Circular dead patches in your lawn can be caused by your female dog urinating in the middle of the lawn. The problem can be due to a dietary imbalance. If dogs are fed a high proportion of dried food, their urine is so concentrated that the lawn is killed off when...
NOTE: THE HEAT WAVE HAS COME IN MANY PARTS OF AUSTRALIA SINCE FILMING. ALTHOUGH YOU CAN SAFELY LAY TURF ON VERY HOT DAYS, YOU ARE PROBABLY BETTER OFF TO WAIT FOR SOME COOLER WEATHER BEFORE ORDERING YOUR TURF. In many ways there’s nothing better in all the world than...
Yellow patches in lawn are often caused by a desexed male or a female dog squatting on the lawn. If the diet is right you won’t get a die back problem but if a dog is getting too much dried food the end result can be urine that is very very concentrated. If...
New Zealand has given the world some fabulous plants, including the New Zealand Christmas tree or pohutukawa (Metrosideros excelsa) and the cordylines. But arguably one of the best, most popular and useful New Zealand native plants is the humble flax (Phormium sp.)....
Many parts of Australia have been affected by drought in recent times. Lawns in those areas have tended to thin out and die back. Dryness combined with mowing too close has created perfect conditions for bindii to thrive. Bindii (Soliva pterosperma) In summer, this...
There are many versatile native plants that not only make excellent ground covers or container plants, but also fit very well into cottage style gardens. On a recent visit to Nielsen’s Native Nursery at Loganholme in Queensland, Don looked at rock daisies,...
Mini Mondo Grass For practical outdoor areas concrete slabs or tiles are a suitable finish but can look bleak and horrible. One solution is to soften the look by using Miniature Mondo grass (Ophiopogon japonicus ‘Nanus’) around the edges of the groups of...
‘Shademaster’ or Soft Buffalo Grass A lush green lawn adds beauty and value to any home. Unfortunately, a more familiar sight to most gardeners is a thin patchy lawn struggling to survive without enough water or sunlight. One of the best lawn...
Soft Buffalo One of the best lawn grasses for shady areas has always been buffalo grass (Stenotaphrum secundatum). It forms a coarse, durable carpet and is reasonably drought tolerant. The good news is that recently some exciting new kinds of buffalo lawn have...
This striking plant from Thailand looks like bamboo but it’s actually a perennial grass. In Asia the large leaves are used to wrap food for steaming, and the flower heads are tied together and used as brooms. Plant details Common name: Tiger Grass Botanic name:...