The Spotted Dead Nettle from the mint family… beware, buy the wrong variety and you’ll have it for life! Photo: Jackie Warburton The Spotted Dead Nettle is from the mint family, but beware, buy the wrong variety and you’ll have it for life, warns gardening columnist JACKIE WARBURTON.  Here’s a terrific evergreen groundcover for shady areas of the garden and a great understory plant for trees and shrubs, but you have to keep your wits about you when buying it.  Jackie Warburton. The Spotted Dead Nettle (Lamium maculatum) is from the mint family, but beware, buy the wrong variety and y ..read more

Impatiens have a carefree growth habit and a vast colour range, with the most common being red, pink and white. Photo: Jackie Warburton Gardening columnist JACKIE WARBURTON is focusing on a small, colourful plant that’s perfect for a summer garden but won’t be around when the frosts come.  Impatiens are a frost-tender perennial in Canberra.  Jackie Warburton. These small plants – Impatiens walleriana – are perfect for potted colour in the garden as a border from spring to late autumn or as an indoor bowl or hanging basket.  As indoor plants, they need only dappled light, but the ..read more

Staghorn… most unusual, as they don’t produce flowers and don’t need soil to grow. Photo: Jackie Warburton Staghorn is most unusual to grow as it doesn’t produce flowers and doesn’t need soil to grow, writes gardening columnist JACKIE WARBURTON. In its habitat, Staghorn likes to cling to the bark of trees, where there is moisture in the understory of a sub-tropical forest. Jackie Warburton. Long-living, slow-growing Staghorn (Platycerium bifurcatum) can be grown in Canberra in a protected spot and needs little care when established.  The shield fronds protect its root ball from drying out ..read more

Chinese lanterns… in a protected spot they grow and flower for many months. Photo: Jackie Warburton Abutilon plants or Chinese lanterns, which are in flower now, can grow and flower for many months in a protected spot, says gardening columnist JACKIE WARBURTON.  Abutilon plants are closely related to hibiscus and are a good substitute for anyone looking for a tropical-looking flower to grow in our climate. Jackie Warburton. Abutilons are of the mallow family and have a similar flower shape as hollyhocks and even okras.  They are semi-deciduous and a little pruning is all that’s neede ..read more

The Xanthorrhoea johnsonii grass tree grows best in our region and is untroubled by frosts. Photo: Jackie Warburton Grass tree – neither a grass nor a tree – is a spectacular native shrub that grows well in our region, says gardening columnist JACKIE WARBURTON.  The grass tree has strikingly long thin leaves that grow from the trunk and is botanically most unusual.  Jackie Warburton. It likes free draining soil and will benefit from being planted into a raised garden bed or pot. It’s fussy with being moved and minimal root disturbance is necessary in any successful transplant.  ..read more

Strawberries… need full sun and good airflow to keep any fungal disease at bay. Photo: Jackie Warburton It’s almost strawberry planting time. They’re best planted in autumn, with a second planting in spring, says gardening columnist JACKIE WARBURTON.  Strawberries are quick-growing, take up little space and are delicious picked and eaten straight off the plant.  Jackie Warburton. They need full sun and good airflow to keep any fungal disease at bay. Strawberries don’t like too much water, but like a good soil with manures and organic matter to keep them growing and producing fast. Sh ..read more

Curry plant… the colder its environment, the more leaves it loses. Photo: Jackie Warburton Curry leaves are a main ingredient in Indian dishes and this plant is easy to grow in Canberra with a little care, says gardening writer JACKIE WARBURTON.  Curry plant (Murraya koenigii) is a tropical plant that can grow to three metres, but here it can only survive as an indoor plant during winter and as an outdoor patio plant in summer.  Jackie Warburton. The colder its environment, the more leaves it loses. Keeping it snug in winter will get a mature plant growing in a few years.  The f ..read more

Ornamental grasses… many can look great throughout the year. Photo: Jackie Warburton Ornamental grasses, which have become popular over the past few years, can be a low-maintenance option for any garden, says gardening columnist JACKIE WARBURTON. There are a large variety of ornamental grasses, native and exotic, that can provide year-round colour and interest.  Jackie Warburton. Tall grasses fill gaps in large gardens and smaller grasses can border small gardens. Grasses are drought hardy and photosynthesis differently to most plants; they have mechanisms that shut down when temperatures ..read more

Pelargonium hortorum… a great year-round plant. Photo: Jackie Warburton Popular pelargoniums bloom right through summer and into autumn, but not all varieties like the same conditions, writes gardening columnist JACKIE WARBURTON. Some frost-tender pelargoniums can be treated as annuals, but others are hardier for our Canberra winters. Jackie Warburton. There’s always been confusion between geraniums and pelargoniums. It was easier to tell the difference with old-fashioned varieties of pelargoniums as their flowers were often asymmetrical with two upper petals and three small, lower ones ..read more

Echeveria… an evergreen that grows well as a ground cover and great for pots and small courtyard gardens. Photo: Jackie Warburton Good-looking echeverias and Royal Bluebells… JACKIE WARBURTON’S busy in the garden this week. Echeverias are looking good at the moment. They can multiply quite quickly if grown in the right spot.  Jackie Warburton. Some like shade and some like sun but, in general, more sun gets them growing better. Once established, they need little water nor care and grow well in Canberra’s dry, summer conditions.  They’re an evergreen that grows well as a ground cover ..read more