Happy vibrant violas – easy to grow and easy to love. Lower growing and more profusely flowering than pansies, their smaller flowers have the bright and bold colours associated with their larger cousins and are equally enchanting. They will flower
More...Colourful Plants
Pruning hydrangeas (Melbourne and Victoria)

Sharpen your secateurs and get stuck into one of the most rewarding shrubs to prune. Few shrubs respond as positively to pruning as hydrangeas; old woody and diseased hydrangeas turn into vigorous healthy flowering shrubs after a good rejuvenating prune.
More...Looking after your Christmas Poinsettias

Keep the soil of poinsettias slightly moist–not too wet and not too dry. Add water as soon as the surface of the soil feels powdery dry. Keep water off the leaves and bracts. Water (especially cold water) can leave ugly
More...Indigofera australis (Australian Indigo)

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
More...Flowering Gums (Corymbia ficifolia)

This is a fairly generic term, but commonly refers to Corymbia ficifolia and all the various grafted cultivars of this genus. The original species Corymbia ficifolia is a sturdy tree from W.A., with thick green leaves and very variable height,
More...Callistemons (Bottlebrushes)

One of the most profuse flowering of all our native plants, the bottlebrush is both beautiful and tough. Coping with waterlogging and drought, it is an easy plant to grow in your garden, providing colour and habitat for wildlife. Callistemons
More...Bulbs & Perennials
There are many beautiful plants that may be grown from bulbs, tubers, corms or roots. Many are suitable to grow in pots or small spaces and produce prolifically in the first season. They provide seasonal colour and many are excellent
More...Capsicum & Chillies
Summer is the perfect time to get in your Chilli and Capsicum seedlings. Once the fruit starts to set there is nothing better than seeing splashes of bright red, orange, yellow and green dotted throughout the vegie patch. There are
More...Kangaroo Paw (Anigozanthos)

There are 12 different Kangaroo paws, 11 different Anigozanthos species and one Macropidia fulginosa. All are from Western Australia. Many of the named cultivars available from the nursery are hybrids of these different species. For the purpose of the home
More...Ornamental Kale and Ornamental Cabbage

These are your answer to boring winter gardens. They add colour and drama to the garden with their great colours and strong bold form. They look best planted in a line or a group where you can look down into
More...Smoke Bush – Cotinus coggygria

One of my all-time favourites: The straight species combines beautiful smooth rounded foliage, stunning flower display (the ‘smoke’), comfortable size, drought tolerance and enjoys part shade to full sun. Next you can add in some amazing cultivars (purpurea, Flame, Golden
More...Hellebores

The hellebore, or Winter Rose as it is commonly called, adds charm and elegance to any garden. Their nodding flowers provide winter cheer throughout winter and on into early spring. The colours vary from white, green, pink to my personal
More...Eucalyptus woodwardii – Lemon Flowered Gum

Smoky-grey leaves, a weeping habit and a stunning display of bright yellow flowers make this the perfect choice for medium sized yards. It will survive in very dry conditions and grows to around 10m tall. It is quite an upright
More...Broad Beans
I know… you hate broad beans. Perhaps they were served to you as a kid… boiled to within an inch of their lives, until they were the colour, taste and texture of cardboard. But have you tried eating them when
More...Lawn Alternatives

Vast expanses of patchy, dead and weed infested lawn areas taking up space in your backyard? Are you a slave to the drone of a lawnmower on your day off? Instead you could be out in your garden enjoying your
More...Using Colour in your Garden
With a little planning and preparation it is easy to achieve a garden with colour and interest all year round. Design Techniques with Colour There are many techniques to successfully combine colours in the garden, and some of these can
More...Wahlenbergia communis (Tufted Bluebell)
Wahlenbergia communis: This graceful perennial ground cover, native to all Australian mainland states, grows to 40cm high and 30cm wide with suggested planting spacing of 20cm. It has blue green foliage that is tufted at the base of the plant and
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