Friday, April 19, 2024

Author: Lynne Testoni

Boasting spectacular views over Whale Beach, the garden includes stepping stones bookended by mass plantings of Westringia ‘Mundi’ and Westringia ‘Zena’
Landscape

A view with some room

By Lynne Testoni

This newly refreshed and award-winning garden surrounds a significant house, creating a spectacular combination of architecture and landscape.

It can be a challenge to renovate or refresh an iconic landscape design, as expectations are high and pressure can be intense.… Continue reading

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Prolific bloomers attract pollinators into the garden (Image: Karen Smith)
Bedding Plants

Annuals and biennial plants in garden design

By Patrick Regnault

Designing a garden requires the knowledge and flair to mix perennials to create a balanced effect. The use of seasonal colour in the form of short-lived annuals or biennials is often dismissed as a reserve of the amateur gardener, or to bring colour for a special occasion.Continue reading

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Greener Spaces Better Places Update

What’s Growing on?

Welcome to this month’s Greener Spaces Better Places program update. Read on to find out the latest news and highlights to keep you up to date on what’s happening and how you can benefit.

A dynamic two-way conversation between industry experts and Australian greenlife consumers has been rolling out via the @GreenerSpacesBetterPlaces Instagram channel.… Continue reading

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Windrows of recently removed African olive branches to reduce water and leaf litter loss
Botanic Gardens

Return of the Western Sydney Dry Rainforest

By Michael Elgey

For millennia, the lands in Western Sydney where the Australian Botanic Garden Mount Annan (ABGMA) is located, were home to the First Nations people of the Dharawal Nation. This site was also a meeting place for the Dharug and Gandangara nations, where these three nations met to trade and discuss law and other matters.Continue reading

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Typical tomato spotted wilt virus symptoms on fruit
Pest and Diseases

Insects that transmit plant diseases

By Denis Crawford

Insects that spread plant diseases are known as vectors of that disease. It’s important to know that some insects are more efficient vectors than other others.

Insects which transmit plant diseases are mostly sap-sucking insects of the insect order Hemiptera.… Continue reading

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Corymbia ficifolia mummy graft onto Corymbia calophylla rootstock (Image: Dave Blumer)
International Plant Propagation Society

Propagation at the King’s Park and Botanic Gardens

By Amanda Shade

The Kings Park and Botanic Garden nursery was established in 1962, several years prior to the opening of the Western Australian Botanic Garden (WABG). We grow roughly 50-60,000 plants annually for display in our many differently-themed collections within the WABG and wider parkland areas.Continue reading

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Creating beautiful landscapes requires sound business decisions (Image: Karen Smith)
Business File

Making better business decisions

By John Corban

We are now settled into the new calendar year and it’s a suitable time to act on some important strategic decisions for your business, if you haven’t done so already. It might be that you are seriously thinking about hiring or removing a skilled worker, removing or adding a service, increasing charge out rates, improving a system in your business or buying an expensive piece of equipment.… Continue reading

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Good communication skills are important in every job. Three of the best communicators in the industry - Leonie Sweeney, Costa Georgiadis and Charles Sweeney (Image: Karen Smith)
Careers

Do you speak my language?

By Daniel Fuller

Do you speak to everybody in the same way? If you do, you’re probably not an effective communicator, and you may be leaving money on the table. Especially when you’re in a job interview or pitching a potential client.Continue reading

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Violas grow well in baskets (Image: Matthiasboeckel/Pixabay)
Plant Palette

Violets – more than a pretty flower!

By Clive Larkman

Some plant families are small such as Ginkgoaceae which has only one genus and one species while others families, such as Asteraceae, have approximately 25 000 species. One of the largest families, Brassicaceae, consists almost entirely of edible plants and produces all those healthy green plants that most adults love and kids hate.… Continue reading

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Newsbuds

How can one fungus infect nearly all plants, vascular or not?

Two views of a common mould summarised from research by Ritu Singh, Celine Caseys and Daniel J. Kliebenstein in the news from the British Society for Plant Pathology, and also from Levantine Hill Wine articles.

If you observe signs of decay on your fruits and vegetables, accompanied by the growth of fuzzy grey-brown mould, chances are it is Botrytis cinerea.… Continue reading

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Newsbuds

Aloe vera uses you never thought of

The evolution of electric vehicles and low power electronic devices such as mobile phones drive the search for better longer lasting energy storage. The amount of energy and the rate at which you can use it depends on, among other things, the surface area of electrodes that make up the bulk of the system.… Continue reading

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Newsbuds

Hort Innovation Statistics 2022/2023

February saw the release of the Australian Horticulture Statistics Handbook 2022/23. This annual compilation of statistics reflects the general health of Australian horticulture. From 2013 the horticulture industry has grown substantially overall but the industry growth has flattened out over the last couple of years.… Continue reading

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Plants are required to help soften our grey infrastructure along with providing climate-mitigating solutions (Image: Michael Casey)
Green Infrastucture

Discovering tomorrow: Exploring the visionary landscape of nature-based cities

By Michael Casey

I’m captivated by the vibrant energy of cities, and harbour a deep love and respect for nature. However, when will we truly experience a merging of these two worlds, placing our profound need for plants at the forefront?Continue reading

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Plant Palette

Broccoli – the best of the greens

By Clive Larkman

As adults we all know what food is good for us to eat and we generally know what we should avoid. However, the research suggests that less than 10% of Australian adults eat a healthy diet made up of the correct mix of protein, fruit and vegetables on a daily basis.… Continue reading

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A formally espaliered apple screens this rainwater tank. (Image: Merrywood Plants)
Landscape

Fruitful design for unusual garden spaces

By Gabrielle Stannus

These days you do not need an entire orchard to grow fruit. This is fortunate as our population is becoming increasingly urbanised and the quarter-acre block is almost a relic of times gone past. We are living on smaller blocks with little or no outdoor space, with potential growing area often restricted to less-than-ideal growing environments, e.g.Continue reading

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Business File

Solutions for problems in your business

By John Corban

Many businesses share similar problems so I thought I would share solutions to problems that I have shared over the last twelve months.

Problem: I need more profit, what can I do?

Solution: Understand where your business is at financially first, plan to remove any unnecessary costs, then create a six-month profit forecast until June 30.Continue reading

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Nursery Papers

Nursery Papers – Expanding emergency measures for Xylella fastidiosa

The Commonwealth Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) has updated protocols to handle the threat of Xylella fastidiosa, a significant bacterial pathogen, in imported nursery stock.

Effective December 2023, regulatory measures are enforced for plants within the Simaroubaceae family to mitigate the risk of Xylella.… Continue reading

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Sublime™ Acmena smithii ‘DOW30’ PBR (image supplied by Ozbreed)
Plant Palette

Lush, low-fuss Lilly Pillies

By Daniel Fuller

Are you a landscape designer, nursery grower, horticulturist or council decision maker who loves beautiful natives that require minimal upkeep?

Lilly Pillies, which are plants in the Syzygium, Acmena (now reclassified as Syzygium) and Waterhousea genera, are native shrubs and trees beloved for their resilience, versatility, as well as their beautiful glossy leaves, fluffy flowers and edible fruits.… Continue reading

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Careers

Freelancing for a career in the media

By Daniel Fuller

Did you realise that people are making a part-time and eventually a full-time wage creating horticultural content like writing articles, creating videos, and taking photos?

You could be supplementing your own wage, or at least earning a little bit of extra pocket money while exercising a different type of creativity.Continue reading

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Greener Spaces Better Places Update

What’s Growing on?

NEW SCHOOL OF THUMB EPISODES RELEASED

The three latest episodes, filmed in Queensland, shine a spotlight on mature trees, sub-tropicals and architectural plants. Claire Hooper hosts the series once again, and is joined on the couch by sub-tropical expert and nursery owner Wayne Lyons, Kristian Spink of Marlborough Nurseries, and Brisbane-based horticulturalist Zoe Donkin.… Continue reading

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