Callistemons or Bottlebrushes are one of the hardiest Australian native plants. The bright bottlebrush shaped flowers a very impressive part of the spring landscape and are a delight for native birds and bees. The original Callistemons available to gardeners were all bold red but flower colours now range from red to pink, mauve, cream and...Read More

Cucurbits include cucumber, pumpkin, zucchini, squash, watermelon and rockmelon. These all share traits and enjoy similar growing conditions. All are easy to grow and highly productive in the home garden. Pumpkin and watermelon vines require room to grow but can trained over or structures. Cucumbers and rockmelons require less space and can be grown vertically...Read More

Originating from China, the earliest modern rose was the tea rose. With centuries of breeding, modern roses are long flowering with it possible to achieve continuous flowering from spring to autumn. There are single, semi double and double flowered forms in every colour imaginable and most with a beautiful fragrance. How to Care Roses are...Read More

Strawberries are one of the easiest fruiting plants to grow and it is certainly a treat to feast upon these sweet delights picked fresh from the garden Strawberries are ground-hugging, herbaceous plants, growing to about 15cm high and spreading into a clump 50–100cm wide. Their flowers are simple, five-petalled blooms that are pollinated by bees....Read More

Tomatoes are a favourite to grow and every region seems to have a local show day, race day or community event that is the green light to plant out your tomato plants. Tomatoes love the warmth and grow best in southern areas of Australia from mid spring into the summer. In warmer areas, they can...Read More

Cymbidium orchids are stunning and are a rewarding spectacular living flower arrangement right throughout the cooler months. Their hardiness sets them apart from many of the more tender, tropical orchids such as slipper orchids (Paphiopedilum) and moth orchids (Phalaenopsis), which need warm or hot house conditions outside the tropics. Cymbidiums are available in a wide...Read More

Winter is a great time to prune most deciduous fruit trees, berries, fruiting bushes and vines. Although winter is pruning time, avoid pruning cherries, apricots and kiwi fruit vines until the warmer weather. All three of these popular edibles tend to bleed if pruned through winter increasing the risk of disease. Apricots and cherries may...Read More

Without doubt citrus trees are the most popular fruit grown in home gardens. In gardens everywhere, citrus trees are delighting gardeners with fresh, tasty and vitamin packed fruity goodness. With today’s smaller gardens, citrus trees are great in pots and there are dwarf and multi grafted varieties available to suit most situations.   At a...Read More

Spathiphyllum or ‘Peace Lily’ plants are native to tropical regions of the Americas and south eastern Asia. They are a favourite plant to grow indoors with lush foliage and long-lasting white blooms throughout the year. Growing plants in homes and offices has many proven health benefits. Plants are nature’s air purifiers and improve the feeling...Read More

Once growing fruit trees at home was very common. Nowadays with gardens being smaller, the availability of wonderful new generation fruit trees has seen a resurgence in growing healthy home-grown goodness in the places and spaces we call home. There are dwarf forms/varieties of most fruits which don’t take a lot of space. These can...Read More