Nerine – a common frost survivor

The common white Nerine has proved more frost hardy than its pink and scarlet cousins. Photo by Dierdre Brown

Survivors

The gardening dictionary lists most varieties of Nerine as frost tender, which explains why they no longer exist in this garden at Dunorlan.

At the time of writing, this district experienced its first frost of the season. The only Nerine remaining is the common white variety, a form of N. bowdenii pictured here by Deirdre Brown. This was dug up from an old neglected garden.

Just a few among more colourful varieties which have fallen victim to frost and no longer exist here, are N. bowdenii (rose pink) and N. curvifolia (scarlet).

There are several other varieties, all either rose pink or scarlet.

Vegetables

Although the garden guide suggests garden peas can be sown in June, there is a danger of their being wiped out by a late frost if flowering in November. Spinach and winter lettuce, those that can be picked leaf by leaf, are the only leafy vegetables which are eminently suitable for the coldest weather, the colder the better.

Silver beet is usually substituted for spinach when the weather is too warm for spinach. As both spinach and winter lettuce enjoy similar growing conditions, they may be sown alongside each other.

Sow seeds direct into well prepared well manured soil and add liquid manure every two weeks when they begin to grow. Thin them out to 30cm apart at around 8 weeks. Both should be ready to harvest in 8 to 12 weeks.