Heather Huxley has spent many years in the horticultural field, and in March 2019 was successful in obtaining the role of Program Officer Parks & Reserves with the City of Hobart, which encompasses the care of 148 parks and gardens in the metropolitan area.
The Uni Rose Garden is one of the main gardens under Heather’s care, and is located on a main entrance into the Hobart CBD. The garden features almost 700 roses with around 40 varieties. “Most of the roses were quite old and well past their prime” said Heather. “Given the condition of the roses, I made the decision to get tough – either they had to improve or we’d make the decision to remove them.”
Heather had heard about Whoflungdung through Grant Keating from Waratah – Neutrog’s distributors throughout Tasmania. “Grant had been encouraging me to use Whoflungdung, and related to me a number of stories of gardens around Australia who had great success with it, so I decided to give it a go.”
“Firstly, my team weeded and tidied. Then we pruned…and when I say pruned, the roses were virtually cut back to barely above their graft. It was extremely dramatic. The roses were then mulched with 7 pallets of Whoflungdung. My goal was to fertilise with Sudden Impact for Roses once the budget would allow, but I felt that this would be the best start for repairing this gorgeous old garden” said Heather.
By late October the roses had strong water shoots, thick glossy leaves and were massed with hundreds of huge fat buds, and Heather could not believe the positive change. The photos here show the first flush of flowers from a very late spring in 2019. “Given such positive results with Whoflungdung, I just knew we had to start feeding with Sudden Impact for Roses as well” enthused Heather.
“The summer flush of flowers was even more incredible than the spring flush! We had some very hot 40 degree days and the roses performed really, really well. Our disease rate has been very low, and I put that down to the benefits of Sudden Impact for Roses, as well as the host of ladybirds and parasitic wasps which were released. My goal is to limit or even eliminate the need for spraying altogether” said Heather.
“Healthy plants, combined with a healthy soil will always provide the best results, and to that end, we are looking forward to using GOGO Juice as well. To be able to have a diverse range of beneficial bacteria and fungi in the soil will complete the trifecta for us” concluded Heather.
At the moment, the Uni Rose Garden is under part renovation, with new paths installed and irrigation being updated. Once completed, another 500 roses will be planted, taking this beautiful garden well into the next decade and beyond.