Ask Us!

Bug Watch: Bindii and other annoying lawn weeds

03 March 2015 | Linda Ross

Regretting not spraying against bindii in winter? Bindii (Soliva pterosperma) is a low-growing annual herb with leaves like a carrot top. It produces a single flower at its centre that matures into a prickly seedpod that sticks in bare feet.

Bug Watch: Helpful wasps

16 March 2015 | Linda Ross

Early spring is the time to hang parasitic wasp (Encarsia formosa) cards up in new plantings of tomatoes and eggplant to protect these vegetables from white fly.

Bug Watch: Woolly aphids

16 March 2015 | Linda Ross

These insects are 2-4 mm in length, pear-shaped and often covered with white waxy filaments that give a fluffy appearance, as though they are covered with wool.

Mail Order Vegetable Seed Supplies

25 April 2015 | Linda Ross

We like to buy our vegetable seeds from trusted mail order seed companies, this way we get a considerable range of varieties for a lifetime of experimentation and flavour. Here are our favourites.

10 things you didn’t know about fruit flies

13 December 2018 | Robin Powell

Robin Powell reports from behind enemy lines on the fascinating, infuriating fruit fly.

A lesson in clipped hedges

13 February 2015 | Graham Ross

A hedge is many things. It can define areas of the garden; shield you from the curiosity of passersby; block ugly intrusions into your view; protect your privacy; offer favourite plants a green backdrop against which to dazzle; or simply give your garden a nestling sense of enclosure and cosy comfort. Here Graham Ross answers the most-asked questions on hedge cultivation and care.

Bug Watch: Aphids

03 March 2015 | Ally Jackson

Check roses, citrus, cherry and peach carefully when you water, looking for clusters of small insects hiding under leaves or on new growth: aphids.

Bug Watch: Aphids and Other Li'l Suckers

21 August 2015 | Dan Wheatley

Given the chance those annoying little suckers bothering your flower buds now can become an infestation later. But if you get in early enough you can manage the problem without using any chamicals, just a few little backyard-buddies. Its time to get out there and evict your unwanted tennants!

Bug Watch: Blue banded bee

06 March 2015 | Ally Jackson

This native bee is found in every part of Australia except Tasmania. It gets its name from the iridescent blue or white bands around its abdomen.

Bug Watch: Botrytis

26 February 2015 | Linda Ross

Humid, still conditions are the perfect breeding ground for botrytis, a fungus that affects plant tissue.

Bug Watch: Bronze orange bugs

14 May 2015 | Libby Cameron

Bronze orange bugs are nasty pests that suck sap from young shoots, fruit and flowers of citrus trees.

Bug Watch: Cabbage Moth

26 February 2015 | Linda Ross

Female moths, which can be recognised by their mottled brown colour, lay their eggs under leaves. When the larvae hatch, the brown-striped caterpillars tunnel into stems.

Bug Watch: Citrus gall wasp

24 February 2015 | Linda Ross

Bulging citrus stems indicate the presence of citrus gall moth, which lays its eggs in the bark at the ends of citrus branches.

Bug Watch: Citrus leaf miner

06 March 2015 | Ally Jackson

A silvery trail on foliage is the telltale sign of this pest. Eggs were laid in the leaf by the moth last year and the trail is the hatched insect eating its way out. Further in their lifecycle leaf miners curl the leaves completely in on themselves, and pupate into small moths. These are active at night, so are rarely seen.

Bug Watch: Cup moth

06 March 2015 | Ally Jackson

Cup moths are so-called due to the cup-shaped cocoon they attach to the tree branches, or surrounding leaf litter, of eucalypts, brush box and pittosporum. They are also known to attack apples, apricots and cherries.

Bug Watch: Frangipani rust

03 March 2015 | Linda Ross

This is a fairly new disease (Coleosporium domingense syn C. plumeriae) in Australia. It is believed to have arrived from Florida in an infected frangipani cutting 15 years ago.

Bug watch: Hawk moth caterpillar

18 March 2015 | Libby Cameron

This is the king of the autumn caterpillars, a voracious eater that grows into a sizeable creature up to 7cm longwith large spots along its body and a white-tipped spine at the end. It feeds on tender foliage, and can decimate a patch of impatiens or sweet potato in a couple of days.

Bug Watch: Lacebugs

03 March 2015 | Ally Jackson

Despite their name, Azalea lace bugs are also enemies of rhododendrons. Their attack is evidenced by widespread silvery mottling and sticky, brown patches on the underside of leaves. It’s best to spray now, at the beginning of the growing season.

Bug watch: Lily caterpillar

20 March 2015 | Libby Cameron

These voracious caterpillars can destroy a clump of clivias or other lilies in record time.

Bug watch: Magnesium deficiency

18 March 2015 | Libby Cameron

When plants are low in magnesium, they move what they have from the old leaves to feed the new. Consequently older leaves begin to yellow from the sides to the centre.

Bug watch: Peach leaf curl

30 April 2015 | Libby Cameron

Peach leaf curl is a parasitic fungus that causes new leaves on peaches and nectarines to become disfigured.

Bug Watch: Powdery mildew

06 March 2015 | Ally Jackson

Powdery mildew is a widespread fungus that is carried by the wind. It multiplies rapidly in high humidity so thrives in overcrowded garden beds where the air circulation is poor.

Bug Watch: Thrips

12 March 2015 | Linda Ross

Thrips suck and rasp at flower petals causing discolouration.

Bug Watch: Two spotted mite and azalea lace bug

12 March 2015 | Linda Ross

These two insects feed under the azalea leaves, causing a mottled discolouration on the topside of the leaves.

Bugwatch: Scale

08 July 2016 | Mez Woodward and Dan Wheatley

Scale insects are some of the most common garden pests around. They attract other pests and suck the vigour from your plants, but they are easy to control and even easier to prevent.

Frost Watch

17 March 2015 | Linda Ross

Frost-sensitive plants such as hibiscus, frangipani, passionfruit, citrus, deciduous fruit trees, and some vegetables can be adversely affected by frost.

How to plant a bare-rooted rose

29 May 2018 | Mez Woodward

It's easy to be seduced by the colour, forms and perfumes of roses, but not as easy to successfully grow them. Here Mez Woodward shows us how to plant your bare-rooted rose.

How to: brew compost tea

05 September 2018 | Arno King

When I was a child all our neighbours and friends had a large tub - generally an old enamel washing machine tub - buried close to the vegetable garden. This was the ‘brew’ tub. Ingredients for the brew - compost, manures and seaweed - were widely discussed and benefits widely acclaimed. And it turns out these gardeners were onto something!

How to: clip balls

05 September 2018 | Linda Ross

Plants clipped into balls add form and structure to the garden, and beautifully balance wilder, looser planting. The repetition of shapes develops rhythm which holds the garden together, while the contrast with other shrub shapes adds variety and interest.

How to: fix the lawn

31 May 2018 | Narelle Smith

Most warm-season grasses stop growing when the nights turn cold, allowing weeds to get a foothold while your attention has turned indoors. So now is the time to target terrors like bindii, wintergrass and dandelions and avoid seeding - and many years more weeding.

How to: fix the lawn

21 May 2018 | Narelle Smith

Most warm-season grasses stop growing when the nights turn cold, allowing weeds to get a foothold while your attention has turned indoors. So now is the time to target terrors like bindii, wintergrass and dandelions and avoid seeding - and many years more weeding - before boosting growth for lush summer lawns.

How to: fix your roses

29 November 2016 | Linda Ross

Many questions from radio callers to Garden Clinic on 2GB on the weekends involve roses. We feel your pain! These are our go-to fixes for six common rose problems.

How to: fix your tomatoes

27 May 2017 | Linda Ross

Fresh, vine-ripened tomatoes are one of the great joys of summer. The best way to ensure that your tomato-growing experience delivers baskets of delicious fruit is to keep plants healthy.

How to: grow amazing geraniums

01 October 2015 | Linda Ross

The plants I'm talking about here are botanically speaking Pelargonium though commonly called geranium. True Geranium species are delicate-looking perennials, usually with blue flowers.

How to: grow an edible hedge

04 October 2017 | Linda Ross

Trade up from murraya and lillypilly to a hedge you can eat! These four flavoursome options tick the boxes for pretty, practical and productive.

How to: growing vegetables from seed

22 December 2018 | Arno King

Planting punnets of vegetable seedlings is easy, but it is much more cost-effective and more fulfilling - not to mention offering wider choice and better results - to sow seed directly into the garden. The key is to sow plants suited to your climate, at the appropriate time of year.

How to: Make Potting Mix

01 October 2015 | Linda Ross

Plants in pots need the right nutrients, water, air and a quality potting mix to live happily ever after.

How to: prune climbing roses

23 August 2017 | Robin Powell

The first thing to know about pruning climbing roses is not to do it in winter when you do your other roses. Here Robin Powell shares some of her other climbing rose insites

How to: Strike a Queen of the Night cutting

03 May 2016 | Dan Wheatley

For stunning contrast of texture and form, huge repeat flowering and fragrance to die for there is nothing quite like the Queen of the Night orchid cactus, a plant that is as easy to propagate from cuttings as it is to grow.

How to: use coconut peat

31 May 2018 | Arno KIng

Need a lightweight, easily stored, highly effective potting medium? Look no further than this byproduct of coconut production, which has advantages for plants as well as gardners.

It's time to: August

05 August 2016 | Elizabeth Swane

Get ready, spring will be here before we know it. It's time to get the last of those last-minute winter jobs done

Kitchen Garden Spring Jobs

01 September 2017 | Linda Ross

This spring try something new: a vertical pumpkin patch; a fence line of sweet potato or a hanging basket filled with the sweetest, most productive strawberry ever.

Kitchen Garden Spring: Soft Herbs

01 September 2017 | Linda Ross

The key to a thriving herb garden is to give each plant the conditions it needs to prosper. The result is easy gardening, and delicious pickings. Here Linda Ross shows you her favourites and the conditions they need to thrive in spring.

Kitchen Garden: subtropical winter

01 June 2018 | Arno King

Arno is a garden designer and writer whose garden in Brisbane is mostly edible. He is constantly testing the received garden wisdom for its relevance to subtropical gardeners, and trialling new products. Lets see what Arno's growing this winter