The weather has been very unseasonable in Australia recently, particularly along the east coast. Summer didn’t really eventuate. We’ve had the occasional very hot day, but then later that day or the next day it’s been cold again. When temperatures...
There’s something about pruning that seems to bring out aggression in people, especially men. However, pruning doesn’t have to be like a shoot-out at high noon. You don’t need to take out all your frustrations on your plants, nor should you be...
Robinia Problems Don looked at a street tree planting of golden robinias (Robinia pseudocacia ‘Frisia’). This was a vogue tree in Australian gardens and landscapes during the 1980s and it is still tremendously popular today. However, before you plant a...
Plants produce most of their annual growth over the next few weeks, so it is important to fertilise them now. Most plants: use Dynamic Lifter, slow release fertiliser, or liquid Nitrosol (apply liquid fertilisers with a hose end sprayer). Lawns: use a complete lawn...
Spring Tart Up If your garden is looking at bit drab at the moment, why not give it a quick spring tart up? The best place to look for inspiration is your local nursery. The really good plant shops around Australia plan their spring displays so that customers can see...
Update Native Pruning About eighteen months ago Don visited the Cumberland State Forest Nursery in Sydney and talked to Steve Sullivan, Operations Manager, State Forest Nurseries about renovation pruning of native plants. They looked at a fifteen-year-old Grevillea...
Fertiliser Manure Horse manure is very fibrous, rots down quickly and is regarded as being useful for heavy clay soils because of its fibre content. It also works well on sandy soils. It can be incorporated into the soil, or used as a mulch to about 5cm (2″)...
Foolproof Irrigation System A common problem with garden irrigation systems is that by the time water reaches the end of a long line, pressure is lost and the spray heads don’t function properly. As a result, some of the plants don’t get enough water....
Grafted Camellia About eighteen months ago we looked at a wonderful groundcover camellia called Camellia sasanqua ‘Marge Miller’. Don thought that this plant, with its lovely pendulous habit, could possibly make a very good weeping standard. He decided to...
Grevillea Garden Update Grevillea ‘Little Miss Muffet’ is in full flower at the moment in the grevillea garden. It is a hybrid between G. sericea and G. speciosa, and has very pretty pink spider-like flower clusters. Some of the grevilleas that were pruned...