Gardens

The Good Earth

Going to pot. Last week I left a cryptic message re saving the cardboard centres of your toilet roll and paper towel for this week…Here’s the answer!

Spring plantings - Following on from last week’s column about raising vegetables from seed.

Everything old is new again - Digging in to our heritage!

Divide and prosper

What a wonderful year for our gardens, with bounteous Autumn and Winter rains and a promise of more to come. It may be a little early for any planting but it's certainly right to plan ahead and prepare the beds, especially if you’re thinking of enriching the soil with organic fertiliser or compost.

This centuries-old practice of miniaturising trees and shrubs can be a fascinating hobby the whole family can enjoy. But first let’s get one important fact straight - it’s the creation of the appearance of age and wear that is important, not their actual age in years.

Epihpytes are those plants whose roots are literally "up in the air".

It was once considered that growing the prized gem of the tropical forests, the orchid, was only for the very wealthy.

It’s funny how the sight of something familiar can bring memories of a long- distant past, flooding back.

Sometimes trees and shrubs may need to be moved to another part of the garden, or perhaps even to another garden.

I should have known I would start something when I made mention of building a “bug hotel”...

To my great delight, my birdbath’s daily clientele has recently been boosted by “foreigners”

We could be faced with the double-edged benefits of that long-awaited wet Winter.

Last week, I espoused the benefits of the absolute need for us to find ways to protect our gardens from pests and diseases.

In your desire to protect your plants from the many pest attacks, it's easy to overlook the many other inhabitants of your garden.

Last issue I gave you some clues for putting this current free time into enhancing your garden.

The prospect of long-term solitary confinement for however long it takes for the accursed COVID-19 to leave our shores is daunting.

Oak & Monkey Puzzle, Ballan-Daylesford Road, Spargo Creek.

THIS summer has seen a spectacular flowering of sweet bursaria.

On the cusp time of Summer's almost over but Autumn isn’t quite here yet.

Will our garden shield our homes or turn against us in times of bushfires?