How to... | The Garden Clinic

How to: save your garden when off on holidays

18 March, 2021 | Linda Ross

We’re all going on a summer holiday - and the garden is staying behind! But with a little forward planning your garden can be just as lovely when you return as it was before you left.

How to: say 'Holidays!' with flowers

18 March, 2021 | Robin Powell & Linda Ross

In the dictionaries of florigraphy there are floral choices for expressing emotions as complex as a tepid affection (daffodils!) and appreciation of loyalty (violets) but there is no floral choice expressing the sentiment ‘Yay it’s holiday time!’ To redress the lack, here’s our choice of the top 5 flowers that wave happy holiday flags though summer.

How to: scare birds

18 March, 2021 | Linda Ross

This autumn don’t lose your precious fruit harvest to the birds. These are our favourite – proven! – techniques.

How to: set up a hen house

18 March, 2021 | Claire Bickle

Thinking about keeping chooks? Good plan. But before you put in an order for fluffy little chickens, get the henhouse right. Whether you are choosing a ready-made option, or building your own from new or recycled materials, here’s what you need to know to create a happy home for your hens.

How to: set up a worm farm

18 March, 2021 | Linda Ross

Linda caught up with some school students using the power of the worm to decrease their waste, increase their vegetable harvest and raise money for their school. Here she shares some tips on worm farming.

How to: shade veg

18 March, 2021 | Linda Ross

Making shade on extremely hot days is important for vegie plant health.

How to: sharpen the pruners

18 March, 2021 | Shane Neill

A good crisp cut is one of the joys of pruning. Blunt tools not only deprive you of this simple pleasure but do a poor job and damage your plants.

How to: soften a driveway

18 March, 2021 | Shane Neil

Driveways are a necessary practicality for most of us and all too often they are uninspiring. Clever plant choices can bring the area back to life, softening the look of all that concrete or brick and creating a space that really does welcome you home.

How to: sow seeds

18 March, 2021 | Linda Ross

Start planning in winter to sow seed for summer. There are two ways to raise vegetables from seed: sow them directly into the soil in which they are to grow; or raise them under cover in your house or greenhouse.

How to: sow wildflowers

18 March, 2021 | Linda Ross

Our bush wildflowers make a stunning display. Now is the time to sow wildflowers for a swathe of colour through your own garden.

How to: stop snails invading precious pot plants

18 March, 2021 | Matthew Carroll

Keep both pets and snail-sensitive plants safe with these solutions.

How to: Strike a Queen of the Night cutting

18 March, 2021 | 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: style an ikebana

18 March, 2021 | Linda Ross

The key difference between an ikebana approach to flower arranging and a Western style is that in ikebana the focus is on line and space rather than mass. Instead of adding more flowers to make it look better, ikebana is about what can be taken away. The space between the elements is as important as the elements themselves.

How to: style balcony pots

18 March, 2021 | Robin Powell

To make a balcony feel like a garden it needs to surround you with plants. Somehow you have to get some plants up at eye level, and even above it. A small tree would be just the thing, but on most balconies a pot big enough to support a large plant is just too heavy once it’s filled with moist soil - and a tree! A more pragmatic approach is to arrange smaller pots at different levels. You need to get those pots up off the ground to really appreciate your balcony garden. Here are a few ideas.

How to: take cuttings

18 March, 2021 | Libby Cameron

When you have an hour, take cuttings of favourite plants.

How to: understand humates

18 March, 2021 | Arno King

Humates are prehistoric (20-50 million year old) decomposed organic matter, which is why they are sometimes referred to as ‘dinosaur compost’. They are increasingly being used by gardeners as a soil additive - with impressive results. In fact you may already be using humates on your garden as they are a component in many high-quality fertilisers.

How to: use coconut peat

18 March, 2021 | 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.

How to: use edible flowers

18 March, 2021 | Linda Ross

Eating flowers sounds exotic but in fact we do it all the time. Some are disguised, like saffron, which is the dried stigma of the crocus flower; others are obvious, like the gold flowers of zucchini.

How to: use lemon verbena

18 March, 2021 | Robin Powell

This herb is loved by cooks for the fragrant citrus scent of its leaves, which at this time of year are fresh and soft. One bonus of adding lemon verbena to everything you can think of – the more you use the better it looks! Robin Powell shares a few ideas.

How to: use plants to deter pests

18 March, 2021 | Linda Ross

Strongly scented herbs planted throughout the garden help put flying insects off their food – whether that’s your treasured plant, food crop, or body!

How to: use seaweed

18 March, 2021 | Linda Ross

Seaweed is a versatile natural resource that does great work in the garden. We use it on a fortnightly basis to keep plants healthy.

How to: use seaweed in the garden

18 March, 2021 | Kirsten Bradley and Nick Ritar

In their new book ‘Milkwood’, permaculture gardeners Kirsten Bradley and Nick Ritar devote a whole chapter to the glories of seaweed. Beyond its uses in the kitchen, seaweed is great in the garden.

How to: use water wisely

18 March, 2021 | Linda Ross

As the cost of water goes up, gardeners are looking for smart ways of making the most of this precious resource.

How to: use your herb harvest

18 March, 2021 | Robin Powell

As the growing season draws to a close, our herb gardens are blousy with late summer growth.

How to: use your pea harvest

18 March, 2021 | Robin Powell

Peas are one of those crops that can make the home gardener feel smugly self-satisfied because they taste so good fresh from the garden.

In my kitchen garden: Camden, NSW

18 March, 2021 | Mickey Robertson

Mickey Robertson’s kitchen garden at Glenmore House is as beautiful as it is productive, experimental and instructive.

In the garden: August

18 March, 2021 | Linda Ross

The winter show is packing it's bags and making way for spring. It's time to plant some potted colour, prune the perennials and clear out the compost

In the garden: July

18 March, 2021 | Linda Ross

The winter chill is settling on the garden. It's time to enjoy winter flowers, sharpen up the pruning tools and get those spring bulbs in

In the garden: March

18 March, 2021 | Robin Powell

It’s time to get busy this march. Back by popular demand - our reminders of what to do in the garden this season.

In The Subtropical Garden: August

18 March, 2021 | Arno King

Late winter can be a very productive time in the Subtropical garden. Our resident tropical garden expert Arno King has all the tips and tricks, jobs and things to watch out for this August in the subtropical north.

In The Subtropical Garden: June

18 March, 2021 | Arno King

Milder temps, light and infrequent rains and glorious sunshine is par for the course in the subtropical garden. Our resident tropical garden expert Arno King has all the tips and tricks, and the best thinks to plant this June in the subtropical garden.

In The Subtropical Garden: Spring

18 March, 2021 | Arno King

Things are heating up in the subtropical garden, and the humidity is just around the corner. Our resident tropical garden expert Arno King has all the tips and tricks, and the best thinks to plant this Spetember in the subtropical garden.