-
My Favourite Frost Tolerant Grevillea: Grevillea victoriae
This winter has been a bit of a learning curve for me in the frost tolerant Grevillea department; for some reason I have been asked again and again which Grevilleas will withstand medium to heavy frosts. Many grevilleas with smaller needle like leaves such as Grevillea lanigera, alpina and rosmarinifolia are good at coping in heavy…
-
Bright, Thick and Floriferous: Banksia marginata ‘Bright’
Check out the flowers on this baby, it was absolutely covered, I have never seen anything like it before and was suitably impressed. This is Banksia marginata ‘Bright’. A compact of the Silver Banksia, it grows as a dense shrub to 2 metres high and 2 metres wide – this one looks like it has…
-
Why I love Leucophyta brownii
We must feel part of the land we walk on and love the plants that grow there…if we are to achieve a spirit in the garden. Gordon Ford There are many native plants that I love, well obviously otherwise I wouldn’t create native only gardens, however some inspire me more than others. Cushion Bush or…
-
Small Shade Tree: Tristaniopsis laurina
I am often asked to recommend a small shade tree, something that can fit in a small garden and has a dense canopy which you can sit under. Most people also ask for a tree with lush foliage and showy flowers and perhaps decorative bark, plus they usually request it to be quick growing…..well this…
-
One of my Favourite Grevillea Groundcovers: Grevillea curviloba
I have been waiting a long time to be able to photograph Grevillea curviloba in full flower, it is a favourite of mine even when not in flower. Finally, I came across two specimens in a private garden that were both covered in blooms, and full of native bees, mind you. Introducing Grevillea curviloba! Hooorah!…
-
Easy to grow WA species for the East Coast
Another one! and this one is a winner, it ticks so many boxes and it is hard to believe it comes from southern WA. Gastrolobium celsianum or Brachysema celsianum is a wonderful native plant, it is relatively easy to source, grows quickly and flowers in shade. It has beautiful grey green, foliage and plenty of…
-
Another Native Christmas Tree? Graptophyllum excelsum
Do you think this qualifies as festive looking? It is covered in beautiful bright red flowers over summer (and Christmas), lovely glossy green leaves, and has a sibling called a Holly, I think it ticks all the boxes. This is Graptophyllum excelsum, and would look pretty good dressed up in tinsel.
-
Horizontal Contrast: Homoranthus flavescens
Homoranthus flavescens is a striking plant, the foliage appears succulent and conifer like and the branches grow almost horizontally and appear to layer on top of each other, plus it has a beautiful grey green leaf, making it a wonderful feature shrub in a planting.
-
More Native Christmas Trees
Whilst I am feeling slightly Christmassy I thought I’d sing the praise of one of our most recognisable native plants, the NSW Christmas Bush Horah! don’t they look amazing at the moment? something in the strange spring we had must be setting them off. I love these trees whether they are in their white spring…
-
Bush Tucker Under-Dog: Dianella caerulea
This season is the first time I have had a decent flush of fruit on my Dianella caerulea and I have been pleasantly surprised by the taste, although it doesn’t hit the same spot as the midyim berry, it is actually tasty enough for me to pick and munch on whilst in the garden.
-
Delicate Tea Trees: Leptospermum ‘Cardwell’
I love tea trees or Leptospermums, I’m not sure what it is about them that appeals to me so much. Perhaps their soft weeping foliage or the way they can get absolutely covered in flowers so much so that you can hardly see their leaves from a distance. And the flowers are showy, individually they…
-
Screening with Grevillea ‘Bonfire’
This is one of my favourite Grevilleas’ of the moment. I tend to steer towards Grevilleas without the typical heavily divided thick leaf. ‘Bonfire’ is G. johnsonii x G. willsonii, so you get the lovely fern like leaf in a dark green contrasting beautifully with the deep red flowers, which attract honeyeaters and lorikeets.
-
Buttery Blueberry Bush Tucker: Austromyrtus dulcis
Buttery Blueberries is what I think the flavour of the Midyim Berry is, by far the most delicious of the bush tucker I have tried, and also one of the easiest to grow! I have half a dozen plants in my garden and although they are small they are surprisingly productive.
-
The benefits of salt bush: Rhagodia spinescens
There are several species of salt bush that I like to put in gardens, this one is one of my favourites Rhagodia spinescens, it comes in varying shapes and forms, some a little more silver leaved some a little more compact. It is growing here as a pathway and garden edge and does a great job…
Tag: bird-attracting