Our Gardens Winter 2010

Our Gardens The Quarterly Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

Issue 45 ISSN 1832-4738

Winter Winter 2010

Dendrobium hillii Watercolour courtesy botanical artist Elaine Musgrave.

This Australian epiphyte is found in rainforest and sclerophyll forests on the east coast of NSW north of the Hawkesbury River.

It flowers from August to October.

Issue 45 | Winter 2010

Contents 4

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In touch 2 24 27 28

A word from the President, Committee, Journal contacts Club and Zone News Diary Dates and Comment Noticeboard and Gleanings

3 6 10 12 14 15 19

The Elizabeth Macquarie iris Trilliums The dainty maidenhair fern Crown of thorns A very unusual planting of a Tillandsia Native know how – Flame Pea Useful plants to cover fences

Plants

Gardens and gardening 8

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4 8 13 18 22

Brookfield Park, a gem of a garden at Dungowan A change of climate – UK to the Sunshine Coast Rose pruning tips Seasonal tips in brief Garden health without chemicals

Parks and botanic gardens 20 Royal Botanic Gardens at Cranbourne, Victoria 21 Limahuli, a botanic garden in Hawaii

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History

16 Crossing the Blue Mountains 17 Early botanists in Tasmania

And also 17

23 Photo competition 2010 and some more entries from 2009 29 Lifenotes – winner in the 2009 Nature Poetry competition

Our Gardens The Quarterly Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

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Issue 45 ISSN 1832-4738

Winter Winter 2010

Paper daisies on the Red Sand Garden, Cranbourne RBG, Victoria Photo: J.Molinsk, RBG Cranbourne©

The opinions and descriptions expressed by authors, contributors or advertisers in this journal do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Committee of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc. The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc does not accept responsibility for any advice, guidance or treatment recommended by any author, contributor or advertiser in this journal.

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A Word from the President Welcome to the Winter Edition of Our Gardens. Personally I love walking around the garden this time of year. The whole garden is in sleep mode, but then there is always some plant ready to surprise you.

I was present at a garden club recently when the August issue of Our Gardens was tabled. The enthusiasm from the members was a delight to see, as they all seemed eager to read it. The Journal Committee has to be congratulated for all their hard work to keep it up to the standard it is.

Congratulations to Jenny Simons on being awarded an OAM for Services to Conservation and the Environment in the Southern Highlands in the Australia Day awards. Jenny has been proof reader for the journal for over 10 years and the award was well deserved for such a hardworking and charming person.

How long is it since you or your club has logged on to our Web page (www. gardenclubs.org.au)? You will be pleasantly surprised. Dennis Parker, our

Journal Team

Web Master, is doing a great job. All the forms sent to your club by us can now be viewed, down- loaded and printed from the affiliate area. In the near future a form will be sent to all clubs asking if they still require us to mail these out. It is nine years since the last increase and we hope if the clubs down load them, and use them when needed postage costs will be reduced and affiliate fees can be kept down to a minimum.

It is 60 years ago that Margaret Davis started what has become (with a few minor name changes) the Garden Clubs of Australia. On September 7 we will be celebrating this occasion in conjunction with our AGM. So please come along and bring your members, socialise, mingle, meet old and new friends. Relive the past and help us all celebrate the future of GCA. Growth is Life Jeanette Chown.

Deadline next issue 1/6/10

Editor Patricia Prior Articles

28 Bilwara Ave, Bilgola Plateau NSW 2107 Ph: 02 9973 1247 email: priors@iinet.net.au

Assistant Editor Carolyn Dawes Club news, diary dates

9 Lachlan Street, Macquarie ACT 2614 Ph: 02 6251 5779 email: carolyn.dawes@bigpond.com

Proofing

89 Osborne Road, Burradoo NSW 2576

Jenny Simons

Advertising Ken Bradley

7 Lancewood Road, Dural NSW 2158 Ph: 02 9651 3118 email: kbra3829@bigpond.net.au

Subscriptions John Sowden

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Want to subscribe? Four issues posted to your door costs only $18.00. Simply write to John Sowden (address above) giving your name, postal and email addresses and phone number together with your cheque, payable The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

Design

ProArtwork 4/92a Mona Vale Road, Mona Vale NSW 2103 Ph: 02 9999 3022 email: dan@proart.net.au

Photographs and material submitted should have a stamped, self-addressed envelope if return required. Manuscripts to be typed (or emailed).

No article or part thereof may be reprinted or reproduced by any means without the express approval of the publisher, The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

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OUR GARDENS Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc ‘Friendship through Gardens’ Founder President Mrs Margaret Davis M.B.E. • President Mrs Jeanette Chown • Honorary Secretary John Graham PO Box 185 Galston NSW 2159 Ph: 02 9653 1864 Email: galstongardens@gmail.com • Honorary Treasurer Mr John Sowden PO Box 7073 LEURA NSW 2780 Email: jsowden@wix.com.au • Director of Zones Mrs Glenys Bruun 92 Petrie Creek Road Nambour QLD 4560 Ph: 07 5441 2692 Email: gbruun@bigpond.net.au • Membership Secretary Mr Ken Bradley 7 Lancewood Road DURAL NSW 2158 Email: kbra3829@bigpond.net.au • Sales Co-ordinator Mrs Jeanette Chown 11 Olga Close Bossley Park NSW 2176 Ph/Fax: 02 9609 4865 Email: phillchown@bigpond.com • Webmaster Mr Dennis Parker Email: webmaster@gardenclubs. org.au www.gardenclubs.org.au Aims and Objectives ~ To encourage friendship through gardening ~ To further a knowledge of all aspects of gardening and floral art ~ To aid in the protection and conservation of natural resources ~ To cooperate with kindred organisations having similar aims

Elizabeth Macquarie remembered with an iris Text and photos, Peta Trahar

In her travels, Elizabeth, the wife of Governor Macquarie, was known to distribute blue and white iris to early NSW settlers. Graeme Grosvenor prefaces his excellent book, Iris the Flower of the Rainbow, with the words: ‘In ancient Greek mythology, Iris was the messenger of the gods…she travelled on the arc of the rainbow bearing messages between earth, sea and sky.’

To honour the bicentenary of Governor Lachlan and Elizabeth Macquarie this year, one of Graeme’s beautiful Tall Bearded Iris hybrids has been selected and named ‘Elizabeth Macquarie’. The iris is a striking blue on white plicata. Plicata means the base colour of the flower is edged, dotted and stitched with another. It has proved to be an early flowerer and a strong healthy grower.

The iris that Elizabeth used to distribute were commonly called ‘flags’. Over the years ‘Flag iris’ have been improved by specialist growers not only in Australia but all over the world, particularly in the USA. Now there are larger and stronger blooms and gorgeous colour combinations. The strong constitution and drought tolerance of iris remains.

Diana Cox, NSW and National President of the Iris Society, invited four Society members to share and grow on the original thirty ‘Elizabeth Macquarie’ iris rhizomes from Graeme Grosvenor. Growing the plants in four different gardens, two in Bilpin, one at Oberon and one at Krambach, NSW, protected against possible mishaps and proved interesting when comparing growing conditions.

Here in our garden at Woodgreen at Bilpin, the iris have

thrived. A raised garden bed in full sun was chosen.

The existing soil had never had iris grown there before.

We added dolomite and Dynamic Lifter. The rhizomes were planted shallowly in late summer 2009, after soaking in a weak solution of Seasol and for once, no mulch. Tall Bearded iris don’t like mulch over the rhizome surface. Our inland climate, away from the coastal humidity and with cold winters seems ideal.

We didn’t factor in two of our Angus bulls escaping into the garden just before flowering time last spring.

The bulls’ combined weight of one and a half tonnes coupled with high spirits helped rearrange a Buxus hedge, knock over pedestals and send rare plants flying.

Fortunately they overlooked the precious iris.

On the 10th of October, 2010, the ‘Elizabeth Macquarie’ iris will be officially launched at Windsor, one of the five Macquarie towns. Already the iris has been purchased by Councils and Botanic Gardens. How wonderful to think that Elizabeth’s love for her favourite blue and white ‘flags’ will live on. From October the iris will be available to the public and will be on display at the annual Iris Show to be held at Blackheath on October 23rd and 24th. Sydney Linnegar, one of the world’s iris experts will judge, as he has done previously.

Well known artist, Elaine Musgrave has produced a beautiful painting of the ‘Elizabeth Macquarie’ iris and Wedgwood have been commissioned to launch a range of china mugs featuring the bloom.

Gardeners interested in ordering the iris need to contact The Iris Society’s Diana Cox by email: dicoxiris@bigpond.com Peta Trahar MAIH MAILDM is convenor of the annual Collectors’ Plant Fair at Bilpin, and Secretary of the Iris Society (NSW)

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The fountain, photo Bob Atkins

‘Brookfield Park’, a gem of a garden

Kathy Hahn, photo Pam Cobcroft

Text Lyn Morehen, photos Lyn Morehen and Robert Atkins

On the first day of the 2009 Biennial National Convention of the Garden Clubs of Australia we visited several gardens in the beautiful Dungowan valley, the first one being Brookfield Park, where Kathy and Robert Hahn, and their son Dean, hosted some 400 people which they managed in several small groups.

The scenery is breathtaking as the property is situated on the top of a hill and the garden has 360 degree views. We visited in late September during the GCA Convention at Tamworth and walked in through a rose arbor, and immediately I realised that this is a very special garden with its magnificent borrowed views across the valley.

The garden is abundant with colour, texture and ideas and beautiful with spring flowers such as hellebores, forget-me-knots, London Pride, wisteria and azaleas. They are balanced by stunning displays of native shrubs, looking particularly vibrant and striking in standard forms. There is a native walk with 25 grafted grevilleas. Roses frame a view across the valley and a fountain adds a civilized feel to the property. The sense of place is enhanced by the most stunning and sculptural forms of the Australian grass tree Xanthorrea sp. The tumbling, pink/purple shrub of Fringe Flower Loropetalum chinensis contrasts well with the limey green of the diosma.

Xanthorrea, photo Lyn Morehen

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Robert and Kathy Hahn have been here since 1989, and quite literally had to blast the top of the hillside to provide the base for this very special place. They imported tons of soil, manure and mulch hay. The garden is still well mulched to deal with the Dungowan climate which can be hot and windy. Plants that

OUR GARDENS Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

Photo Bob Atkins

View from the garden, photo Bob Atkins

A grafted grevillea , photo Lyn Morehen

need some shade such as azaleas and maidenhair ferns were well placed under a shaded area adjoining the house.

Robert is still working on the farm but the Hahns spend considerable time in their garden, especially Kathy who spends weekends here with her second son Dean who is disabled but loves helping in the garden.

To me the garden was perfection although the owners say that October is the very best time to see the roses.

Brookfield Park will be open for Tamworth Cottage Gardeners’ Open Garden Weekend 16-17 October this year. Enquiries: Sandra 02 7666 2272 or Marion 02 6762 8821 Lyn Morehen MAILDM, MHMA is a member of Mosman Home Gardeners Club and holds a Diploma of Horticulture (Landscape Design). Enquiries 02 9969 2368

Photo Bob Atkins

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Trilliums Text and photos, Lesley Crowden

This beautiful woodlander, native to North America and Asia, has elegant and showy blooms, which I eagerly anticipate, each spring.

Also commonly known as ‘Wake Robin’, the numerous species have diverse forms and colours, which makes this genus exciting and special to collect.

My interest in trilliums started when I was about 15.

My mother had purchased some by mail order years earlier and after they matured and clumped up beautifully we thought they were a wonderful addition to our woodland garden. However, they didn’t increase by seed so I worked through school holidays and gave my hard-earned money to my mother asking her to find trilliums at one of the spring garden shows.

She did, and the 10 wonderful flowering-size plants did very well but, just like our original ones, we never managed to get any seed, despite hand-pollinating them. They made nice big pods but these kept disappearing and we thought it might be possums or that they were infertile.

Then fate played a hand when we had a visitor from Vancouver where trilliums grow in the wild. Our trilliums were out and as we went around the garden we got talking and I told him about the disappearing seed pods. He explained that he had had the same problem 6

First flowering with a proud Lesley

in his garden and found it was wasps. The wasps like the flesh around the seed and when it is ripe they take it away. I kept an eye on mine and he was right, from then on in it was a fight between the wasps and me!

The minute I saw any wasps hanging around the pods, I harvested the seed.

We were incredibly lucky that this gardener was happy to share his experience with us. Gardeners the world over are happy to share their expertise and this is, I think, what makes gardeners very special people.

Trillium seed takes up to two years to germinate, so our first batch was sown in boxes and left in the shadehouse.

The next year I found about 20% had germinated, then the year after the rest germinated. I let them grow in their boxes for two more years and then gave my mother the fun job of pricking them all out, about 900 or so.

Once they were deboxed they were planted in the ‘baby bed’ in the Woodland Garden, where they stayed for a further four years until they were almost flowering size.

They were then planted in a bed under a 28-year-old ‘Mt Fuji cherry’. The first year about half flowered, a very exciting time because of the different colour variations, then the next year they all flowered. I took a lot of photos because even though the parents were red or white there were around 25 different colour

OUR GARDENS Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

Six-year olds ready to plant out – July ‘08

A variety of colours

My hints for growing trilliums Plant in a shady position in humus rich soil: we use a lot of mushroom compost as mulch because our pH is low.

Keep moist all year around if possible, but definitely in the growing period.

Hand pollinate if you have time and keep an eye out for those marauding wasps.

Massed trilliums in 2008

Kaydale Lodge and grounds

variations. Most of the seedlings were red, pink or white but I also had some creamy yellows and even a green one or two.

The eight year wait from seed to flowering is not so bad if you collect the seed each year, so once you have the first lot flowering you have a fresh lot coming into flower each year. I have told my mum this could be the closest thing to grandchildren she will ever get.

Sow the seed as soon as it is harvested, in good seed raising mix, and keep in a shadehouse for three or four years.

Tasmania’s Unique Garden Attractions For all you need to know

These delightful rhizomes are great value as they flower for about nine weeks in our high country garden, from late September to early November.

They look very exotic en masse and, given a lot of shade and a bit of moisture, are a very tough, reliable plant and well worth the extra bit of tender care.

Twenty eight year old Lesley Crowden is the youngest daughter of Kay and Robert Crowden who have, over the last 30 years, developed Kaydale Lodge Gardens at Nietta in the high country on the northwest of Tasmania.

Encouraged from an early age by her Mother she is a keen hybridist and grower of alpine and cool climate plants and bulbs. A member of the Scottish Rock Garden Society and the British Alpine Society from age 14, she has become an expert on cold climate gardening. Lesley and her sister Amarlie give informative and humorous talks to garden groups all around Tasmania. www.kaydalelodge.com.au

visit www.bloomingtasmania.com or call

(03) 6344 6233

blooming

tasmania 7

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The house dates from 1891.

The poinciana tree is also very old.

A world of difference

From North London, UK to Woombye, QLD Text and photos Peter and Doreen Briggs

Our little plot in Enfield, North London, measured 70 foot square (21 metres sq.) in addition to the small but delightful high-walled garden beside our 17th century house.

Thick brick walls have four important attributes: they retain the sun’s warmth and release it at night helping to protect plants from frost; they give protection from gale force winds; they support climbing plants that provide a perfect backdrop for a town garden and they block out unsightly views.

In summer, care in design and selection gave colour but in September we would find ourselves knee-deep in leaves from the deciduous trees. You may think ‘good mulch’ but England’s heavy and consistent downpours make the heavy leaf fall a gardener’s nightmare with sticky, hard to shift leaves piled up in every imaginable place. Unless you had a good selection of evergreen foliage the garden could look quite bare and uninviting.

Also, the cold, hard winters usually meant quite a considerable chunk out of the gardening year as work (and most enjoyment) ceased in mid-October and started again in early March. Any plant that was not frost tolerant could not, unless taken into a greenhouse, survive winter, so most bedding and annuals died a death never to be seen again.

Until recently drought conditions were not a situation that had to be considered in the UK. However, with 8

climate change and poor water resource management, less water is being stored in reservoirs and many areas now have water restrictions with gardening and car washing being first to be affected.

Tropical plants flourish only indoors; a snap frost would wipe them out otherwise. That is not to say we were rationed for plant varieties as there were species and varieties to fill any amount of garden space.

Coming to the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, has illustrated important differences: Australians can spend so much more time in their gardens, as breakfast, lunch, dinner and BBQs can all be enjoyed outside for most of the year. Another advantage is the unbelievable range of planting species and varieties available which grow with unbelievable speed. This is all very fine till you come to pruning and then one drawback of tropical gardening appears. A small price to pay, however, for such phenomenal planting choices.

Another appealing difference is the number of flowering trees you play host to jacaranda, tibouchina, poinciana, tulip tree - what stunning shows these elder statesmen of the garden put on for us. There are so

OUR GARDENS Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

Botanica

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Historic Villages, Castles, Chateaux, Flower & Garden Shows, Cruises & Culinary Gourmet Discoveries

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Tour Escort John Sowden from GCA

South Australia Wine & Roses Join John Sowden and explore Adelaide, including the Botanic Gardens, Himeji Japanese Garden and wine tastings at the Adelaide Wine Centre.

Explore the surrounds of Adelaide including the wineries of the Barossa Valley and Adelaide Hills and also the Fleurieu Peninsular.

Departing 21 October 2010.

“A personal invitation to all Garden Clubs of Australia members to join South Australia me on this 5 Day SA Wine & Roses tour” – John Sowden.

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1. Dracaena, fragrant at dusk 2. One of the pair of antique English garden urns 3. Bronze eagles from Italy 4. Stromanthe triostar thrives in shade 5. Alacia 6. Bromeliads and succulents in the rockery

New South Wales

Barossa Valley

Chateau Barrosa Seppelts Winery Adelaide Hills

Adelaide 4

Hahndorf

Victor Harbor 4

many fruit trees to grow as well, including mango trees and bunya nuts. And the icing on the cake?

The stunning variety of butterflies fluttering around the garden.

Coach No. of night stops

Victoria

Western Australia Wildflowers Enjoy 10 Days with your Botanical Guide in this small group boutique experience and explore rare and spectacular wildflowers and delightful private gardens of south Western Australia. Visit iconic sights including Wave Rock, the Stirling Ranges, Valley of the Giants Tree Top Walk, cruise the Swan River and visit wineries.

Stay in premier locations including 2 nights in Margaret River and 4 nights in Perth.

Departing 16 September 2010.

We have learnt the need for heavy mulching (not a requirement in the UK) and the need to feed roses several times a year.

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A feature of our acreage garden at Woombye is 400 camellia trees. The property was once a pineapple farm and a packing shed still exists where we hold barn dances and other functions occasionally. We shipped garden ornaments out from the UK and they adorn several spots, some never to be moved again as they were broken in shipment.

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Coach No. of night stops

Hyden

Perth 4

1

Fremantle

Western Australia Wave Rock

Stirling Range National Park

Margaret 2 River

2 ‘Valley of Albany the Giants’

Book online at www.botanica.travel

Sunshine Coasters must be the most favoured and spoilt gardeners in the whole world! Would we swap back?

Not likely!

Tropical gardening was a new ball game for Peter and Doreen Briggs who credit their fellow Nambour GC members for lots of helpful advice. They now have 400 camellias in their flourishing garden which will be open in August for the Camellia Society of Brisbane.

Call Botanica on 1300 305 202 for your free colour brochure or visit www.botanica.travel Australian Pacific Touring Pty Ltd ABN 44 004 684 619 Lic. No. 30112 MKT7463

MKT7463.indd 1

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5/03/10 2:24 PM

Various adiantums

Adiantum ‘Snow White’

Self watering set up

Caring for maidenhair ferns Text Bert Eerden, photos Maria Eerden

There are over 200 species of Adiantums, commonly known as maidenhair ferns, most of which come from the American tropics and China, with about 16 species native to Australia.

Some general characteristics are, dark polished stipes (stalks) and no conspicuous mid-vein in each pinnule.

Pinnules vary greatly in size, mostly larger in tropical plants. The dark spots on the underside are the reproductive spores.

Ensuring good air flow is essential to minimise pest infestation such as mealy bug, scale and aphids.

Most adiantums are terrestrial and a majority of them like soils to be on the alkaline side of neutral; they like well-lit positions and well-draining soil. Potting soils need to be adjusted to suit your growing conditions.

To get the best looking plants it is also essential to turn the plants on a regular basis as this allows the plant to grow symmetrically around the pot or basket as there is always more light from one area in our growing space.

I live in Adelaide, South Australia and find that using a good premium potting mix with a Âź of a bag of good orchid mix to open it up a bit with some charcoal and slow release fertiliser added works well.

Fertilise plants monthly on a regular basis, especially during the growing season. Use any liquid fertiliser at half the normal recommended rate. Slow release fertilisers can be used all year round. Rapid Raiser or equivalent can be used sparingly, three or four pellets at a time, depending on pot size. Always ensure that pellets are not touching rhizomes or root systems as this may burn them.

Adiantums like to have small amounts of water often, so watering lightly two or three times a day is better than heavy watering daily or every other day. With this in mind I have been experimenting with having my adiantums on wicks with a permanent water supply, as this gives them continuous moisture but does not give them permanent wet feet.

I have been having good success with this in a number of different scenarios, using 100mm pvc pipes with end caps and cutting holes in the top to suit pot sizes.

This allows the bottom half of the pipe to be filled with water, depending on the size of the plant and weather conditions. This water will last up to 4 weeks plus.

Using larger pots and vases as water containers also works well.

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Wicks can be made up of stocking, shoe laces, cord or string and I tried natural fibres such as jute cord, but found that they did not last more than six or seven weeks, whereas the stocking seems to last a long time.

Do not cut the stocking too thin as this restricts the amount of water that it can draw up.

Bert is a member of the Fern Society of South Australia. He has kindly provided detailed information covering the eight different groups of Adiantum and their botanical structure which is available on request.

Bibliography: Jones, D.J. Encyclopaedia of Ferns Goudey, C.J. Maidenhair Ferns in Cultivation Adiantum (Maidenhair) Ferns, Fern Society of Victoria Inc. news letter Vol 31 No1,2009 Liddle, M. Talk on Adiantums, Fern Society of South Australia Inc. No21 May 1982

OUR GARDENS Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

Your invitation to

Growers and hybridisers of quality Australian-bred Louisiana Iris Manager, Heather Pryor, is happy to share her passion for Louisiana Irises, Daylilies and cottage garden plants by speaking at garden clubs.

Please send a business-sized stamped SAE to the above address to receive a complimentary catalogue which features our range of Louisiana, Japanese, Laevigata and other water iris plus our new range of daylilies.

IRIS HAVEN

P.O. Box 6070 Baulkham Hills Business Centre NSW 2154 Tel (02) 8883 5953 Fax (02) 8883 5954 Email:irishaven@pip.com.au Website: www.irishaven.com.au

‘Tastes of Bathurst’ Weekend 30/31 October 2010

10 gardens on show Tickets $15, $10 concession Contact: Spencer Harvey ph. 6331 3171 email: sharv7@ix.net.au and Judy Bayliss ph 6332 2560 email : jcbayliss@bigpond.com www.bathurstspringspectacular.com

Geranium Cottage

Retail Specialist Pelargonium/Geranium Nursery and Café

The Dale Family invites you to visit their nursery and café set in the gardens of their heritage cottage.

Discover the joys of pelargoniums, zonal and ivy geraniums, scented leaf geraniums and interesting species.

Learn how to use them in landscaping and how to grow them in pots, baskets and window boxes.

Wide range of plants and pots available for sale Special prices for group bookings Open every day 9am - 4pm and Friday and Saturday nights for dinner.

828 Old Northern Rd, Middle Dural NSW 2158 Tel (02) 9652 0475 Fax (02) 9652 0479

The Growing Friends nursery stocks a wide range of plants propagated from the Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney, and the Mount Annan & Mount Tomah Botanic Gardens.

Many unusual and hard-to-find varieties Tube stock and some mature plants Member discounts apply Full plant list is available from the website Proceeds support the work of the Botanic Gardens Trust.

Open MOnday tO Friday 11:30aM – 2:00pM and 2nd Saturday every MOnth 9:00aM – 1:00pM Friends of the Botanic Gardens Inc. Cottage 6, Mrs Macquaries Rd, Sydney NSW 2000. www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/friends Tel: 02 9231 8182 Email: friends@rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au

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In praise of the Crown of Thorns Text and photos Sally Thomson

I have a passion for Euphorbia millii.

Who wouldn’t like a plant that flowers as long as the sun shines?

Originating in Madagascar Euphorbia millii is commonly called the ‘Crown of Thorns’. In the 70s several more species and cultivars in the millii complex were introduced – crosses were made and we have the millii as it is today. The plant is very hardy and will withstand a lot of rain and drought (we have both these conditions in Townsville in some years). It grows well in the tropics but further south loses its leaves in winter and flowers less frequently.

These plants grow to around one metre tall and are best in pots. They do make a talking point and always draw garden visitors for a closer look and maybe a photo. The shape varies considerably and the green of the leaves varies. Flowers come in numbers from two to eighteen in a cluster, all different-sized flowers and all vibrant colours. The texture of the plant differs as well and some like more shade than others but, remember, they perform better in the sun. The canes differ – they can go straight up and are very hard to cut. Some have ten or more canes with profuse flowering and are a treat to the eyes.

I find this plant likes a very open soil mix: one 33kg bag of potting mix, half a 5kg bucket of washed sand and 1 bucket of perlite and a handful of slow release will give a spongy effect. Always use perlite as it keeps the mix open and acts as a wetting agent. I also use this mix for Adeniums. Green Bio is new to me and I like it because it takes the salt which collects if you have a lot of rain out of the soil. I water every second day in the tropics 12

because I like foliage with mine but I do know people who let them go for a month. Try not to use overhead sprinklers as the water wells in the flowers and can rot them so keep them dry. My 300 plants went through the big wet, they did not flower, but as soon as the sun happened, so did the flowering.

Insecticides: This plant looks after itself. It has a sticky substance on the stem and this keeps ants and small things away. My only problem is a brown grub that comes around when the yellow butterfly appears.

Remove immediately as they will eat your whole plant.

If you have a lot of plants spray with Confidor three times the first week and you should be rid of them.

I try not to spray as it chases the native bees away.

I rely on the bees for propagation, as mine seed all the time and the bees of course do the fertilisation.

This means you have no idea what you are going to get!

I have been lucky and have some new colours. Easy to see the horns that hold the seeds: they explode, so put them in an envelope to catch them. If you want a certain seed, segregate them and hand pollinate.

Cuttings of just the tops can be taken as these will grow but do not take a lot or you will spoil the look of your plant.

This plant will not travel well. It will lose all its leaves, but soon revives with a bit of TLC. A keen gardener, Sally is a member of Townsville Garden Club, Queensland

OUR GARDENS Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

The Experienced Gardener

Rose pruning and the KISS principle Text and photos Leon Willis

My rose pruning methods can be taken in steps and always follow the ‘Keep it Simple Stupid’ maxim.

Hybrid Tea or Bush Roses, in late winter – 1. Stand back and decide your plan of action.

2. If there are any dead or diseased shoots they should be removed first, the cuts dressed and the secateurs disinfected (or use different secateurs).

3. Then cut out the oldest wood (greyish) as close to the butt as possible. Also the thin and weak shoots: leave the purple and green new shoots. Remove suckers from below the graft.

4. Thin out the rest of the laterals leaving three or four healthy shoots.

5. Shorten these to 50cm to 70cm depending on your needs and whether the variety is a small Climbing rose ‘Pinky’ to left of arbour and Bourbon rose ‘Zéphrine Drouhin’ to right

or vigorous grower. If you are unsure of how short to cut, always err on the long side – you can soon cut more off but you can’t stick it back on!!

Carpet Roses, also in late winter-.

1. Give the bush a short back and sides haircut – down to approx.

30cm high and across.

2. Remove dead and weak growths.

3. Stand back and await results!!

They are easy to grow and are relatively disease free.

Following pruning, spray all roses with lime sulphur to kill overwintering black spot spores and some insect pests.

Climbing roses have their major pruning after they have flowered in late spring. In general they need a trimming back of the old spent flower buds to about 10-20cm from the main limbs. Do not shorten any new long growth as these can be

trained to replace some of the older limbs. Every four or five years the oldest limbs should be cut off at the base to encourage new limbs to take over.

Climbers can have some tidying up in late winter as well.

Hybrid Tea Roses will flower much better if they are pruned lightly all through the summer and autumn months. After the first flush of flowers go over and prune the dead heads back three or four leaf buds from the spent flower.

This will give you a new flush of flowers within six weeks. Similarly with Carpet Roses, trim the spent flowerheads back and the repeat flowering will be rewarding.

Finally, roses are very forgiving, so don’t worry as they will survive even the worst pruning.

Leon Willis is President of the Goulburn Garden Club and a retired Orchardist. In retirement he fills in some spare time as a Rose Pruner.

This is a timely reprint from the Winter 2005 Issue no. 25.

Climbing Hybrid Tea rose ‘Madame Grégoire Staechelin’ also known as ‘Spanish Beauty’

13

A planting of

bromeliads Text Derek Butcher, photo George Rudolph

Specialist plant societies often get involved with Home and Garden Shows to promote their own particular interest and this is just one of the things we get up to.

In October members of the Bromeliad Society of South Australia were drumming up interest in our Plant family at the Morphettville Racecourse in Adelaide with many other stallholders. We were next to the Orchid people so there was a bit of rivalry. We think we pipped them with the enclosed, which shows a planting of Tillandsia aeranthos. The species name translates as ‘flower of the air’. It caused great concern amongst the public who just had to stroke it to see if it was real and on getting a sharp sensation from the leaf tips declared it to be a cactus. But we gardeners know that it is a bromeliad and nothing to do botanically with the Cactaceae!

Anyway, we feel we have bragging rights on behalf of the gardener, George Rudolph.

Gardener – Yes, because it is a planting. First you find a suitable log that you can drill some 30 holes in so you can start ‘planting’. Don’t forget to get a solid base for your log otherwise it will fall over. That is the quick part. You then have to find 30 identical-looking plants where you can’t go down to the local nursery and buy 14

a couple of punnets of annuals. You grow your own which is where bromeliad growers’ patience comes in.

You invariably start with one plant, get it to flower and grow on the offsets. You could cheat and buy a clump of these plants from someone selling up!

Anyway, two years ago George had 30 plants of equal size that he put in the holes and to stop them running away used Selley’s All Clear Sealant. He then sat and waited, making sure that each side got a similar amount of light by moving the log now and again.

In our estimation there are some 90 inflorescences with some 400 actual flowers. Tell us which rose gets anywhere close to this.

With every success story there is always a downside.

The plants have outgrown their ‘bed’ and need transplanting which is George’s next chore! Patience is a virtue to the dedicated gardener.

Derek and George are both members of the Bromeliad Society of South Australia. The Society’s next sale day will be Saturday 13 November from 10.00am to 4.00pm at 6 Jeanes Street, Beverley, South Australia. Enquiries: 08 8356 7728

OUR GARDENS Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

Native know how Text and photo Jeff Howes

Flame pea (Chorizema cordatum) Chorizema is from the Greek choros, a dance and zema, a drinking vessel and cordatum from the Latin cordis, heart, referring to the shape of the leaves.

Chorizema cordatum grows naturally in the wetter south-west corner of Western Australia.

It is relatively hardy when grown in humid areas on the east coast of Australia.

It is a small, scrambling shrub usually about a metre high by about a metre spread.

The very brightly coloured orange-red pea flowers are relatively large (about 1012 mm diameter) and appear in late winter to early spring. I am also growing a form with pure yellow flowers and although I happen to like it, most visitors to my garden are not that impressed with it.

Chorizema cordatum is best grown as an understorey plant where its thin, weak branches can be supported by other plants otherwise it needs to be staked and the branches supported, not ideal. My plants are growing in a thin layer of topsoil over a clay subsoil that is quite well drained. I ensure they have some moisture in drier times, as this plant performs much better with some moisture. I have lost plants due to excessive dryness. After flowering I prune the plant back by at least one third to half. This drastic pruning ensures plenty of new growth and flowers the following year.

Chorizema flower

In a garden that receives only dappled light and needs to be ‘brightened up’ in late winter Chorizema cordatum is a great plant. If they are grown in full sun you will find the flowers fade and lose a lot of their visual impact.

Jeff Howes is a long time member of the Australian Plants Society and is a very experienced grower of native plants at his home in the northern Sydney suburb of Westleigh.

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15

History

An impentetrable barrier?

Text Caroline Stanton

One of the most fascinating things about history is its tendency to change. Take the crossing of the Blue Mountains as a case in point. I learnt in school, as did most of us, that the first Europeans to cross the ‘impenetrable barrier’ were Blaxland, Wentworth and Lawson in 1813. As a schoolgirl I did my sums and spent some time wondering why it took the fledgling penal settlement all of twenty-five years to cross some hills only 50 kilometres away, and in plain sight.

Governor Arthur Phillip as early as 1789 sent the first of many expeditions to cross the mountains, this one led by Lt. William Dawes, who was ‘defeated by the great bush-entangled precipices’. This became the common excuse for all the subsequent failed expeditions, one including Phillip himself in 1791, another by George Bass in 1796. Then suddenly in 1813, facing a drought, three young free settlers took it into their heads to try traversing the mountains using the ridges instead of the valleys, and reached Mount York, reporting, in Wentworth’s words:

found a way up into the Cox’s River valley.

So why did it take so long for the ‘official’ crossing?

Certainly Blaxland, Wentworth and Lawson were more respectable than either an ex-convict or a foreigner, and by 1813 the need for new pasture land had become more pressing – especially with a drought upon them.

But I suspect the delay was actually because it was in the governor’s interests to promote the belief that the mountains were impenetrable; he was, after all, running a penal colony with no walls. So subsequent governors suppressed knowledge of the much easier southerly route up the Cox’s River to what later became the Bathurst Plains and instead encouraged tales of bush-entangled precipices.

You can learn more about the fascinating history of the first European crossing of the Blue Mountains by attending the 2011 GCA convention.

Caroline Stanton, member of Leura Home Garden Club, is a member of the organising committee of the Blue Mountain Zone’s GCA Convention 2011.

‘The boundless champaign burst upon our sight, Till nearer seen the beauteous landscape grew, Op’ning like Canaan on rapt Israel’s view.’

Or that’s what I was taught at school. It is also the version told in the five weighty tomes by eminent Australian historians that I consulted for this article.

But then I dived into the twenty-first century, and consulted the internet.

Have you ever heard of John Wilson? It seems he was a convict on the First Fleet who went bush after receiving his freedom in 1792, living with the natives and travelling extensively. In 1797 he reported that he had been upwards of 160km in every direction around Sydney. At the time it seems he wasn’t believed, but analysis of his account now suggests he reached as far as Hartley, thus making him the first European to cross the Blue Mountains.

He wasn’t the only one. In 1802 a Frenchman, Francis Barrallier, travelled up the Burragorang Valley and reached The Great Dividing Range. In 1804 the determined botanist George Caley reached Mt Banks, just short of Darling Causeway, before turning back – and he was a man who travelled in a straight line, regardless of the terrain! Even the escaped cattle from the Cowpastures

16

OUR GARDENS Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

National Convention

2011

9-14 October 2011 Hosted by the Blue Mountains Garden Clubs, NSW Enjoy the beauty of springtime in the Mountains and its surrounds whilst visiting beautiful gardens and historical places of interest.

Make new friends and greet old ones.

Initial enquiries to jewoodford@tadaust.org.au

History

The early botanists and the Australia connection

Etienne Pierre Ventenant Text and photographs Bill Chestnut A group of visitors came to our garden, Inverawe, the other day.

A massed display of Everlasting daisies in vibrant golds, reds, pinks and whites stopped them. They had never seen Everlastings before. I encouraged them to touch the flowers, to feel that papery texture. These are flowers that appear to have a fragile beauty but are as tough as teak. Our visitors, wondering, touched the flowers again.

The early botanists had that sense of wonder. There is a time in any field of endeavour when it is bright, fresh and anything is possible. The cast of characters is always fabulous as misfits and the discontented drift in from other professions and join those for whom this is the one true vocation.

For Australian botany, that time was the fifty years from 1770, when Sir Joseph Banks landed in Botany Bay to 1820, when he died in London. In 1770 the systematic, Linnaean naming of Australian plants had not commenced. By 1820, the most important work had been achieved.

I like the connectedness of it. I can talk to our visitors about flowers first taken back to Europe by French explorers who 200

years ago anchored in North West Bay below our garden (which is, confusingly, in south east Tasmania). Everlastings were propagated at Malmaison, a chateau just near Paris that Napoleon had purchased for Josephine. Her first husband had been guillotined during the French revolution but Josephine was a survivor. At Malmaison she asked Etienne Pierre Ventenat to catalogue her plant collection, and he named the Everlastings. Their systematic name is Xerochrysum bracteanthum. Xero means dry, Chrysum golden, the most common colour and bracteanthum, branched.

A dry, golden daisy that grows in clumps. Not bad, Etienne – sorry, tres bon!

‘Will they grow in Canberra?’ my visitors asked. Well, I thought, they grow in Paris and didn’t someone once call Canberra ‘Versailles in the bush’? I contented myself with a ‘but of course’!

In future issues I hope to introduce you to other botanists, their lives and their times.

For information about Bill’s garden Inverawe in south east Tasmania, visit his website: www.inverawe.com.au

Berry Gardens Festival

2010

October 14th-17th

Come and enjoy our beautiful Gardens Entry $5.00 each garden or visit all 8 for $15.00 Children under 15 free Enquiries: Mary Seelis - Tel (02) 4464 1191 or visit our Website http://www.berrygardens.org.au

17

Seasonal Tips for Winter Text David Maher, photo Anne Maher ‘In spring, everything in Nature is re-born within the circle of life and shines with new brightness, hope and promises.’

PLANT Rhubarb and asparagus crowns Asparagus should be planted with the crown level with the soil surface.

Bare-rooted berry bushes can be planted.

Magnolias, being deciduous, can be planted in winter FERTILISE The roots of plants usually start to grow about a month before leaves appear. Try to organise your fertiliser programme so that you fertilise four to six weeks before new leaf growth emerges.

Spring-flowering annuals and bulbs: Continue to apply a foliar soluble fertiliser which has a high content of potassium.

Citrus: Fertilise with an appropriate product either at the end of July/early August in the warmer districts or later in August/early September in the colder areas.

The Citrus Tangelo ‘Seminole’. The Tangello was first grown in Florida, U.S.A., in 1931, the year in which Sir Donald Bradman was engaged to Jessie and the year in which I was born. What a trifecta!!.

Stone fruit Fertilise five to six weeks before flowering with a fruit fertiliser.

Berries:

Youngberry and other berry vines and bushes can be fertilised with potash.

General: In the case of most plant life at this time of the year, do not use nitrogenous fertilisers because they may encourage new growth which could be frosted.

MAINTENANCE Abelia and buddleia: remove old canes from the base.

Agapanthuses, hippeastrums, Peruvian spider daffodils or the summer daffodil can be divided.

Azaleas: The fungal condition, petal blight, can blemish and ruin many flowers. Spray with Bayleton if you still have a supply as it is no longer available.* Bougainvilleas: As bougainvilleas flower on new growth, the oldest wood should be cut well back and the new wood should be shortened to 3 or 4 leaf nodes from the main canes.

Citrus: Spray citrus trees with a weak solution of Pestoil or White Oil with Confidor or Malathion added to control bronze orange bug while the insect is present on trees in the soft tissue or nymphal stage.

Deciduous shrubs, grape vines, roses, apple, fig, persimmon and stone fruit trees: Spray immediately after pruning with lime sulphur or Kocide to prevent leaf curl and fungal diseases. (Kocide and Fungus Fighter are identical products.)

Grapes: Grapes are produced on new wood so there is a need for heavy pruning. Prune to either the second or the third growth bud above each cane’s junction with the main lateral trunk.

Plumbago: Prune to ground level towards the end of winter as the shrub flowers on new wood.

Roses: July is the ideal time to prune roses in most climatic zones. As pruning stimulates new growth and frost can burn new foliage, pruning should be delayed until late August/early September in cold climate zones.

Water Lilies: Overcrowded pots should be divided and replanted in aged cow manure into which a few grains of Osmocote Plus may be embedded.

Check all deciduous shrubs including maples, grevilleas and prunuses for borers.

Do not cut back or prune frost-damaged plants until frosts have finished for the winter/early spring.

Regular contributor David Maher is a member of the Tamworth Cottage Gardeners, NSW. For David’s seasonal tips in full go to the GCA website: www.gardenclubs.org.au * Editor’s note: Mancozeb is registered for petal blight but may be in short supply. Yates has a new formulation in the pipeline.

18

OUR GARDENS Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

Cover Ups Grape vine

Youngberry

Text David Maher, photos Anne Maher

When we moved to our present home in 2004, we inherited a green colorbond fence.

While it provides wonderful privacy, it is not the most attractive sight and it generates enormous heat in summer. We chose a grape vine, a youngberry and an apricot to cover and green it and make it a productive part of our new garden.

To increase the height of the fence and provide for the growth of these plants we had powder-coated superior steel lattice installed on top of the Colorbond and added four lengths of 3mm wire rope spaced twenty-five centimetres apart to facilitate the training of the plants.

A Crimson Seedless Vine was planted in 2005. Grape vines are easy to grow but initial training is required to send the canes in a horizontal direction. It is essential to spray the vines with a fungicide during spring, summer and autumn in order to control powdery and downy mildew. Powdery mildew attacks the leaves and downy mildew infects and erodes the fruit. Unless these control

measures are taken, the fruit will be unpalatable.

A youngberry is a cross between a blackberry and loganberry. It was chosen because it has a greater tolerance of alkaline soil than the other berries.

Planted in August, 2006, it produced 4 kgs of berries in November/December, 2008, and had a generous display of flowers in early October, 2009. A youngberry is easy to grow and to train horizontally, but it MUST be pruned to ground level immediately after harvesting to enable next year’s fruiting canes to develop.

The apricot cultivar ‘Story’ was chosen because it fruits relatively early, that is, from mid-November onwards. Training on the outside of the training wires is essential so that the developing canes do not get behind the wires. Spraying with Lebaycid every three weeks from eight to nine weeks preceding harvest is essential to prevent fruit fly infections. Unless there is a preparedness to spray with Lebaycid, an Apricot tree should not be grown. Rogor must not be used as it offends apricot trees and causes fruit drop.

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19

Parks Kangaroo Paw in the red sand garden, photo J.Molinski

Epacris impressa ‘Cranbourne Bells’, photo Matt Jones

Rockpool Waterway, photo J.Molinski

Royal Botanic Gardens, Cranbourne Victoria Text Rebecca Levy, photos© supplied by RBG, Cranbourne

For many thousands of years the land now occupied by RBG Cranbourne has been the ancestral home of the Mayone-Bulluk clan of the Boonerwurrung people. European settlers first explored the area in the late 1820s; it was subsequently used for defence purposes and as a sand mine until acquired by the Royal Botanic Gardens.

Around 1945 committee members of The Maud Gibson Trust with the then management of the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne identified the need for land to be acquired for the provision of a native botanic garden. In 1961 the Trust became aware of the site at Cranbourne, which exhibited excellent soils for native flora. In 1970 the site was purchased by the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne, with the assistance of Government grants and generous benefactors; the site now comprises around 363 hectares of remnant, native bush land and the spectacular Australian Garden which opened in May 2006. All the accompanying images are from sections of this garden.

Many botanic gardens in Australia were created 100 or more years ago and were often designed with a sense of longing for and replication of another country that was considered ‘home’. In contrast, the Australian Garden embraces the beauty and diversity of Australian plants and landscapes. It is centered around the spectacular Red Sand Garden, a representation of the deserts of Central Australia and an introduction to the Garden’s central theme – the story of water. We start in the centre of Australia with the absence of water, then move to the 20

Boronia muelleri ‘Snowy River’, photo Matt Jones

Ephemeral Lake Sculpture and the story of flooding and the dissipation of water deep into the earth, until it bursts through the surface of the earth at a mound spring at the beginning of the Rockpool Waterway.

Flanking the Red Sand Garden are over 100,000 plants which adorn a variety of garden beds, from the thought-provoking Future Garden to the inspirational Eucalypt Walk. The design accentuates the amazing qualities of Australian plants, particularly when placed in a landscaped garden setting and it is intended to encourage visitors to use native plants in their gardens.

In winter 2009, construction of the second stage of the Australian Garden began. It will almost double its size and allow visitors to complete the journey from the central desert, past the mound spring and Melaleuca Spits to the coast of the eastern seaboard. The second stage is due to be opened to the public in spring 2011.

As part of the second stage of the Garden, the recently expanded Visitor Centre, was opened in spring 2009. This area now includes an extended café, function and meeting rooms, and auditorium, all with spectacular views across the Red Sand Garden.

These spaces are available for private functions, weddings and conferences.

Rebecca Levy is Co-ordinator, Visitor Programmes. The aim of the Programme is to encourage visitors to use native plants in their own gardens, by giving them a better appreciation of Australian plants and by providing them with the tools to make Aussie gardening easy! Visit the website at www.rbg.vic.gov.au or phone the friendly customer service staff on (03) 5990 2245.

OUR GARDENS Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

Travel Parts of the common rock and lava rock terraces near the Visitors Centre are 700 years old

Cordyline fruticosa

Pandanus tectoris

Limahuli Garden, Hawaii Text and photos Annette Houseman

Limahuli Garden and Preserve, (7ha of Garden and 400ha of Preserve) is famous as the location of the film ‘South Pacific’. It is situated on the wet north shore of Kauai, Hawaii within a highly picturesque tropical valley with the majestic Makana mountain as a backdrop and overlooks the Pacific Ocean.

It is one of five gardens of the non-profit National Tropical Botanical Gardens (NTBG). The award winning garden has many indigenous and introduced plants from Polynesia and elsewhere in the world.

Visitors to Limahuli pay a fee and are given a booklet that enables them to do their own self-guided tour at their desired pace. My husband and I enjoyed three hours there but curtailed our visit in order to see other gardens linked with the NTBG. Early Hawaiians used the water repellent leaves of Cordyline fruticosa to make raincoats, sandals and thatch for houses. Now called Ti in Hawaiian, it is common in gardens and planted around homes to bring good luck.

Today the leaves are used to wrap, cook and serve food..

Other leaves used by the early Hawaiians were the Hala, Pandanus tectorius for weaving sails, mats, pillows and baskets. These impressive plants were once a major part of the native forest in Limahuli Valley.

Kalo, commonly known as Taro, Colocasia esculenta, is the staple food of the Hawaiian people. Every part of the plant, even the underground stems (corms) are edible when cooked thoroughly. They are rich in

carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins. The guidebook informs the reader that the Hawaiians, who are very skilled gardeners, have more than 600 names for Kalo, and distinct varieties of Kalo number about 300!

One of the most unusual introduced trees in the Garden, in my opinion, is the Autograph Tree, Clusia rosea, originally from the West Indies, where the leaves were marked and used for playing cards. It has become an invasive weed in wet areas. Its aerial roots can strangle nearby trees to death. It has pretty pink flowers and green, apple-sized fruit that is poisonous and splits open when ripe.The fallen fruit looks like a brown, fleshy flower.

The dry wood of the native tree Pãpala, Charpentiera elliptica is very light and burns easily. It was the main source of ‘fireworks’ for the fire throwing ceremony (‘õahi). Dried logs of pãpala are hollow, making them easy to burn and light enough to soar on the updrafts.

The ceremony (no longer practised) was performed on the top of Makana mountain by the Menehune people.

Mahalo (Thank you).

Annette Houseman is a member of Wauchope Garden Club, NSW, Australian Plants Society and the NTBG whose aim is ‘ to enrich life through discovery, scientific research, conservation and education by perpetuating the survival of plants, ecosystems and cultural knowledge of tropical regions’.

Annette has sent in two Tour Passes for the National Tropical Botanical Garden which are valid to 31 December. If any club member or subscriber can use them email the Editor.

21

Plant protection for modern gardens Text Libby Cameron

Reducing dependence on chemical solutions to pests and diseases will help gardens become havens for beneficial insects and small animals such as lizards and even frogs, and you will be well on the way to creating a healthy eco-system. Here are some non-chemical alternatives.

OILS eg Eco-Oil is a quick-acting vegetable-based oil that smothers small insects such as aphids, mites, white fly and scale and must be sprayed directly on the insect to be effective. Used regularly at the recommended dilution, it will also discourage insects such as citrus leafminer from laying its eggs on your leaves, and act as a preventative to pimple psyllids on lillypillies.

Mix oil with sodium bicarbonate or with Eco-Rose, which contains potassium bicarbonate, and you have an effective preventative for fungus diseases such as black spot, powdery mildew and rust. These act by making the surface of the leaf alkaline, which discourages fungal growth.

Professor Mac’s 3 in 1 is an organic treatment for lawns that improves water penetration and adds nutrients to the lawn while acting as an effective control of army worm and black beetle. It contains tea tree oil and eucalyptus oil.

SOAP eg Natrasoap. Soapy water causes aphids and other insects to suffocate and to dry out and must be sprayed directly onto the insect to be effective.

NATURAL INSECTICIDES eg Dipel and Success are great ammunition against caterpillars, and suitable for using on food crops. Yates Nature’s Way Caterpillar Killer contains Dipel (Bacillus thuringiensis), a naturallyoccurring bacteria. It controls many leaf-eating caterpillars of moths and butterflies, but does not harm other insects, birds, fish or warm-blooded animals. Once a caterpillar eats treated foliage, it stops eating, but may take up to 3-4 days to die and drop from the leaf.

Success is a natural insecticide which affects the nervous system of the insect. It has activity by both contact and ingestion when the caterpillar eats the leaf.

LURES eg Sticky traps and Eco-Naturalure Fruit Fly Traps will lure insects to them and kill them. Sticky

22

traps are yellow – you can make them yourself by coating yellow plastic or laminated yellow card with a sticky substance such as Vaseline. Small insects are attracted to the colour.

Eco-Naturalure traps are attractive only to the male fruit fly and indicate that the fruit fly season has begun, and should be used in conjunction with an EcoNaturalure baiting program for the female fly. Bait is mixed up and splashed on to the foliage to be ingested by the female fly.

PREDATORY INSECTS These are available to all gardeners by mail order and are extremely effective if handled correctly. Insects are available for different purposes, eg, ‘Linda’ is the name given to the larva of a species of ladybird, which will eat mealy bug and soft scales in large numbers. ‘Pete’ is a predatory mite that devours two-spotted mite (red spider). They and other insect larvae may be ordered through www. ecoorganicgardening.com. Other websites: www.rbgsyd. nsw.gov.au/plant_info/pests_diseases/fact_sheets, www.bugsforbugs.com.au, www.greenharvest.com.au Libby Cameron is a horticulturist and freelance gardening writer.

She regularly talks at garden clubs around Sydney, and leads garden and nature tours. She is an active member of the Mosman Home Gardeners’ Society.

Come and meet Libby on Wednesday 14 July when she will be MC for the day at the fourth ‘Gardens Gathering’ conducted by Harbord Diggers Garden Club. Details in Diary Dates.

Out of the Scientist’s Garden, Richard Stirzaker, Published by CSIRO, rrp: $29.95 The author is a Canberra-based scientist working on irrigation, water productivity and the ecological footprint of agriculture.

His book aims to promote a better understanding of the growing of food and water and of modern food production.

OUR GARDENS Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

The GCA’s 4th Annual Photo Competition, 2010 Entry forms and conditions are available by emailing priors@iinet.net.au or by writing to the Editor (address page 2) enclosing a stamped self-addressed envelope. The competition is open to members of affiliated clubs and to subscribers.

Entries close 27 August, 2010.

These photos, from the 2009 competition, are the last we will be able to include as the next issue will carry photos by the winners and runners-up.

Mrs J. Christians, Cowra GC, NSW

Laurel Pinkerton, Monto Horticultural Club, SA

Mrs J Deifel, Nambour GC, QLD

Sheryl Drew, MacMasters Beach GC, NSW

Tony Gough, Krambach GC, NSW

Rolf Hoffman, Krambach GC, NSW

Lillian Williams , Wynyard GC, Tasmania

Margaret Lang, Texas GC, QLD

Mary Lou Lyon, First Canberra GC, ACT

Felicity Paton Boxall, MacMasters Beach GC, NSW

Ms P. Pemberton, Robertson GC, NSW

Jim Powell, St George and Sutherland Camellia Soc, NSW

Ann Thornton, Hervey Bay GC, QLD

Annette Van Leewin, Nelson Bay GC, NSW

Jean Wykes, York GC, WA

23

CLUB AND ZONE NEWS

1 WA: Vice-President, Patricia Collins walking in the garden

2: Perennial Poppies group, ‘Come and Share Day’ at Noosa Waters. L to R Joan Beard and Lyn Ampt

3: Caboolture Horticultural Society’s Christmas celebration lunch, L to R Ted Churchill, Val McClintock, Janice Churchill

Welcome to new affiliate Dapto Community Farm, Unanderra, NSW 2526, Illawarra South Zone

4: Nambour Garden Club welcomed Sally Thomson from Townsville Garden Club on her visit to members’ gardens in Nambour. L to R Kevin Bull, Sally Thompson, Verna Bull

5: Robertson Garden Club celebrating their 10th anniversary

Colin Campbell and Rod Hultgren who delighted the audience with their fun filled and informative talks. A special birthday cake was cut by Gwen Hughes and Daphne Cook who were inaugural members.

Fran Mills, President

Western Australia Ellenbrook Gardening Club was founded in 1995 when the town of Ellenbrook was in its infancy but since then Ellenbrook and the gardening club have expanded. The club meets at 7pm on the last Friday of each month when members have presentations from a variety of interesting speakers with a plant stall and raffles.

In November the club held a Garden Party at the one acre garden of Maureen and Cyril Kerr in the village of Morgan Fields. The ten year old garden has been changed in that time from a very large sandpit to a spectacular garden made up of garden rooms with different themes and massed with flowers. A dinghy was floating in a large pond which was also home to about 100 Koi carp. Feeding time was a sight to behold when they come to the surface for the food.

The event was a great success both socially and financially. The committee and the hosts provided a beautiful afternoon tea and the raffle prizes were donated by the local business community. Members hope to visit again to see the garden in its autumn colour.

Marlene Jefferies, Secretary

QUEENSLAND Laidley Garden Club celebrated its 40th birthday with a luncheon attended by 115 guests including past and present members and members from other garden clubs in the area. Guest speakers for the day were 24

New South Wales Robertson Garden Club celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2009 with a special luncheon attended by a number of founding members. A booklet compiled by Jane Hope on the history of the club was given to all present.

Marion Tyree, Publicity, Robertson Garden Club

Members of the Bateau Bay Garden Club maintain the rose garden at the Long Jetty Hospital.

The garden won first prize in the Community Projects category of the Wyong Shire Council Garden Competition. The staff and patients have expressed their thanks for all the hard work that has been done by the club members.

E. Wilson, Secretary

The Bemboka Garden Club transformed the local hall into a floral paradise for their 25th Flower Show.

John Rheinberger from the Bega Garden Club judged the roses and the ‘most successful rose’ of the show was exhibited by Gwen Robertson from the Bemboka Garden Club.

Pat Jones, Press Secretary

The Taree Garden Club held their 30th Annual Camellia Show in the Uniting Church Hall at Taree in May last year. Joy Ward, Zone Coordinator of the Lower Mid North Coast Zone, opened the show and said it was a

OUR GARDENS Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

CLUB AND ZONE NEWS

6: Rose garden at the Long Jetty Hospital

Deadline 1 June 2010. Please send items and images for Club News and Diary Dates to Assistant Editor, Carolyn Dawes, 9 Lachlan Street, Macquarie, ACT 2614 or Email:carolyn.dawes@bigpond.com

7: Margaret Clune, President, in front of the Iris section of the show

8: Grand Champion bloom, Camellia reticulata, ‘Valentine Day’.

most enjoyable experience and one of the wonderful rewards of being a Zone Coordinator.

zone ‘get together’ to be held in Warooka on 1 May 2010 and hosted by the Warooka Garden Club.

Joy assisted in the collection of 17 flat boxes of camellias from the Jones property at Belbora near Gloucester and blooms from the garden of Lorraine Clement who is secretary of the Taree Garden Club.

On the day of the show the hall was filled with many beautiful blooms – red, hot pink, bi colours and yellow and was a sight to behold. Joy said that she was glad that she was not a judge.

After visiting three gardens belonging to members, guests were treated to a barbecue lunch. After lunch, the guest speaker, Cynthia Austin, presented slides of the many beautiful gardens she had visited while attending the GCA Convention in Tamworth. The State Rally, which will be hosted by the Copper Coast Garden Club, will he held on 23 and 24 October 2010 at Wallaroo. All present were urged to attend.

Judges, Peter Levick from Sydney and Helen Macgregor of Taree, did a wonderful job. The Grand Champion, grown by Barbara and Ted Gregory of Nabiac, was Camellia reticulata ‘Valentine Day’ and could not be faulted as it was outstanding. The Gregorys talk to their plants with love and their garden responds by producing prize-winning blooms.

Jan Young, Secretary

Glad Jones and Janelle Smith both won many prizes for their beautiful blooms. The whole show was well organized, a pleasure to see and the money raised went to the Care Flight Helicopter Service.

The Ardrossan Garden Club celebrated their 23rd anniversary in 2009 with an ‘Op Shop’Fashion Parade.

Their members are very active in the community and potted many plants to take to the plant stall at the Ardrossan Hospital Fete. The members recently attended the Annual Zone ‘get-together’ hosted by the Balaklava Garden Club. Ardrossan Garden Club is always looking for new members and they hold their meetings in the Ardrossan Small Hall on the first and third Mondays of the month at 10am.

Joy Ward, Zone Coordinator, Lower Mid North Coast Zone

Pam Headon, Secretary and Club Reporter

South Australia The Balaklava Garden Club hosted a zone ‘get together’ for the Mid North and Yorke Zone at the Balaklava Racecourse. Joy Maxwell, President, welcomed 78 guests from clubs within the zone and 32 members of the Balaklava Garden Club attended. Representatives from each club gave a brief account of their activities, ideas for meetings and guest speakers with the aim to keep their meetings interesting. Beryl Crabb, Zone Coordinator, thanked all the members for their attendance and encouraged them to attend the next

From left. Pam Sickerdick, Pat McConnell, Lynda O’Callaghan and Jan McInerney at the Balaklava Zone Rally

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CLUB AND ZONE NEWS

A superb floral extravaganza

The plant materials used in this arrangement in the foyer of the Southie Pavillion were donated by the Australian Native Plant Growers and also designed and created by them. Photo courtesy Linkit Blue Productions

The New South Wales Floral Art Association hosted the floral extravaganza ‘Flora Australis’, in August within the Sydney Olympic Park, Homebush Bay. The venues for the competitions, workshops and daily demonstrations were all held within the one hall area.

Fifteen workshops under tuition ran over three days.

Gregor Lersch, Mark Pampling, Irene Brockwell, Colin Straub, Richard Go and Greg Block were the tutors.

Twenty competitive classes were staged and the best in show award was won by Bart Hassam. Gregor Lersch gave a theatre presentation-demonstration which enthralled the audience of over 300.

A gala dinner was held in the members’ dining room and 220 filled the room to capacity. Farida Kalim from Pakistan gave an exciting demonstration, followed by Alison Bradley demonstrating techniques using grasses to their unique advantage. Farida was ably assisted by friends from the Pakistan group and Alison’s on stage assistants were Mark Pampling and Irene Brockwell.

The final farewell to our national and international friends was a harbour cruise with dinner on board.

The cruise departed from Homebush Wharf and sailed down the Parramatta River into Sydney Harbour. The weather was picture perfect and a special evening to remember as the closing part of the Show.

Irene McIndoe, Publicity Officer NSW Floral Art Association.

Contact for the Association is Mrs. Mary Sweeney, Secretary, Goodison, 418 Pipers Creek Road, Dondingalong, NSW. Phone: 02 6566 9348, email: mary01@harboursat.com.au

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Making a difference

Joyce O’Shannessy and Maree Weldon being awarded Citizen of the Year at the Bourke Australia Day Celebrations, 26 January 2010.

Bourke and District Garden Club successfully nominated member Joyce O’Shannessy and her daughter Maree Weldon for the Bourke and District Citizen of the Year Award for 2010. Joyce and Maree have been the leaders and the driving force behind many events held to raise money for breast cancer research in the Bourke District. In 1996, Joyce’s eldest daughter Leanne, then aged 33, lost her battle with breast cancer, leaving three small children. Since then, Joyce and Maree have honoured her memory by raising $120,000 for cancer research.

The ‘Biggest Morning Tea’ has been accredited with raising the most money per head of population in the State on many occasions. The Daffodil Day activities are a big money raiser and the Bourke Garden Club purchases daffodils each year and pots them for sale on this day.

The 2009 Pink Ribbon Day was celebrated with a ‘Big Pink Party’ where everyone, including the men, dressed in pink. This event also included a fashion parade, games, dancing and an auction and the funds raised were approximately $8000.

Without the hard work and dedication of Joyce and Maree, these events would not have been so successful and they are deserving recipients of the Bourke and District Citizen of the Year Award for 2010.

Shirley Booth, Secretary

OUR GARDENS Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

DIARY DATES

Entries to be sent to the Assistant Editor by 1 June 2010 for Spring Issue.

Entries later than three months from publication can only be included if space is available.

May

5-8 W A. Orchid Society of WA, Autumn Show. Stocklands Riverton Shopping Centre. Cnr. High Road and Willeri Drive. Open during normal shopping hours.

8-9 W A. Rose Society of Western Australia, Autumn Show, Guildford Town Hall, James Street, Guildford.

14-17 N SW. 23rd National Bonsai Convention, hosted by Illawarra Bonsai Society, Bankstown Sports Club, 8 Greenfield Parade, Bankstown. Contact Brenda Parker, Ph 0412 384 834

22 N SW. Cactus and Succulent Society Spring Show and Plant Sale.

Ryde Public School Hall, Argyle Avenue, Ryde. Sat 10am-3pm.

Entry to plant sale free, Adults $2, conc. $1. Ph 0419 164 803. www.cssnsw.org.au

14 N SW. ‘Fourth Gardeners’ Gathering’. Harbord Diggers Club, 80 Evans Street, Freshwater. 9.30am – 3pm. Entry $5.

Ph Wanda Osborn 02 9451 8858

24-25 W A.Orchid Society of WA. Winter Show. Scout and Guide Hall, Pilgrim Street, South Perth. Sat 12noon-4pm, Sun 9am-4pm.

Entry $2 Raffle ticket.

31- Aug 1 NSW Berry & District Garden Club’s Camellia and Flower Show, Berry School of Arts Building, Alexandra Street, BERRY. Sat, Noon to 4.00pm, Sun.10.00am to 2.00pm Contact sel4957@bigpnd.net.au August

1 N ational Tree Day. For information ring 1300 88 5000 or visit: http://treeday.planetark.org

27-29 N SW. The Epiphyllum and Hoya Society of Australia’s Annual show of Zygocactus, Hoyas and related genera, Bass Hill Plaza Shopping Centre, 753 Hume Highway, Bass Hill. 9am daily to 8pm Thurs, 5pm Fri, 2pm Sat Ph 02 4655 2540, 02 4647 1921

14-15 S A. Camellias South Australia, Annual Camellia Show, Carrick Hill, 46 Carrick Hill Drive, Springfield. Sat 12noon-4.30pm, Sun 10am-4.30pm.

June

20-22 N SW. ABC Gardening Australia Expo, JR Fleming Stand and Grounds, Rosehill Gardens Racecourse, James Ruse Drive, Rosehill.

12-13 Q LD. Maleny Garden Club’s annual ‘Gardening on the Edge’.

Six country gardens, $5 each. or 3 for $10 or 6 for $15.

Free entry to market with specialist plant and produce stalls.

Ph Peter Dallimore 07 5478 5285.www.malenygardenclub.org 12-14 Q LD. ‘Caloundra’s Golden Orchidfest’ hosted by Sunshine Coast Orchid Society, Lake Kawana Community Centre, Sportsman Pde, Bokarina. Sat- Sun 9am-5pm, Mon 9am-2pm. Entry $5 adults, bus groups $4 each.

Ph 07 5491 5654,E:fmlenz@westnet.com.au July 7-10 N SW. Illawarra District Orchid Society 59th Winter show and plant sale. Illawarra Yacht Club, 1 Northcliffe Drive, Warrawong.

Wed 11am-5pm, Thurs to Sat 10am-5pm.

10-11 N SW. Camellia Research Society, Annual Show, Ravenswood School for Girls, Henry Street, Gordon. Sat 1.30pm-5pm, Sun 11am-4pm. Entry $5. Refreshments, Plant Sale.

Ph 02 9498 2227. Email: nswcamellias@hotmail.com

September

7 N SW. The GCA’s Annual General Meeting and 60th Anniversary luncheon. See Noticeboard for details

11-12 S A. Enfield Horticultural Society’s Spring Show, Sat Noon - 5pm, Sun 10am-4.30pm.

Klemzig Community Hall, 7 O.G. Road, Klemzig. Entry $1

18 N SW. Bourke and District Garden Club, Annual Spring Flower and Geranium Show. TAFE Hall, Oxley Street Bourke. Open 2pm.

Entry gold coin. Ph 02 6872 2897

18-19 A CT. Horticultural Society of Canberra’s Spring Bulb and Camellia Show.LancasterHall,WesleyCentre,NationalCircuitForrest.Sat Noon5pm, Sun 11.30 am – 4pm Entries received for October and later will be in the August issue and will be forwarded for inclusion on the Web page with the above diary dates.

COMMENT In seeking photos of past Conventions your Editor contacted the former Secretary of Lismore Home Gardeners, Dorothy Cox. Dorothy has kindly forwarded photographs of the 1979 Lismore Convention together with a letter sent to her by the President at the time, Mary Betteridge. This is part of Mary’s letter recounting the great pleasure Lismore members had in staging the Convention.

‘We had over 400 people registered so had to get accommodation in Casino and Ballina to help out. The showpiece was the Official Dinner – what a night. I shall never forget it and our VIP, Mrs Anne Williams Clark [GCA President] was absolutely fantastic.

We had over 300 at the dinner.

Dot, it was an absolutely marvelous time, so many friendships were made and a wonderful experience for just one club to pull it off ’.

The 1979 Lismore Convention dinner. Lto R, The late Maureen Ramsey, Bob Ramsey (Lismore Secretary), Anne Williams Clark (GCA President) and Mary Betteridge (Lismore President)

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NOTICEBOARD The Annual General Meeting of The Garden Clubs of Australia, 7 September, 2010, Sydney Venue: University of Technology, Broadway, Sydney, Time: Morning Tea at 9.30am prior AGM at 10.00am.

The Notice of the AGM has been sent to all affiliated clubs.

As this is the 60th anniversary of the GCA a Diamond Anniversary Luncheon will follow at noon. Luncheon bookings essential, cost $50. Contact Mary Willis, Functions Organiser GCA at P.O. Box 57, CROOKWELL NSW, 2583 or email maryleonwillis@bigpond.com The annual GCA awards are given in recognition of outstanding service by a club member. There are individual awards in the following categories: • Outstanding service by an individual to the GCA • Outstanding contribution by an individual to gardening and /or Horticulture • Outstanding service by a member to a Club • Outstanding service by an individual to the Community • Outstanding service by an individual to the environment • For excellence in floral art • And for Clubs: Outstanding service by an affiliated Club to the Community Nomination forms will be posted out with the AGM Notice.

Closing date for nominations, 6 July. Enquiries: Mrs M.Watts, 42 Spencer Road, Killara NSW 2071. Email: hollmart@tpg.com.au Archival photos wanted The GCA has gaps in our records of past Conventions. If members or clubs have photos of the following Conventions and past Presidents please contact me.

Photos will be scanned and returned promptly. Email: priors@iinet.net.au or post to Editor, Patricia Prior, 28 Bilwara Avenue, Bilgola Plateau NSW 2107.

• Conventions during the 1970s held at • Wollongong , Leura, Canberra and Brisbane (Mrs Kay MacCallum President) • 1981 Convention at Leura (Lallie Coombs President) • 1997 Convention held at Narrandera (President Richard Perrignon) • 2003 Convention at Coffs Harbour (President Lorraine Gillon)

GCA Life membership for Alan Strachan The Garden Clubs Australia has bestowed a Life Membership on Alan Strachan for his dedicated service for more than 13 years as Membership Secretary. Alan retired from the Committee last year and his invaluable assistance was very much appreciated.

Corrections and apologies The GCA wishes to apologise to two of the 2009 award winners, Anne Mulford of MacMasters Beach GC, NSW and Alethia Quick of the Floral Design Council, SA, for the incorrect identification of photos 4 and 10 on page 29 of the last issue.

Alethia Quick, awarded the Joan O’Brien Award for excellence in floral art

Anne Mulford, awarded the Gwendy Hansford Award for outstanding service to the environment

The Editor owes an apology to Kim Rabbidge who wrote the article about Bromelton on page 11 of Issue 44. A design glitch was overlooked during final proofing and the authorship was wrongly attributed. Kim Rabbidge was, at that time, Queensland Coordinator for Australia’s Open Garden Scheme.

GLEANINGS

Community Gardens – Sydney is growing in a new and exciting way Across the city, community gardens are becoming established in local parks and on otherwise unused land, providing the opportunity for people to grow their own food and to build their community spirit in a wholesome and sustainable way. Community gardens provide outdoor class-rooms for people to learn about all aspects of gardening including the range of culinary plants for food production. There is much to be learned as well about sharing and living in communal space.

The following website provides more information about Sydney’s exciting community gardens, including fact sheets on how to get started in your area: http://communitygarden.org.au/ Reprinted from the Horticultural Therapy Society NSW December 2009 Newsletter

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OUR GARDENS Journal of The Garden Clubs of Australia Inc.

GLEANINGS

Good gardening means patience and dogged determination.

The Agnew garden, Canberra.

Photo Brian Agnew

‘There must be many failures and losses, but by always pushing on there will be the reward of success. It has taken one half of a lifetime merely to find out what is best worth doing, and a good slice out of another half to puzzle out the ways of doing it.’ (Gertrude Jekyll, 1899) Reprinted from the August 2009 Newsletter of the Illawarra Bonsai Society

Dry Humour Two Englishmen had been lost in the Sahara desert for days but as they crawled up over the crest of one last sand dune they saw an Arab market place at the base of the other side. They scrambled down to the nearest stall calling out for water but the stall holder said: ‘Sorry, I don’t have water, I only have fruit. Try the next stall’.

The Englishmen dragged themselves to the next stall and asked for water again. ‘No, said the stall owner, I only have custard. Try the next stall.’ Puzzled, the men went to the next stall and again asked for water. ‘I only have jelly,’ replied the owner of the stall. At this point, one of the men turned to the other and said, ‘This is a trifle bazaar’ Reprinted from the November 2009 Bulletin of the Ku-Ring-Gai Orchid Society

On the nose An old man was the winner of the Best Garden Award and at the prize giving ceremony, in front of a large number of dignitaries, the Mayor asked him for the secret of his success.

‘Manure, manure and more manure,’ the old boy said.

‘Slap heaps of it on your garden – nothing beats smelly manure.’

‘And that’s it’ asked the mayor. ‘Yes … manure, manure, manure,’ the old boy shouted loudly into the microphone and ‘the smellier the manure the better!’

Quietly in the audience the mayoress whispered to the old boy’s wife if she could ask her husband next time not to keep using the word ‘manure’.

‘I’ll try’ said the wife,’ ‘but it has taken me twenty years to get him to tone it down and say manure.’

From the November 2009 Newsletter of Toronto and Districts Garden Club, NSW

Lifenotes: Silkworm

By Peter Shepherd They had nothing to look forward to As far as I could tell, folded inside a white cardboard box Lifted by my daughter’s hand from A schoolyard bin But there they were, Munching with gusto.

They had not known what lay beyond the stern Like typewriters in reverse they Ate the pages they were written on.

There were two tribes: One white, the other With black stripes One spun gold, the other White taffeta.

Just this morning They had lain their armoured heads back Like laughter, or a shout, and Devoured those leaves in precise, wild, savage, delicate curves.

Now I lower a drying leaf over The mystery.

They had nothing to look forward to, as far as I could tell Down the long dark corridor of resurrection Except more squealing children More green hunger The ancient myth of flight And moon But there they were, Spinning with gusto.

This poem was the Open Winner 2009 Nature Poetry Competition conducted by Inverawe Native Gardens, Tasmania. Reprinted with their kind permission.

Peter Shepherd is a NSW poet.

For more details go to www.inverawe.com.au

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Yates award-winning website www.yates.com.au was the winner of the Technology Award at the Horticultural Media Association Laurels held in Adelaide in October 2009.

Yates website is being continually updated and expanded with new features. Some of the latest are: Garden Greenies The aim of the interactive Garden Greenies website is to inspire gardeners of the future and to help kids understand how much fun they can have in the garden. Link to Garden Greenies from the Yates website or go direct to www.gardengreenies.com.au.

Yates Virtual Garden Yates Virtual Garden allows homeowners to plan their gardens on screen by moving and placing flowers, vegies, trees, shrubs, ground covers, paving, landscape features and garden furniture. Related gardening articles and tips appear throughout the creation process and, when the virtual garden is complete, it can be saved, emailed or printed out.

Yates Garden Club Members of this free, online club receive a monthly mailout of gardening information, together with opportunities to enter competitions and take part in special offers.

Yates Garden Expert Yates Garden Expert is an information forum that allows users to submit specific gardening questions to the horticultural experts at Yates. Replies are published live on the site, thus building up a bank of information.

Other features Product information, problem identification and solution, general gardening guidelines, an activity calendar and how-to videos are other popular segments of this award-winning site

The Party Garden The Party Garden website supports the television program that aired on The Lifestyle Channel in spring 2009. Visitors can stream episodes of the show, download related fact sheets and gain inspirational gardening information from this Yates-sponsored series.

Take a visit soon to www.yates.com.au and you’ll see why this site is such a winner.