Yuruga
Australian Native Plant Specialists

Is your garden ready for it?

December is probably one of the most exciting times of the year for gardeners in the tropics as it’s usually the time when we see the strongest signs that the dry season is coming to an end and the real wet is about to start. It’s the time of the year when new plants get planted, and failures get excavated. Everything starts to grow like mad with the onset of warm heavy rains, and you assume you can just sit back and watch your garden grow. Unfortunately the weeds and lawn also go into overdrive and gardening turns into a race between you and everything green. So before you get left behind and your beautiful garden turns into an accidental jungle, there are a few things you should get on top of.

Continue reading Here comes the rain…

Australia has an amazing variety of native plants to offer the home gardener, however it is a resource that is still undervalued and underutilised. Back in 2005 a study compiled by the Department of the Environment and Heritage found between 19,000 and 21,000 species of native Australian flowering plants, however this number excludes horticultural cultivars, pine trees, ferns, mosses and any other non-flowering plants, so the total number of plants is actually even higher than that figure.

Continue reading Three Reasons To Go Native…

You probably already know what I’m talking about when I say, “her garden, his garden, and their garden”, but have you ever taken the time to contemplate it?

Continue reading Her Garden, His Garden and Their Garden…

We all have our reasons for growing native plants in our gardens. For some it’s a way of staying in touch with nature by attracting birds, butterflies and other little creatures close to our homes. For others it’s to create a garden coherent with the local climate or purely for aesthetic reasons, to make their home look great. Gardening for you may simply be a way to relax and pass the time, but whatever the reason, you’re most likely not doing it for praise or monetary rewards for your efforts. However, wouldn’t it be nice to get both?

Continue reading It’s Showtime For Native Gardens…

If it’s not flooded, it’s drying out. That’s the challenge for gardeners in the tropics, but now the rains have come to an end we have to get our dry season watering regime back on track. Watering methods can provoke debate – allow me to share with you my experience after seven years of trial and error.

Continue reading Watering Without All The Fuss…

Many of us have a depressing area in the garden that gets completely waterlogged during the wet season. You know the one I’m talking about. It’s the spot the kids sink into and lose their gumboots. You can’t even mow it during the wet because you’re afraid you’ll need a winch to get the mower out, and every plant you’ve ever planted there has turned into a lifeless stick.

Continue reading I’ve Bogged The Lawnmower…

A couple of years ago while working as a rainforest guide, I was asked to undertake a private rainforest walk with a difference. You see, the young Italian honeymooners who had hired me were blind. Obviously this meant expressions such as “look at this,” and “can you see the”, had to be abandoned and emphasis shifted to other senses. We walked very slowly, listening, smelling and touching. I have to say, it was one of my most rewarding and memorable experiences.

Continue reading Getting Touchy-Feely In The Garden…

Without exaggeration, every moment of every day there are birds in my grevillea patch. At work when I look out the window I can see a nesting yellow honeyeater in a Kay Williams grevillea.  It’s amazing the life grevilleas bring to a garden.  I’m not talking about a forest of plants, just one or two are enough to attract native honey eaters when they are in flower.

Continue reading There’s A Honeyeater In My Orange Marmalade…

There’s a rugged natural beauty associated with plants in the Australian dry country. They’re gnarly, weathered, fire scarred, insect damaged and often hold their dead limbs. Essentially they are full of character but not exactly the look most people are going for when creating a garden to frame their beautiful new home. However, these bush plants are really just diamonds in the rough.

Continue reading Diamonds In The Rough…

Being told you should plant natives sounds a lot like you’re being told to give up junk food and switch to brussels sprouts and bran. It makes you feel like you’ll be going on a garden diet. Lush green foliage and the pretty flowers will be a thing of the past. There will be no more planting of self indulgent cordylines, hibiscus, gardenias or gingers. You’re now restricted to a gardening diet of gumtrees, paperbarks, grasstrees, and if you’re good, a grevillea or two. And you’ll have to tear up your lush green lawn so you can replace it with a nice deep layer of bush mulch with a couple of clumps of prickly Spinifex and a mandatory frog pond.

Continue reading The Native Garden Diet…