Insect attacks? Don't worry, be app-y, reckons Janice Marriott.
For iPhone users, there's a new gardening app - the Yates Problem Solver. It works by showing you pictures of common garden problems, from rust and black spot to damping off. Simply hold your phone up to the thing you want identified, be it an insect or a virus or fungal infection, and identify it easily with the help of the pictures. Then, still with the app, you can find the (Yates) product that will solve your particular gardening problem. If you want this new app you can download it free from iTunes.
A list of Android-friendly apps can be found at oldhead.amplify.com. Be aware, however, that most of these Android apps are Northern Hemisphere sites so their yearly planning guides don't apply here. MyGarden is one that includes New Zealand planting guides.
Many gardeners now combine hi-tech living with gardening. An example of the sorts of blogs and fact-filled sites they produce about their gardens is at garden.geek.nz, written by a New Yorker based in New Zealand who reports all the action in her coastal garden. A comprehensive gardening website is garden-nz.co.nz, which includes lists of nurseries, events guides, directories, audio and video clips, even recipes.
