TOOL TIME

You could just do a few simple balls on a stick instead. 

But what tools help you do the job properly?
Let’s find out what needs doing

I'm talking with Tony Mattson general manager of www.cutabovetools.com.au
Normally you need to do the trimming fairly regularly and you're trimming the newer growth. 

Starting your own topiary from scratch like the balls in the photo,  you need to choose the right type of plant that responds well to topiary. 

 PLANT OF THE WEEK : 

Blueberry Ash

Common Name:Blueberry Ash
Scientific name: Eleaocarpus reticulatus
Family:Elaeocarpacea
Etymology:Elaeocarpus - From the Greek elaia meaning 'olive' and karpos meaning 'fruit';
reticulatus - Latin word meaning 'net-like' referring to the leaf venation.
Tree Height: 6-15m (various cultivars Prima Donna 8-10m)
Flowering:April - October
Origin: Australian rainforests along the east coast.

The flowers are also quite a feature resembling clutches of lily of the valley flowers in either pink or cream all over the tree.

 Warraburra Nura Native Garden

In Conversation with Alice McAuliffe Creative Producer

You may not know of garden in on the 6th floor of a building that you the public can visit. 

From the website, “Waraburra Nura is a public medicinal plant garden at the University of Technoly (UTS) Sydney, developed by UTS ART in partnership with Jumbunna Institute for Indigenous Education and Research (JIIER). Established in 2018, the garden is located on level 6 of the UTS Tower. 

Let’s find out more.

I’ve being talking with Alice McAuliffe who is a creative producer .

• Alice recalled that Waraburra Nura didn't start so much as a garden but as a way of creating a third dimension for artworks by various aboriginal and torres strait islander artists.
• Alice put forward a proposal the idea to put in a few boxes with plants initially but the idea grew.
• The process to create the garden involved designer Nicole Monk. Garden boxes were sent up from Melbourne.
• Garden soil had to be light so that the weight would not be too heavy for the balcony plus a possible 100 people. Aunty Fran Bodkin  (Dharawal Senior and botanist) advised that the soil should contain pumice.
• Plants were chosen because they had medicinal properties, and together created associations which increased their medicinal properties.
• 

This garden is open to the public on weekdays during student hours 

'About the garden' section on the website states that “Waraburra Nura (Happy Wanderer’s Place) is a space for visitors to connect to Country in an urban environment. The garden utilises combination planting, an Indigenous agricultural practice which enhances the rich medicinal value of each plant. 

All of the plants in Waraburra Nura are native to Wa’ran (Sydney) and have been cultivated by Darug, D’harawal and Gadigal peoples for generations. 

If you have any questions about Waraburra Nura, drop us a line to realworldgardener@gmail.com or write to 2rrr PO Box 644 Gladesville NSW 1675

DOCKRILLIAS EP 4

I’m sad to say this is the final in the series about native orchids. 
If by now your interest in growing native orchids hasn’t been piqued, I would be very surprised. 
Like most avid gardeners, as soon as someone in the know starts spouting information about a particular plant that has fabulous attributes, you will want one. 
So it is with dockrillias.?

Let’s find out more. 
I’m talking with Adrian O’Malley, horticulturist and orchidophile 
Adrian mentioned a primary hybrid between dockrillia schoenina x dockrillia teretifolia.

The most commonly available dockrillias are:

Dendrobium sp. episode 2

Dendrobium hybrids

Australia has 50 native species of dendrobiums and dockrillias and most of these grow mainly somewhere along the east coast of Australia. 
The ones that grow in Qld, in quite warm temperature to tropical areas, don’t grow so well further south and one might need a greenhouse to grow some of these.

But those that originate in Victoria or NSW don’t do so well in the tropics. 
This is where hybrid dendrobiums of these native orchids come in 
Let’s find out.. 
I'm talking to native plant expert and orchidophile, Adrian O’Malley 

Hybrid dendrobiums are numerous and as an example can be crosses of Dendrobium speciosum and Dendrobium kingianum. 
This particular cross gives you Dendrobium x delicatum which can have either with or pink flowers and even perfume. 
A famous one that Adrian mentioned is Dendrobium Hilda Poxon (pictured above).
This is a cross between Dendrobium speciosum x Dendrobium tetragonum

DESIGN ELEMENTS

So what can you do? 

Recommended plants

DESIGN ELEMENTS

Edible Garden series part 1

During the last month or more, seeds, and seedlings have been flying off the shelves.

Seed companies and nurseries, normally would expect that at the start of spring, but in these current times, people are turning to good old fashioned growing your own veggies.

That’s a good thing, but what should beginner and advanced gardeners really need to know to be successful.

Over the coming weeks, Glenice will be bringing to you a comprehensive guide to growing your own edible garden. Whether you have a large vegetable garden, a group of planters on a verandah or a few spaces within existing garden beds, you can at least grow some of your own food.

Lynn Woods garden Ulverstone Tasmania.

So how do you start? 

Glenice says "Pick the spot that provides the most ideal conditions."

I'm talking with Glenice Buck, landscape designer and consulting arborist.

So if you haven’t started a veggie garden yet think on this.

According to “sustainability Victoria” they reckon that if you grow your own food you

• save money and supplement your household food supply
• save water – home grown food uses less water relative to the amount of food harvested
• reduce your shopping miles
• reduce packaging
• reduce food waste
• enjoy fresher, more nutritious and more delicious food
• know exactly what you're eating (e.g. no pesticides)
• get some exercise and reduce your stress levels.

 Top Tips

Finding the right spot for your edible plants can sometimes be a bit of trial and error, however in general most vegetables will require about six hours of good direct sunlight for them to crop well. There are a few exceptions to this rule but in general six hours is the key. You can modify nearly everything else in gardening but you can’t modify or increase the amount of sunshine an area will receive unless you get into grow lights etc which is a whole other topic.

Ideally if you are going to grow vegetables in the ground, in pots or planters, you will need to also have a fairly flat area with no great slopes. If you are going to construct your own above ground beds, you will have a little bit more flexibility as you can build the beds to adapt to a slope. The other issue to think about is that you will be spending a fair amount of time in this space, so you need to ask yourself:

Things to consider:

•  Is it easy to bend over the beds and weed?
• Is the ground surface cover easy to walk and stand on?
• Can you access the areas easily with a wheel barrow?
• You also need to ask yourself:
• Can you get water in the area?
• Is there a tap close by?
• Do I need to get a longer hose?
• Do I need another water tank?

If you have any questions of course, why not email realworldgardener@gmail.com or glenice@glenicebuckdesigns.com.au

or write in to 2RRR P.O. Box 644 Gladesville NSW 1675.

DESIGN ELEMENTS 

 https://realworldgardener.blogspot.com/2020/04/why-trees-fail-and-celery.html

Trees are so beneficial in a garden that I can’t imagine having a garden without them. 
For me they provide, an element of height, but often the ones I choose have flowers with sumptuous scent, and in summer, they provide much needed shade.

Arbutus unedo: Strawberry Tree photo: M Cannon

But how to prevent them from failing is the question in this week’s segment. 
Let’s find out . 
I'm talking with Glenice Buck, consulting arborist and landscape designer  

 BUT you can seek professional advice from a consulting arborist to relieve any worry that you have about that particular tree. 

Champion tree in Stowe, England.

• The consulting arborist can make recommendation as to how to mitigate and potential problems.

Remember, a tree expert will cut out limbs correctly if they need cutting so the tree will be less likely to get insect attack or decay forming. 
Consideration is given to remaining trees, if one needs to be taken out because it exposes them to more natural elements such as wind and changes in hydrology of the soil.