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Oxalis – wonder plant, or weed?I have had it up to “pussies bow” with the lack of science being shown by supposed scientists that work with weeds and weediness! Several years ago as a horticultural media operative I was invited to a seminar in Melbourne to be told what we in the media were to be able to say about declared weedy plants (nothing positive!). Continue reading
Australian plants for shady spotsOne of the perennial gardening problems (if you’ll pardon the awful pun) is finding plants that will thrive in shady spots next to fences or underneath established trees. Even more difficult is to find ones that also flower well in these conditions. As a lover of Australian plants I want to share a few of my favourites. Continue reading
Planting a dry stone wallWith seventy square metres of dry stone retaining walls in the new garden area, the effect is currently rather stark… but, no worries. The big advantage of this kind of wall is that it can be planted! I popped in six thyme plants in late spring, but it was the wrong season so only three survived the scorching summer heat. Autumn will be much a better time for successful establishment. Continue reading
That’s what gardeners doYou can always pick gardeners on holidays. They have these funny habits they indulge when they are away from their familiar terrain. I speak both of my own behaviour and from watching fellow flora enthusiasts. Continue reading
The wonderful water ratI was awash in a flurry of the facts and figures, joys and anxieties that are an inescapable conclusion to the business of writing a book. Around midday I downed tools and headed out to Oakleigh, in middle Melbourne, to take the first car that I have ever owned for its first service – three months overdue. Continue reading
Using grassy plants in garden designFor those of you who have followed my posts, you will know that I am an ardent fan of foliage plants. Australian grass-like plants certainly fit into this realm, and are used regularly in my garden designs and landscaping. The late Christopher Lloyd first kindled my instinct for using grassy plants in my designs about 15 years ago. He was particularly fond of the Miscanthus plant group, which I also love. But here the tale is about our indigenous plants. Continue reading
Heads or KalesJames Joyce mentions the florin early into Ulysses, reason enough for Frank Delaney to tell us about the origin of the word in his exasperatingly brilliant Re:Joyce podcast. The ‘florin’ was first used and named in the Italian city of Florence, or Firenze, but according to Delaney the name refers to a flower rather than the city. The first coins, he says, bore a lily on one side. Continue reading
Lonely treesDo you ever see a tree and think “Where did you come from, where are your parents, how did you get here?”? I occasionally ponder these questions when I see a tree that seems to be the only one of its kind growing in the area. Continue reading