By Greg Bourke
When the home gardener thinks about Australian natives, they often think of compact or screening banksias, grevilleas and bottlebrushes, or other low maintenance plants such as kangaroo paws, grass trees, or lomandra, and often bird-attracting plants. Typically, they’re after something they can stick in the ground and forget about.… Continue reading
Read MoreBy Clive Larkman
The plant world is a large and fascinating part of the world’s biosphere. As horticulturists we engage in growing and using plants in business and daily life. The range is huge, from single cell organisms like algae to huge trees like the Californian Redwood.… Continue reading
Read MoreBy Daniel Fuller
If what some people say about eucalypts were true, they’d be sentient monsters intent on destroying human civilisation itself. Apparently, they are widow makers, their roots damage property, they poison the soil, they cause fires, and the list of offences goes on.… Continue reading
Read MoreLabel Name: Grevillea ‘Wendy Sunshine’
ACRA 1265 (registered Nov 2010)
Family: Proteaceae
Origin: An open-pollinated hybrid between Grevillea bipinnatifida (Chittering Valley) x Grevillea thyrsoides ssp. pustulata. Applicant Name: Neil R Marriott
Characteristics: A grey/green, low-growing, dense shrub 0.3-0.5m (h) x 1-1.5m (w).… Continue reading
Read MoreBy Karen Smith
Over one million plant specimens valued at $280 million have now moved to the National Herbarium of NSW at Mount Annan Botanical Gardens after almost 170 years at the Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney.
Recent extreme weather events have really focused attention on how frail the environment has become.… Continue reading
Read MoreBy Patrick Regnault
Annual plants are underutilised in garden design and garden maintenance. It is often left to the owner to use them or not, often without guidance and little flair. Annual plants bring colour, foliage contrast and seasonal change. They can contribute to increased pollination and insect control.… Continue reading
Read MoreBy Clive Larkman
The word guava elicits thoughts of the tropics but as a common name it covers a wide range of fruiting trees. One of these is Pineapple Guava which is also known as Brazilian Guava and Guavasteen although it is not a true guava.… Continue reading
Read MoreBy Daniel Fuller
As part of my podcast series celebrating National Eucalypt Day, I had the good fortune to interview Professor Ros Gleadow who is a professor at Monash University, President for the Global Plant Society, and a board member of Eucalypt Australia, about the chemistry of eucalypts and it was an enlightening experience.… Continue reading
Read MoreBy Digby Growns
All images are supplied by Kings Park and Botanic Gardens
Ground-breaking plant hybridisation research at Kings Park and Botanic Gardens in Perth, Western Australia, has produced a range of novel-coloured kangaroo paws including the first blue cultivar, ‘Masquerade’.… Continue reading
Read MoreBy Karen Smith
The interest in indoor plants is still strong with many consumers not settling to buy only one indoor plant. They are keen to get their hands on a whole collection, so it’s a jungle out there!
A recent report, from the Global Garden Retail Conference 2022 by John Stanley, found that since the pandemic began, people have spent more time in the home and their focus has been on home and garden improvements.… Continue reading
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