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To get the best flowers from most roses you must prune them in winter. Roses can be pruned when they are dormant, between June and early August. Prune earlier in frost free coastal districts (usually July) but leave pruning until August in areas which experience...
After a heavy thunderstorm in Sydney, two large trees from a neighbour’s property fell onto the recently built ‘Burke’s Backyard’ aviary. Some damage occurred to the structure but no birds were lost. However much it may look like an accident,...
Tibouchinas (which used to be known as lasiandras) have purple or pink flowers in late summer or autumn, with some varieties flowering during winter. They range in size from small shrubs (the variety ‘Jules’ is a shrub to 1m (3′) tall) to tall trees...
Some unusual plants to grow in your garden are the elkhorns or staghorns. The difference between these two plants is the elkhorn (Platycerium bifurcatum) has thinner, wispier leaves and multiple “eyes” or rosettes of foliage whereas the staghorn...
The cut and fill method of construction is very popular for sloping building sites. It involves cutting back into a hillside and moving the soil to the lower side of the site to create a level building site. A retaining wall is then required to hold back the earth....
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 impatiens,...
Rocks in the garden add interest and style to any design, whether it’s around a pool, in a rockery of a Balinese style. But rocks can be expensive to buy and to install in the garden. That’s why the art of rock making has become such a popular garden...
Topiary is a fascinating gardening activity where people can create all sorts of animals, birds and shapes in the backyard. Anthony Cabret is a master of topiary who can transform amorphous blobs of trees into artworks, like his model titanic that is sinking into the...
Many parts of eastern Australia received heavy rainfalls recently bringing relief to some drought situations. There are some gardening tips for autumn that will help your garden look even better after the rain. Autumn is a good time for planting particularly after...
Rhapis Palms are great as indoor plants and like most good indoor plants they come from a sub-tropical to tropical rainforest in south-east China where there isn’t much natural light. There are two sorts of Rhapis palms suitable for indoor living. Plant details...