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Quang Tran is a Vietnamese Australian who is passionate about bonsai. He first became interested in the idea of creating miniature trees and landscapes when he went to a bonsai show, liked what he saw and thought “I could do that”. Ten years later Quang is...
Deciduous magnolias are wonderful small trees which produce large scented flowers on bare branches in winter and early spring. Although there are about 100 species of wild magnolias and many of them (such as Magnolia campbellii, M. sargentiana var. robusta and...
If you want a big, bold foliage plant for the garden, you can’t go past the tree philodendron (Philodendron bipinnatifidum). It is often confused with its close relative monstera (Monstera deliciosa), but they are really easy to tell apart. Monstera is sometimes...
Pomegranates The pomegranate is one of the all time great plants of horticulture. It is native to the Eastern Mediterranean, North Africa, Afghanistan and Iran, where it has been grown since ancient times. Plant details Common name: Pomegranate Botanic name: Punica...
[metaslider id=31356] Don looked at a new dwarf variety of the evergreen or Bull Bay magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora). ‘Little Gem’ was developed by Warren Steed of Steed’s Nursery in North Carolina in the U.S.A. It has many of the attributes of its...
A few weeks ago on Burke’s Backyard we featured a lovely ornamental variety of pomegranate called ‘Legrelliae’ (Punica granatum ‘Legrelliae’). It has very attractive double salmon/scarlet flowers with a white edge to each petal, and like...
Prunus ‘Okame’ Don looked at an attractive hybrid cherry. Prunus ‘Okame’ is a cross between P. campanulata and P. incisa. Plant details Common name: Okame cherry Botanic name: Prunus ‘Okame’ Description: A hardy deciduous tree,...
Prunus x blireana One of the best spring blossom trees, Prunus x blireana is a cross between the Japanese apricot (Prunus mume) and the purple-leaved plum (Prunus cerasifera ‘Pissardii’). Plant details Common name: Purple-leafed Plum Botanic name: Prunus x...
Scribbly Gum Scribbly gums (Eucalyptus haemastoma) are spectacular Australian trees with smooth, whitish yellow bark. The bark has a prominent feature which was written about in Snuggle Pot & Cuddlepie – strange looking ‘scribbles’ resembling...
She oak If you like Australian native plants, and particularly if you like attracting native birds to your garden, think about planting a she oak. They have woody, barrel-shaped cones containing slender, winged seeds which birds like Glossy Black Cockatoos and...