Everyone loves colour in the garden, but it’s really difficult to have a colourful garden all year long if you rely on just flowers. Think of the research and planning you’d have to do to make sure there was something in flower every day – most...
Bougainvilleas are indigenous to tropical and subtropical South America, and are among the world’s great flowering plants. They are scrambling climbers, with long curved thorns which help them to hook on to trees and reach up to the light. The true flowers are...
Collecting Seeds One of the most enjoyable things about gardening is growing your own plants from seed. However, seed collecting can be tricky because some plants have dry fruits that split open as soon as they’re ripe. The seeds then drop to the ground, fly...
Pruning Native Plants Australian native plants are wonderful to have in the garden but they are not maintenance free. If native plants, particularly grevilleas, are not pruned at least once a year they can become straggly, lose vigour and even die. Don looked at a...
Cuttings Update Growing your own plants from a cutting is one of the most satisfying things you can do when gardening. The cuttings can be taken during late spring and summer and grow readily. Plants that can be grown from cuttings include; Coleus, Verbenas, Double...
Seeds Growing plants from seed is great fun, but seed collecting can be tricky because some plants have dry fruits that split open as soon as they’re ripe. The seeds then drop to the ground, fly away in the wind, or they may be eaten or carried off by birds and...
Cymbidium Orchid Tips Although there are still a few weeks of winter to go, many plants for sale at nurseries are in full bloom. Cymbidium orchids in particular are looking spectacular. If the ones at your place aren’t looking so good, just follow Don’s...
Sick Gum Trees One of the most popular native trees in Australia through the 70s and 80s was the Wallangarra white gum (Eucalyptus scoparia). It is an attractive small tree to 12m (40′) tall, with slender weeping branches and smooth, powdery white bark often...
Don looked at some bushland infested with lantana (Lantana camara). He pointed out that the weeds did well in this area because it was very moist and rich in nutrients. Simply removing the lantana would be a complete waste of time, because birds would deposit more...
Don noticed a group of Rainbow Lorikeets feeding in a Port Jackson fig tree (Ficus rubiginosa). All the native evergreen figs, including the Port Jackson and Morton Bay figs, produce genuine fig fruit. Fig fruit forms from an enlarged, hollow stem base or