Techniques
Bug Watch: Bindii and other annoying lawn weeds
03 March 2015 | Linda RossRegretting 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.
How to: sow seed indoors
15 May 2015 | Linda RossIf you’d like to be enjoying fresh tomatoes from your garden before Christmas, start in winter, sowing and growing indoors so that you have advanced seedlings ready to plant out once the cold weather, and chance of frosts, has passed.
Read MoreA lesson in clipped hedges
13 February 2015 | Graham RossA 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.
Read MoreAugust Jobs
21 May 2020 | Robin PowellDaffodil displays are the prize in August. It's time to get out there and enjoy them.
Black Spot on Roses
14 October 2015 |Out, damn’d spot! The dark side to growing roses is fungal disease. Knowing your enemy is the first step in ridding yourself of this problem for good.
Read MoreBug Watch: Aphids and Other Li'l Suckers
21 August 2015 | Dan WheatleyGiven 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!
Read MoreBugwatch: Bronze Orange Bugs
04 November 2015 | Linda Ross & Dan WheatleyJust when your poor citrus tree thought it would be safe to put on some new growth, this dreaded pest arrives with its stinky, squirty spray, sucking all the vigour from the new spring shoots. Yes, its stink bug time again. But this year we we mean business!
Read MoreBugwatch: Scale
08 July 2016 | Mez Woodward and Dan WheatleyScale 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.
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Companion Planting 1
03 March 2015 | Linda RossCompanion planting is about wisely using plants to reduce the work of the gardener. These are our favourite garden workers.
Read MoreCompanion Planting 2
16 March 2015 | Linda RossWe love any strategy that reduces human intervention in the vegetable garden. Here are a few of our favourite tips for creating a productive garden with less personal effort.
Read MoreComposting
25 April 2015 | Sandra RossAll too often gardeners start composting with great excitement and enthusiasm, only for interest to wane as the results disappoint. Here is a quick guide to help you produce the best compost in whatever composting bin you choose.
Read MoreHome grown: Lemons
21 May 2020 | Linda RossThe plant that gives Garden Clinic gardeners more grief than any other is the lemon. Here’s how to grow gorgeous lemons.
Read MoreHow to: arrange flowers
21 May 2019 | Annabelle HicksonIn this edited extract from A Tree in the House, self-taught florist Annabelle Hickson shares her key tip for arranging flowers beautifully.
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How to: attract bees into your garden
22 April 2015 | Linda Ross
Bees are at the heart of the grow-your-own game. No bees, no pollination, no fruit. To ensure that summer sees us picking buckets of passionfruit and
barrow-loads of pumpkins we integrate bee-attracting flowers into and around the orchard and vegetable garden.
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How to: care for deciduous fruit trees
17 March 2015 | Linda RossGet ahead of the game by using a variety of strategies to prevent pests and diseases attacking fruit trees, such as apples, peaches, nectarines, apricots and figs. Some work now will mean bounteous harvests later!
Read MoreHow to: care for lawns
06 March 2015 | Jake ByrneWith the weather cooling we can back off the mowing but the lawn work is not done. Autumn is a good time to address any problems to ensure that the grass is even greener on the other side of winter.
Read MoreHow to: clip balls
05 September 2018 | Linda RossPlants 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.
Read MoreHow to: create a shell garden
28 February 2019 | Joanne AquilinaSucculents don’t need a lot of root space as they store most of their water and nutrients in their leaves. This means gardeners can get creative about where they create succulent gardens.
Read MoreHow to: create the perfect pergola
13 November 2019 | Arno KingShade, privacy and a place to show off fabulous plants - who doesn’t want a pergola!
Read MoreHow to: divide upside down orchids
27 May 2015 | Graham RossGraham’s upside-down orchid (Stanhopea tigrina) has grown old and unproductive, and this year treated us all with only five flower spikes, instead of the usual 30! We checked it out and found the basket lining had disintegrated and the pine bark mix had completely decomposed. It was time to divide and conquer!
Read MoreHow to: entice a cyclamen to flower again
16 March 2015 | Linda RossA pot of cyclamen is a favourite winter present, but by now you might be wondering what to do with it. Don't throw it away. A cyclamen will repeat its beautiful dispaly year after year if you treat it right.
Read MoreHow to: Fix The Compost
03 July 2017 | Sandra Ross aka The Compost QueenCompost can be the greatest free source of nutrient for your garden. Here our very own compost queen, Sandra Ross answers some of the most frequently-asked compost questions.
Read MoreHow to: fix the lawn
21 May 2018 | Narelle SmithMost 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.
Read MoreHow to: fix the lawn
31 May 2018 | Narelle SmithMost 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.
Read MoreHow to: fix your roses
29 November 2016 | Linda RossMany 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.
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How to: grow an edible hedge
04 October 2017 | Linda RossTrade up from murraya and lillypilly to a hedge you can eat! These four flavoursome options tick the boxes for pretty, practical and productive.
Read MoreHow to: grow hydrangeas
28 May 2015 | Sandra RossHydrangeas are old favourites, yet myths about growing them persist. Sandra clears the air.
Read MoreHow to: grow tulips
20 March 2015 | Isla BarlowFind some time this summer holiday to create a wonderful picture of tulips.
Read MoreHow to: grow your vegies on the verge
26 February 2015 | Linda RossWe are fortunate to have a reasonably big space in our garden that we can allocate simply to growing food. Other gardeners make the most of space on a sunny balcony or terrace. If that’s not an option for you either, consider what might done on the verge!
Read MoreHow to: lay a lawn
07 May 2015 | Linda RossDid you know? The average turf backyard captures carbon and produces enough oxygen for a family of four?
Read MoreHow to: lift your courtyard
14 May 2015 | Linda RossIn just one weekend the Garden Clinic team transformed a chilly corner into a welcoming sanctuary, that is simple to pack up and move to a new location when necessary.
Read MoreHow to: lush the lawn
15 May 2015 | Matthew CarrollCome the warmer weather and the lawn needs a makeover! Follow these simple steps to grow the lush green carpet of grass you’ve always wanted.
Read MoreHow to: make a spiral topiary
13 February 2015 | Sandra RossA spiral topiary makes just as good a focal point in a small domestic garden as it does in grand gardens like the one shown here.
Read MoreHow to: make a summer vegetable tepee
12 March 2015 | Linda RossFor space saving nothing beats a tepee! A single structure will provide 36kg of cherry tomatoes, cucumber and green beans over a 3 month stretch.
Read MoreHow to: Make Potting Mix
01 October 2015 | Linda RossPlants in pots need the right nutrients, water, air and a quality potting mix to live happily ever after.
Read MoreHow to: make up a Magic Mix
08 December 2016 | Robin PowellAt a Garden Clinic class held at Honeysuckle Nursery in Mosman we wondered aloud at all the plants bursting with health and vitality, with shiny, glossy
leaves and so much energy they seemed about to leap off the shelves. The answer? This Magic Mix!
How to: overhaul your irrigation system
15 May 2015 | Matthew CarrollHere's how to give your irrigation system a once over.
Read MoreHow to: plant bare-rooted plants
30 April 2015 | Linda RossIn winter trees and roses are often sold ‘bare-rooted’. They are simply a skeleton of stems, with the bare roots often wrapped in hessian or plastic for protection.
Read MoreHow to: plant propagation
06 March 2015 | Isla BarlowWant plants for free? Winter is the right time of year to take cuttings from established plants to create new ones.
Read MoreHow to: propagate begonias
28 May 2015 | Sandra RossYou don’t often see these plants for sale in commercial nurseries, so the best way to introduce them into your garden is to find a friend who is willing to share, and practice your propagation skills.
Read MoreHow to: propagate hibiscus
16 March 2015 | Linda RossMany of the most exciting hibiscus are found in gardens rather than in garden centres, so it’s handy to know how to propagate your own plants.
Read MoreHow to: prune a cloud topiary
13 February 2015 | Graham RossAfter decades of admiring beautiful specimens of cloud-pruned trees in China and Japan, I finally decided to create my own cloud topiary. When our editors discovered what I’d done they asked me to write about it.
Read MoreHow to: prune angels trumpet
13 February 2015 | Linda RossAngels trumpets (brugmansia) are native to the subtropical forests of Brazil and Chile. There they grow beneath other trees in an unruly and tangled mess of branches, illuminated by those sensational flowers.
Read MoreHow to: prune climbing roses
23 August 2017 | Robin PowellThe 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
Read MoreHow to: rejuvenate the lawn
16 February 2015 | Robin PowellIt’s time to refresh tired, stressed turf and transform it into lush, green lawn.
Read MoreHow to: remove rose suckers
20 March 2015 | Sandra RossRose suckers can overtake a precious rose if you don’t act early. Sandra Ross explains how to identify and remove them.
Read MoreHow to: repair a patchy lawn
20 May 2015 | Linda RossAutumn is a great time to oversow a balding lawn, grown patchy from the extremes of summer weather - and holiday entertaining!
Read MoreHow to: save your garden when off on holidays
14 May 2015 | Linda RossWe’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.
Read MoreHow to: scare birds
18 March 2015 | Linda RossThis autumn don’t lose your precious fruit harvest to the birds. These are our favourite – proven! – techniques.
Read MoreHow to: set up a hen house
09 August 2016 | Claire BickleThinking 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.
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