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Capes Horticulture, Cowaramup (2026)

20/12/2025

January is traditionally the peak of Mediterranean Fruit fly (or Medfly), activity in the region. Not to be confused with the Queensland Fruit fly outbreak last season, Medfly has been in WA since 1895. Whilst Busselton residents are all too familiar with these arthropods, their presence has largely been sporadic further south. However with increasing population and a climate tending warmer they’ve been showing up in more and more backyards. There are many fun facts about Medfly and plenty of elaboration to the topics below, but let’s keep it simple for facebook, and go straight to management: there are three organic options:

1. Bait
2. Lure and Trap
3. Exclusion

(Hopefully it’s needless to say that any fallen fruit should be disposed of. If it’s too numerous to pick up, running over the lot with a mower will do the trick.)

The first management option is baiting. There are a few large and expensive supplies but the only home gardener pack seems to be here:
https://www.yates.com.au/yates-200ml-natures-way-fruit-fly-control/

This is applied as droplets to the underside of leaves. 3-4 droplets per tree is sufficient The droplets should be large and need to stay fluid to be effective, thus it needs re-application weekly. It can also be applied to coloured plastic or cardboard and hung in the tree. Yellow or orange is colour of choice, and larger the better.
It can be awkward and wasteful to get a garden sprayer to apply droplets so it’s often easiest to flick the bait on with a paint brush.

Secondly, Lure and Trap. This is the more familiar solution to most, however I find it not as effective as bait. The trap and the lure liquid can be made at home, a google search will steer you there. If you’d rather buy something I’ve found Biotrap V2 with sticky traps to be the most successful, and they also make it easy to monitor Medfly activity:

https://www.pestrol.com.au/buy-online/biotrap-qld-female-fruit-fly-trap/?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=17182589695&gclid=Cj0KCQiAjJTKBhCjARIsAIMC448z4TEcsZWVZKvHA5jU7q2oDLpWgeT_k33S6W4sDHQTUOT2M8EIwsgaAiOqEALw_wcB

(Most commercial products are targeted at the larger Queensland fruit fly market over east but will also work on female Medfly in the smaller western market – it is only the male attractant that varies, and unnecessary for Medfly control)

Thirdly exclusion nets are available either as individual fruit bags or tree nets. They are effective but in the case of bags fruit must not touch the sides as Medfly can sting through. As for tree nets, they need tying off around the trunk: any access allowed to soil with give the emerging larvae access to the fruit.

https://www.sagehort.com.au/horticultural-materials/insect-mesh/page/2

Summer is the peak for Medfly activity with ripe Stone fruit their preference and their means of proliferation. However, Medfly spend much of their non-reproductive time in Citrus, where they both roost in Summer and persist through Winter. So if you happen to have Citrus nearby it is often prudent to bait or trap there. Medfly will also attack some Citrus, and Apples and Pears are susceptible too.

Any questions fire away in the comments.

06/10/2025

Now taking bookings.
Are your lawns patchy, overtaken by weeds, spongy and just not growing well?
Get your lawn refreshed and back on track with a renovation.
A Scalping/Vertimow will remove the dead lawn and thatch allowing water to pe*****te to the soil and Coring will break compaction and allow the soil to breathe again - both stimulating fresh new growth and mitigating pests and disease. And a fertiliser and Wetta soil application to give the soil nutrient and structure into the future.

Get in touch today to get a quote and find out the best way to proceed with bringing your lawn back to life.
Phone:0417977843
Email: capeshorticulture@gmail.com

21/09/2025

Now taking bookings for October.
Are your lawns patchy, overtaken by weeds, spongy and just not growing well?
Get your lawn refreshed and back on track with a renovation.

A Scalping/Vertimow will remove the dead lawn and thatch allowing water to pe*****te to the soil and Coring will break compaction and allow the soil to breathe again - both stimulating fresh new growth and mitigating pests and disease.

Get in touch today to get a quote and find out the best way to proceed with bringing your lawn back to life.

Phone:0417977843
Email: capeshorticulture@gmail.com

14/09/2025

Edible Garden management service:

I've had some inquiries from people looking for someone to maintain their Vege beds as well as fruit trees so I've decided to make this service available for anyone interested.

So from Kitchen gardens to simple backyard beds I'll be available for simple consultations through to full maintenance and management.
Phone: 0417 977 843
Email: capeshorticulture@gmail.com

14/06/2025

You’d think the din from the Chainsaw would scare them off, but between stints I continue to hear the squaks of Red Tail Cockatoo’s busily knawing on Snotty Gobble berries. There’s stillness here amongst the trees with only a faint wisp of wind in the upper canopy heralding the rain to come.

By modern standards of ‘Conservation’ collecting firewood would be considered up there with the least conservative thing one could do. However watching those Cockatoos break branches and do their best to demolish that small tree, I can’t help but notice the similarities in our actions.
The idea of protecting wilderness by leaving it to its own devices only reinforces the alienation of modern culture to the natural world. It was never the case in the past - we have always acted on and in the natural world, it is only as we’ve considered nature as something separate to ourselves that we’ve lost our way.

There is only some timber here of value to me, the rest is left behind. As I take out the fallen wood I expose more ground to the light, my activity disturbs the soil and both actions are those that give rise to the germination of life. I notice the mushroom crushed under foot and think of the spores I’ve dispersed with my boots. I see the saw dust scattered about and consider how much faster that wood will decompose and return to the soil. Finally I survey the scene and see my small act of destruction has made little impact on the landscape as a whole. I have been careful and respectful of the resource that will keep my family warm. I have not sought to profit or take more than I need. I have made a connection to the land that is not aesthetic, regretful or aloof but instead beneficial - and so I value it much more.

The Red tails have moved to the Marri’s above me now, dropping gum nuts precariously to the leaf litter below. The wind has picked up, and the haze through the valley below means rain is not far away. Thankfully the trailer is full of wood and it’s time to leave the bush to make the most of my visit.

29/04/2025

It’s been awhile between posts. A large part of the blame falls on successive bouts of illness which left me flat and uninspired for three weeks straight. As for the previous week or so I’ve been climbing the steep learning curve of Website construction…
Beyond that however, this Autumn has been odd. Usually a predictable time in the garden, this season has had an indecisive start, which seems to have rubbed off on me.
Where usually my Broccoli runs out the gate at the beginning of March, it has instead ambled along well into April. Carrots would usually take off, however this season I needed to seed twice. And this lethargy seemed to spread, not only to my health, but elsewhere too:
As I've posted in Stories, I have had issues with bad seed from suppliers. Coupled with the slow seasonal start, Seedlings have been an uphill battle Never the less I managed to have Seedlings for sale, however sales through March were mediocre at best. Given the above, as well as the business identity crisis of two Posts past, I’ve decided to give Seedling Sales away.
Seedlings begun as a means to generate funds for the garden and to connect with gardeners. Now, for the most part, the garden is largely self sufficient, and I have acquired an excellent little network of like minded gardeners and new friends. So I’m not to concerned about giving it up, as on balance it has been worth it.
And now, at the end of April, the garden seems back on course too, though something is different, and it remains to find out exactly what has happened.
The indecisiveness of the season has revealed itself as the herald of change. The garden has found it’s path and so have I, and the way onward has become clear again. I’m left enjoying one of the enigmas of gardening, who was influencing who, the garden or myself?

23/03/2025

Garden Maintenance:
With over 25 years experience in Horticulture I'm available for:
- Fruit Tree pruning, maintenance and consultations
- Lawn Mowing and lawn renovation
- General garden clean ups and regular maintenance
- Irrigation repairs
- Edible gardens
- General garden consultations
- and anything else garden related!
Phone: 0417 977 843
Email: capeshorticulture@gmail.com

22/03/2025

For the most part our Fruit trees have passed the excitement of blossom in the pleasure of fruit and are now on their way to rest, and so often they miss some needed attention.

Perhaps the most important thing to consider when our trees go to sleep is actually what happens they wake up:

The process is called re-acclimation, and basically all the energy the tree puts into flower and leaf production during this process comes from stores accumulated in late Summer/Autumn. More simply, at this moment your Fruit trees are in the process of readying themselves for flowering.
Now this fact inclines some authorities to suggest now is a good time for fertilizing. I’d suggest it’s more of a case of ‘maybe’

It’s best to judge these things based on the trees performance through the Season. This can be ascertained by the seasons growth, for which an adequate amount would be around 30-40cm. If it was less than this, fertilizing would be prudent. For domestic Fruit trees a general purpose Fertilizer with moderate Nitrogen will suffice.
If growth exceeded 40cm I would caution restraint with fertilizing. Perhaps the number one problem I come across with Fruit Trees is excessive vegetative growth caused by excessive fertilizer (or water).

Of course this is not the only factor in fruit production, and perhaps I’ll while away the Winter lull with a post on tree dormancy, but for now let’s make sure our trees at least have the nutritional means for next Spring.

22/03/2025

Seedling Sale Sunday!
$2 each or 3 for $5

Sunday March 23rd
9am-11am
16 Noreuil Circuit Cowaramup
Cash or Bank Deposit

Bring a box to carry the Seedlings
Available varieties:

- Pea Sugar Snap
- Beetroot Detroit
- Silverbeet Lucullus
- Silverbeet Ruby Red
- Spring Onion
- Cabbage Golden Acre
- Broccoli Diccio
- Coriander
- Kale Toscanna
- Kale Red Russian

16/03/2025

With over 25 years experience in Horticulture I'm available for:
- Fruit Tree pruning, maintenance and consultations
- Lawn Mowing and lawn renovation
- General garden clean ups and regular maintenance
- Irrigation repairs
- Edible gardens
- General garden consultations
- and anything else garden related!
Phone: 0417 977 843
Email: capeshorticulture@gmail.com

15/03/2025

Winter Carrots are the best. The cool temperatures keep them sweet and the cool ground stores them like a fridge. They grow very slowly through winter so if you time it right, and you've got enough in, one planting of Carrots in Autumn can be harvested all Winter long.

Carrots are about a 90 day crop, making March the time for sowing for a Winter crop. This is the second bed I've sown - a little later than I'd hoped but I had Strawberries waiting to go elsewhere. Any rate, it has timed nicely with a spell of rain, which has made the soil nice and damp. Which is important for carrots, as they need constant moisture until they germinate. At the moment it takes around 7 days before they pop, but I've also had it blow out to 14 days. Which is the reason behind the Irrigation and row cover - maintaining moisture.

I've tried all manner of sowing techniques in the past - they all have their pros and cons.
The first bed this year was sown heavily in rows, which germinated fine, but was subsequently eaten by something (I assume grasshoppers). I luckily have a full bucket of seed so for this next bed I've taken the carpet bomb approach and broadcast seed heavily - like a Carrot cover crop. I've used this method before to counter both poor germination and critter consumption with success, the drawback being the subsequent plant thinning.

There's been no special treatment to this bed other than loosening with a fork and a little Rock Dust. Like most root vegetables, little nutrition is required, as heavy feeding produces a poor crop, (i.e. lots of leaves, little roots). I also use the sandiest beds here, to avoid any underground diversions caused by rocks and so on.

Which brings up the necessity of direct sowing carrots. Almost as soon as they germinate, the tap root that is to be your carrot makes it's way straight down. It's a fine little hair of a thing and anything in it's way will disturb it's trajectory - which includes the bottom of a Seedling punnet. So they always need to be direct sown.

Some find carrots a little tricky to grow, and it's true there is a learning curve, but they are a rewarding and abundant crop and well worth pursuing.

15/03/2025

Seedling Sale Sunday!
10:30am start - after the Swap Share.

$2 each or 3 for $5
Sunday March 16th
10:30am-12:30pm

16 Noreuil Circuit Cowaramup
Cash or Bank Deposit
Bring a box to carry the Seedlings

Available varieties:
- Bean Provider
- Bean Blue Lake
- Pea Sugar Snap
- Beetroot Detroit
- Silverbeet Lucullus
- Silverbeet Ruby Red
- Spring Onion
- Cabbage Golden Acre
- Broccoli Diccio
- Coriander
- Strawberrie

Capes Horticulture

20/12/2025

06/10/2025

21/09/2025

14/09/2025

14/06/2025

29/04/2025

23/03/2025

22/03/2025

22/03/2025

16/03/2025

15/03/2025

15/03/2025

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