving at the same time.

Need a Bin
116 Kurnall Rd WELSHPOOL WA 6106
Phone: (08) 9356 8400
Facsimile: (08) 9458 7918
Email: needabin@sita.com.au

BioWise
116 Kurnall Rd WELSHPOOL WA 6106
Phone: (08) 9410 0477
Facsimile: (08) 9351 8030
Email: biowise@sita.com.au

www.biowise.com.au