Aug 292013
Dec 052013
Christmas 2013
We have gathered an interesting selection of ceramic and metal sculpture, mosaics, ceramics and baskets by a number of our favourite artists for our Christmas exhibition. Something for a special and unique present, or a treat for yourself.
Artists include Sandra Bain, Mark Cowie, Raine Edwards, Glenn England, Anne-Maree Gentile, Nicola Hoyle, Anne Jackson, Lene Kuhl Jakobsen, Robyn Norris, Meredith Plain and Liz Walker.
6 to 24 December 2013
For more information and pics head to http://gallery.baag.com.au/?p=1596
Dec 052013
We have a new supplier of cut Christmas trees this year and they are looking fantastic. They are $69.95 each and we will be replenishing the supply every week right up until Christmas.
If you are still unsure about the best type of tree to get with regard to the environment, check out our article Christmas Trees… Real, Fake or Cut?. In it we list a few of the pros and cons of each type of tree to hopefully help make your decision a little easier.
Nov 302013
You will often hear lively discussions about the benefits of Live v Cut v Fake Christmas Trees. So which is the most environmentally friendly? If you Google the topic you will be inundated with hundreds of pages of research, but here’s a brief summary for those of you wanting the basic facts.
Nov 282013
A beautiful garden makes outdoor entertaining all the more inviting. Longer days along with summer festivities make the garden a perfect extension to your indoor space. Prepare for a lovely time outside this summer. There are plenty of things that you can do in the garden, think summer, think colour.
Nov 202013
As the weather starts to warm up, perfection is sitting outside with the warm sun on your face, the company of friends and family, and food on the table. One tiny thing that can very quickly spoil the party is everyone’s most unwelcome guest – the mosquito.
You and your guests can slather on insecticide, or you can plan ahead and create a garden that is as mosquito-unfriendly as possible. Mosquitos have a lot of options, they don’t need to be in your garden, so plan on making it as unattractive to them as you can. Think of it as a sort of cultural desert for mozzies. Nowhere to hang out, unattractive smells, nothing enticing.
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Nov 192013
Alyogyne huegelii
Australian member of the Hibiscus family known for its gorgeous open satiny petalled flowers. Flowering from late spring to the end of summer, it produces hundreds of flowers which open in the morning and last the single day. Colours range from blue to lilac purple, through rose pink to white. Breeding has produced some amazing forms and colours.
Nov 182013
Cacti and succulents are fantastic plants. They need zero maintenance, zero water and with a bit of imagination you can create a truly amazing feature with them. Apart from being waterwise, they all have interesting foliage with a great range of colours, textures and shapes. Some have beautiful flowers that don’t appear very often, but when they do they are incredible. Both cacti and succulents are very easy to propagate and are an ideal choice for pots. Check the slideshow below for some of the great cacti and succulents we have snapped at BAAG.
Nov 122013
Basketmakers of Victoria
An exhibition of contemporary and traditional baskets, and artwork incorporating weaving techniques by a talented group of basketmakers. See the wide variety of art which can be created using these techniques.
November 7 to December 1
For more information and pics head to http://gallery.baag.com.au/?p=1529
Oct 312013
This is probably the busiest month of the year for gardeners. Warmer temperatures and the recent rains make for perfect planting conditions. As you can see from the pic above, it is also Tomato Time! Cup Weekend is traditionally the ideal time in Melbourne to get your tomatoes into the ground. In the rest of your garden, plants are either busily flowering or pushing out new growth. Birds, spiders, lizards and ladybirds are feasting on aphids, whiteflies and other sap sucking insects that love to feed on new spring growth. Allow predators to thrive in your garden by reducing or eliminating spraying, planting lots of flowers and creating a diverse and nature friendly garden. For more tips on how to deal with pests, what to plant and harvest at this time of the year. Read on for everything you need to know…
Oct 292013
It can be tricky setting up a productive garden when you don’t own your own place. However it’s certainly not impossible – so if you rent and you’re dreaming of a bountiful yard full of homegrown produce, here are some tips on how to go about it.
So how will your landlord or real estate agent feel about you making a garden at the property? If you’ve scored an accommodating landlord – get planting! Otherwise you could offer general maintenance of any existing gardens and lawn, in return for creating a couple of new beds for your produce. If your landlord doesn’t come to the party, or you have a balcony or small space to grow in, you need to grow your produce in a ‘pack up and away’ style.
Oct 292013
Who doesn’t love a tomato? Delicious home grown tomatoes are easy to grow, taste great, and you control what gets sprayed on them, if anything at all. Late October to early November is the perfect time to plant your tomato seedlings. Many different varieties are available including heritage varieties, from which you can collect your own seed to sow next season, and dwarf varieties suitable for growing in pots. Tomatoes are great for kids to grow, as they grow fast and produce lots of delicious fruit, especially cherry tomatoes. So even if you only have a balcony for a garden, you can grow delicious fresh tomatoes. You can raise tomatoes from seed or as seedlings, however to grow from seed you will need to have planted them by mid-September.
Oct 252013
We have just launched a brand new comments system on our website. You can login and comment using your Facebook, Google+, Twitter, LinkedIn, OpenID or LiveFyre accounts… and if you don’t have any of these you can create a new account in seconds. We hope the new system makes it easier than ever for our staff and customers to get into some lively gardening discussions! Have a question? Start in our factsheets menu, search for a page that interests you and ask away!
Oct 222013
In lots of ways I think of this as the native Daphne. Small, difficult, subtle, and then there is this show stopping fragrance that knocks you over and you WANT one.
The boronia with the best fragrance is Boronia megastigma known as Brown Boronia. This should be the floral emblem for the Hawthorn Football Club, with dark brown petals on the outside contrasting with bright yellow on the inside. Every organ of the flower has scented oil glands (the source of the essential oils for the perfume trade) and the fragrance is superb. There are numerous cultivars of this Boronia, all have pretty flowers and a lovely scent, look for ‘Heaven Scent’; ‘Jack Macguire’s Red’ and ‘Harlequin’.
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Oct 222013
These can explode in numbers seemingly overnight and yesterday’s beautiful healthy foliage can turn into today’s twisted and curled up mess as you can see from the pictures here of our poor esplaiered cherry in Edible Alley (on the left as you enter the driveway). The difficulty with black aphid in this situation is that most sprays rely on getting the spray onto the aphid, and that is almost impossible when the leaves are curled up and the aphids are busy sucking away on the inside. Your best friends are ladybirds, lacewings and parasitic wasps. These will find the aphids within their curled leaves and they are excellent predators. Suppliers of natural predators include: http://www.biologicalservices.com.au/ and http://www.bugsforbugs.com.au/
If you can’t wait for the natural predator numbers to build up and just have to spray, using any of the contact insecticide sprays (pyrethrums, white oils etc) means you must get the spray onto the insect, so you will need to spray the undersurface of the leaves. Not an easy job when the leaves are curled up and this means you will unavoidably kill some of the natural predators.
Oct 112013
Bolin and the Yarra – Connecting with nature.
An exhibition inspired by Bulleen Art & Garden’s magic location – right next to the Yarra River parks. Artists have responded to natural and cultural values of this important section of the Yarra. Sculpture, baskets, ceramic and botanical art by Sally Armfield, Glenn England, Paul Kalemba, Emma Kelly, Lene Kuhl Jakobsen, Joel Medley, Robyn Norris and Meredith Plain.
11 October to 5 November, 2013
For more information and pics head to http://gallery.baag.com.au/?p=1405