groundcover

Makeover shows on television present landscaping as a huge project involving heavy equipment, a blank canvas, a team of workers and some big bucks. But it doesn't have to be like this - giving your landscape a lift can happen on a much smaller scale, if you turn your landscaping idea into a series of fun projects. Here are some...

Do you want a beautiful garden, but find yourself short on time to give it the attention it deserves? Perhaps you've tried gardening in the past and, through being busy or distracted, you've lost your plants. Or maybe you have a holiday house that is only inhabited periodically. With clever plant selection, even the most forgetful, absent, neglectful gardener can...

Gardeners need to be patient as they wait for trees and shrubs to bloom and hedges to grow. But do we really have to wait ages for a beautiful garden? The good news is there are fast-growing outdoor plants out there that can quickly fill up empty spaces. Block out the neighbours One of the first plantings most new gardeners...

Groundcover plants are a very effective way of covering bare areas of the garden. They act as living mulch to keep soil and gardens cool, reduce moisture loss and even keep down weeds. Planting a native species can do even more for your garden. Like native shrubs and trees, native groundcover plants improve the environment, attract native species of birds...

That a garden needs a lawn is often taken for granted, but there’s no rule that says you have to have one. Certainly lawn provides a cool green element that unifies a garden and offers space to walk, play or just sit, but there other plants that do the same job. By planting a lawn alternative you don’t need to...

Combining plants in a garden is a mixture of art and science. The colours, textures and shapes need to work together (the ‘art’ part of the pairing) but the plant choices must grow together harmoniously (the ‘science’ bit). To get you started we’ve selected five small garden trees and looked at underplanting options for either an informal or formal look...

A little bit about Viola Friolina There’s no excuse for a dull and dormant autumn and winter garden when you have pretty perennial Viola Friolina in bloom. At a time when many flowering plants are enjoying a winter snooze, this autumn- and winter-flowering beauty is branching out and trailing, revealing an abundance of blooms as it goes. An evergreen, this...

A little bit about jasmine If you know the sweet scent of jasmine, you know it’s impossible to forget. In fact, you can probably smell jasmine before you can see it. Not surprisingly, it’s one of the perfume world’s most popular aromas. Beyond its famous fragrance, jasmine is adorned with masses of flowers and offer fast growth and hardiness. Jasmine is so fragrant...

Grevilleas are among the most versatile plants you can grow. Use them as a hedge plant, feature shrub or tree, as a ground cover or a weeping standard. Put them in a garden bed or in a container. There are varieties for all soils and climates and they bring in the birds. Grevilleas are also charming as cut flowers. If...

A little bit about the African daisy No prizes for guessing where this exotic beauty is from. But in Sydney, African daisies have proven to be just as tough and easy to grow as they are in their homeland. Come winter, they reveal a showy, generous mass of flowers that close in low light. Petals come in a range of...