Bulleen Art & Garden -

Save BAAG from the North East Link!

Tagged with: mobile

Aug 302018

Bulleen Art & Garden is under serious threat from the proposed construction of the North-East Link. We are now asking our community help us to survive. BAAG is an innovative garden centre which provides a visitor experience not found anywhere else in Melbourne. Some people in the garden industry even say we are unique in the world with our focus on art, environment and a wide range of rare and unusual plants.

The planned path of the North East Link threatens the existence of not only Bulleen Art & Garden, but that of over 100 other local businesses… everything from pie makers to mechanics. Approximately 1000 jobs are at risk. Thanks to all who have signed our petition (It is below if you haven’t), but if you would still like to help there is more you can do.

Please help us by sending an email to NELA!

We are asking as many people as possible to send an email to the North East Link Authority and let them know why you think these businesses are vital to the local community. We know we don’t have to say this as all of our customers are wonderful… but please be nice when emailing! Reasoned and calm arguments always go further than anger!

You can email the North East Link Authority on this address: community@northeastlink.vic.gov.au
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Why your garden matters!

Tagged with: Australian Natives, Garden Design, Indigenous Plants, Sustainable Living

Oct 172018

Photo © Bulleen Art & Garden

Every garden is its own (or is a unique but connected) ecosystem containing an extraordinary array of living organisms including plants, fungi, bacteria, microbes, insects and animals that all impact on the health and resilience of the living network. We are each the stewards of our gardens, the actions that we take can positively or negatively impact on this ecosystem.
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Solanum aviculare (Kangaroo Apple)

Tagged with: Australian Natives, Indigenous Plants

Oct 152018

A decorative, fast-growing shrub with attractive, deeply-lobed, dark-green leaves. Becomes straggly with age but is easily rejuvenated with heavy pruning.

Clusters of violet flowers in January, followed by orange-red egg-shaped fruits. Fruits were eaten by Indigenous Australians, but only when very ripe as they are said to be poisonous at other times.

A very interesting structural plant – good in shrubbery plantings.

Acacia acinacea (Gold Dust Wattle)

Tagged with: Australian Natives, Indigenous Plants

Oct 152018

Small stiff light green leaves borne on gently arching branches. Masses of fragrant golden yellow flowers from late winter to early summer. Suprisingly hardy!

Flowers profusely in bright, fragrant yellow balls from August to November.

Good low screening plant when planted en masse. Grows well in our shallow local soils. Is moderately frost tolerant and drought hardy once established.

Goodenia ovata (Hop Goodenia)

Tagged with: Australian Natives, Indigenous Plants

Oct 152018

Bushy shrub with bright yellow flowers, contrasting with fresh green foliage. Vibrant yellow blooms make good cut flowers. Needs regular pruning to maintain compact habit.

Sprays of yellow flowers most of the year, with peak flowering through spring and summer.

Useful understorey plant especially in boggy areas. Fast-growing but short-lived coloniser for revegetation. Will grow under trees provided enough moisture. Ideal for slopes and embankments.

Indigofera australis (Australian Indigo)

Tagged with: Australian Natives, Colourful Plants, Indigenous Plants

Oct 092018

Indigofera australis

Austral Indigo, Australian Indigo

Flowers are sprays of soft purple through to pink from mid-September to November. Lovely soft blue green lacy foliage. Form can be variable, pruning will give a neater dense form, leaving alone will lend to a more delicate open arching form.

The flowers are an excellent pollen and nectar source for many native insects. Butterfly attracting.
Frost hardy (light frosts). Fast growing. Sun to part shade.

Strawberries

Tagged with: Berries, Vegies

Oct 012018

Nothing compares to the taste of homegrown strawberries, and those monster things you buy in punnets at the shops are generally a poor (and expensive) imitation. So, why not grow some strawberries at home! Good position and good soil are the keys to successful strawberries. Strawberries are a European cool-climate plant, and need to be treated with a bit of love in our part of Australia. For those of you growing strawberries during the warmer periods of the year, we suggest growing under a little shade cloth cover. This is ‘slip, slop, slap’ for your strawberries to stop the sunburn… they’ll thank you for it! In the cooler months, a nice, warm, full-sun to part-shade spot is perfect.

October in your garden

Tagged with: This month in your garden

Oct 012018

The soil is warming, and plants are loving it. Enjoy the spring with its delightful blossoms and go out and get your hands dirty! The nursery is now fully stocked with plants for every situation, and as far as months go, they don’t come much more ideal than October for getting into the garden.

New Exhibition – ‘Wild and Woolly’

Tagged with: Gallery

Sep 112018

An Exhibition by the Eastern Studio Potters and Artists

The members of the Eastern Studio Potters & Artists are once again exhibiting in our gallery. This group has been exhibiting at Bulleen Art & Garden for many years with a diverse, but unified body of work. The weather and nature will be the subject of this year’s exhibition. The different artists will interpret this in their own way.

More pictures and info at http://gallery.baag.com.au/?p=3899

September in your garden

Tagged with: This month in your garden

Aug 302018

September is a magnificent month to be out in the garden. You can smell spring in the air and the soil is starting to warm up, just like us. Spring is the turning point for planting options… the variety of plants that are happy to hit the soil in spring is huge, no matter what type of garden you like. After a cold winter there is nothing better than waking up to a sunny Saturday, throwing on a T-shirt and getting stuck into some gardening. We all have loads of jobs that have been neglected all winter, get started today!

Worm Farms

Tagged with: Hardware and Irrigation, Soil Health, Sustainable Living

Aug 162018

Worms are fabulous little creatures. By eating their way through refuse and detritus, they manage to make the most nutritious and enriching fertiliser suitable for all your garden and potted plants, which won’t harm your plants because it is so gentle and natural. Worms can eat up to their weight each day in organic waste scraps, which can add up to a bit if you have the right conditions. Even better than finished compost, the worm ‘poo’, known as vermicast, is safe to use on all plants. Keeping a worm farm is ideal for householders who do not have the space outside for a traditional compost bin, yet still want to get rid of household scraps and peelings organically. Worm farms can even be kept inside! Read on for more great worm tips.

Blueberries

Tagged with: Berries, Fruiting Vines & Shrubs, Hedging & Screening Plants

Aug 162018

These long lived deciduous or evergreen shrubs can be grown purely for their ornamental value. With their lovely pink brushed white bell shaped flowers and brilliant yellow, orange and red autumn foliage on a 1 to 2.4m high thornless shrub, they add value to any garden.
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August in your garden

Tagged with: This month in your garden

Aug 012018

Well, the last weeks of winter are finally here, with the scent of Wattle signalling the promise of spring just around the corner. The first Magnolias are in flower and the gold and purple of Acacias and Hardenbergias create a dramatic floral display. The cold, frosty mornings are a prelude to the burst of new growth that heralds the coming new season of life. We have already had our fair share of frosty mornings and more are likely, so continue on with those frost damage prevention measures for a few more weeks yet.
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New Gallery Exhibition ‘Whispers in the Wildwoods’

Tagged with: Gallery

Jul 092018

An exhibition of sculpture by Christen Jo Stone of Stringybark Studio

Christen Jo Stone (Jo) has developed diverse arts skills and enjoys combining these, expressed in 3D forms. Having worked in many media including Jewellery, Textiles, letterpress Printing, and Basketry, Jo’s current work in Sculpture narrates the story of endangered species threatened by the destruction of their precious forest environment

July 6th – August 19th 2018

Demonstration in the gallery:

12-3pm 5th August 2018

Come and see Jo at work

More pictures and info at http://gallery.baag.com.au/?p=3874

July in your garden

Tagged with: This month in your garden

Jun 282018

Winter can be a challenge, but it sure puts a rosy hue in your cheeks when you rug up, brave the elements and go about doing some of those winter gardening tasks which have been beckoning from outside. Enjoy a warm drink – and the satisfaction – when you come inside.

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