Natalie’s garden blog September 2025 Spring gardening: summer cut flowers, grafting and flower shows and festivals

She turned to the sunlight and shook her yellow head and whispered to her neighbour “Winter is dead” – AA Milne

Spring is here, and there is much to be excited about! The spring garden is well and truly alive. It’s full of promise, and we need to play our part. What changes would we like to make ahead of summer? Are there spots in the garden calling out for a refresh, new colour, flowers or texture? Our gardens are forever positively challenging us, and inviting change.

Above: Daffodils cheerful harbingers of spring and warmer weather ahead

Seeds to sow for summer cut flowers

Summer is heading our way. This summer bring some of your garden colour indoors. Spring is an ideal time to sow or plant seedlings for cut flowers and foliage. Here are some of my favourite annuals and perennials (in no particular order):

• Lady’s mantle (Alchemia mollis)

• Queen Anne’s Lace ‘Green Mist’

• Love in a mist (Nigella damascena)

• Baby’s breath (Gypsophila)

• Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus)

• Sunflowers

• Zinnias

• Coneflowers (Echinacea)

• Dahlias

• Lilies

• Ageratum

• Amaranthus

• Campanula

• Gaura

• Delphiniums

• Sweet peas

• Dusty Miller (Jacobaea maritima)

• Hostas

  

  Above: Colourful Dahlias ready for picking

Get ready for summer watering

It’s hard to believe that in a few short weeks there will be less rainfall. Summer cut flowers however depend upon watering, especially during the hottest and driest weeks. A soaker hose or drip irrigation are great at delivering water directly to the base of your flower plants. As we all know, mulching is also really helpful in preserving soil moisture.

Propagating by grafting

Simply put grafting is taking two plant pieces (a scion and rootstock), joining them together and hoping they will grow as one. Grafting has a long history and is believed to have been practised as early as 2000 BC in ancient China. Grafting is often used to propagate roses and fruit trees, introducing desirable traits like more scented blooms, increased disease resistance or changing the size and shape of a plant.  Grafting enables growers to create new hybrid plants like the Pomato, a hybrid that produces both potatoes and tomatoes. Cherry tomatoes grow on the vine, while potatoes grow in the soil from the same plant.

Most grafting is done in winter and early spring as the plant needs to be dormant. There are three main grafting techniques and they are:

• Whip & tongue

  • ideal for fruit tree propagation

  • a slanted cut is made on both the rootstock and scion which are of a similar size

  • it’s a very reliable technique for beginners.

• Cleft

  • used to join a scion to a larger rootstock branch

  • really good for giving old trees new life

  • a great way to create a ‘fruit salad’ tree that has apples, pears and plums all growing on the same tree.

• Chip budding (bud grafting)

  • used to bud a single bud onto the rootstock

  • “T” budding is common for fruit trees, roses and ornamental plants and is usually done in the late summer (February & March)

  • an efficient technique as it uses less plant material than whip & tongue, and cleft.

Tools you will need:

• sharp grafting knife

• grafting tape or rubber bands

• wound sealer

• clean, sharp secateurs.

If you haven’t given grafting a go before, now’s the time to give whip & tongue and cleft a go! Chip budding is something you can look forward to later in summer.

Flower shows and garden festivals

There are flower shows and garden festivals aplenty coming up. It’s hard not to look forward to admiring flowers, botanical art and wandering around stunning gardens. Here are some events to keep an eye out for:

• Botanical Art Worldwide, Wellington Botanic Gardens, August 1-September 30

• Hutt Valley Horticultural Society spring show featuring bonsai and floral art, 20-21 September

• Manawatu Orchid Society, September 27-28

• Wellington Orchid Society, October 11-12

• Garden Marlborough Festival, Blenheim, November 6-9

• Centuria Taranaki Fringe Garden Festival, October 31-November 9

• Taranaki Garden Festival, October 30-4 November.

This month's gardening gems:

• Plant citrus, avocados or tamarillos after the last frost.

• Repetition in your garden creates a sense of harmony and unity.

  • It also helps draw attention to a feature like a pond, sculpture or 'hidden' part of your garden.

  • You can achieve repetition by selecting a favourite colour or planting different varieties of a plant species that you really like. For example: Gaura, Helleborus, Hydrangea, Heben, Pittosporum, Grasses and Flax. 

Thanks for reading September’s garden blog which is all about the exciting arrival of spring. Spring is a busy time in the garden. Take a breathe, get stuck in, and enjoy! I can’t wait to sow and plant some summer cut flowers. I’m happy to answer any questions on topics like grafting just ask!

Natalie Quirke

Garden designer

Dip Hort, Dip Hort Mgt, NDH