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Gardening Australia 2025 Episode 18
Transcript
00:00INGREASING
00:06Hey!
00:07One!
00:10Ooh!
00:16Like a toy!
00:19Hey, honey.
00:23Hey!
00:28Oh!
00:30Hello and welcome to Gardening Australia.
00:37With the winter solstice behind us, cooler days are definitely here
00:41and the garden has slowed down.
00:44But nature never stops and nor do we at Gardening Australia.
00:48We have some great stories to share with you this week.
00:54I'm catching up with an inspiring Adelaide gardener and plant lover
00:58whose lifelong commitment to gardening and bush regeneration
01:02has helped her get through some challenging times.
01:06Josh knows that creeping fig in the garden can be clingy,
01:10so he's cutting it down to size.
01:12It may be cold, but I have some hot tips
01:15for getting the best out of bare root plants.
01:19And I'm learning about an invasive species
01:22which threatens our very way of life
01:24and what we home gardeners can do to put a stop to it.
01:28MUSIC
01:49Winter can be hard going in the garden,
01:53particularly if you're in the southern states.
01:56it gets dark early and it's cold the glory days of spring can seem like a faint mirage
02:06on the horizon fortunately while the rest of the garden is hibernating
02:11some plants hit their peak and i'm here to show you how to bring some winter color to your garden
02:26if there's a stone cold winter classic in the world of horticulture it's the camellia for as long as
02:34gardening australia has been on air we've been filming stories about camellias and for good
02:40reason they're pretty they're tough they're long living and they can tolerate a wide range of
02:47conditions there's a vast range of cultivars which add color to gardens from autumn all the way through
02:55winter into spring from a maintenance point of view camellias prefer an acid soil if you're going to
03:02grow them in a pot make sure you use an acidic potting mix much like one that you'd use for roses
03:08for a bit of local winter color why not try something like this grevilleas also proffer a
03:18plethora of garden cultivars grevilleas are evergreen australian native favorites
03:25they come in all different shapes and sizes from spreading ground covers clumping shrubs
03:31right up to taller trees they generally flower across autumn and winter and they become real highlights
03:39once they're placed and planted throughout a garden but at most nurseries you'll find that the majority of
03:46grevilleas fall into the medium shrub category about two to two and a half meters in size
03:53many gardeners struggle to get their grevilleas flowering well so here's a couple of tips first up
04:02grevilleas love sun so make sure they're in a nice sunny position second thing is dead head by that I mean
04:11remove the spent flower heads and seed heads preventing all that energy going up into making seeds
04:19and redirecting it back into the plant which means it will produce more growth and more flowers
04:25grevilleas love a bit of chunky wood mulch and a nice free draining soil a small amount of native slow release
04:35fertilizer once a year will do them the world of good
04:39if there's a plant that's come a long way in recent years it would have to be the aloes
04:52these guys hail from south africa another place where plants have evolved to save their best for winter
05:01aloes were previously the preserve of the astute collector of arid garden rarities today new
05:10varieties have come out that are not only tough but they're genuine floral showstoppers
05:16you now see them being grown en masse in public parks for a mid-winter seasonal display you simply can't
05:26ignore new cultivars throw up multi-prong spikes in shades of red orange and yellow which are guaranteed
05:37to bring a glow to even the dimmest winter evening in the warmer months their sculptural forms will keep
05:44you entertained even while they're not flowering but here's the thing aloes don't like wet feet so if
05:51you've got clay soil make sure you raise the beds up with some sand and organic matter but you don't
05:58have to overdo it because their roots don't go really deep they tend to stay close up to the surface
06:05on the other hand aloes are well suited to pot culture where you can really showcase their striking
06:12form and they won't hold it against you if you miss a water occasionally
06:17an experienced gardener will tell you that color is not just about the flowers foliage really is the
06:28most valuable player in the garden and some plants really turn it on in the cooler months
06:35syzygium is a dense native shrub better known as lily pilly and it's perfect for screening
06:46the more you shear it back the more of this new growth it'll put on and the more color you'll get
06:52to enjoy you'll even get their fruit
06:55a bit tangy though but i like it oh yeah look for cultivars like cherry surprise and cascade which
07:08reward you with new foliage in dazzling bronze orange lime and in the case of cascade even pink
07:15lily pillies have traditionally copped a hard time from a native insect pest called psyllid now lots of
07:25new cultivars have been bred and they don't suffer from that problem and as you can see on this one
07:33here you get that beautiful rich green dense foliage without the problems that they used to have
07:39when the skies start to darken it's a real opportunity to amp up the color and this nursery
07:58has a display that will really attract the eye the two plants here are evergreen trees grown for the
08:06distinct shades they offer copressus glabra blue ice is a tall pyramidal conifer with foliage that's not
08:15only glowingly icy but also aromatic it's a fast grower and can reach five meters in the first 10 years
08:24you can plant it as a standalone specimen tree as a hedge or better still clip and prune it into whatever
08:32shape you want yet another option is to go for a striking color combo and plant it with this
08:40agonis flexuosa after dark is a wa native it's slow growing needs good drainage and will eventually get
08:50to about five meters
08:55winter color doesn't need to stop at the veggie garden gate have a look at these curly red kale has been bred
09:09for looks but grows very much like its close relatives the edible cabbages and kales it's delicious sweet
09:17nutty and perfect in a salad or pasta give it a go
09:30cool weather doesn't mean the good times have to stop after all you can't make a rainbow without rain
09:37so go on get out there and turn up the color in your garden this winter
09:43what is a water sprout also known as water shoots they are thin spindly and flexible branches that grow up in the middle of your tree and shrub every year
09:59they're growing out of concealed buds quite low down now they can become problematic because they can congest the whole space making it hard for you to get in there and access things and also potentially increasing the chance of fungal disease
10:12so it's best to cut them out every year to make sure you keep it nice and airy and free in there
10:19once removed they can be used in the garden as stakes in a weaving project or just mulch them up and pop them in your compost
10:25do i need two chocolate pudding trees in order to get fruit
10:30no you don't one will fruit perfectly well on its own
10:35this is a tropical fruit tree but it comes from a high elevation
10:39and that means you can grow it across a wide range of australia it'll even take light frost
10:45the beauty of this tree is that it crops quite heavily
10:49I've maintained mine to a safe pruning height so it's easy to gather the fruit
10:56what you do need to know about this is when to pick the fruit because they hang green for quite a long time
11:02and what you look for is the sepals on the top of the fruit
11:06and when they lift away from the surface of the fruit you pick them and you ripen them indoors as you would with a persimmon
11:14i love this fruit because you can freeze it for up to 10 months and it doesn't change its quality at all
11:21i use it for smoothies and i've got a wonderful recipe for a low sugar cake which is absolutely delectable
11:29people always ask me about lemon trees and in this case it's a question about espaliering
11:35espaliering means that you just grow the plant up against a flat surface like a fence or in this case a trellis
11:43and if it's growing out like this it's really just too bushy and you need more sun and more light to go up
11:50into that sort of area so cut it off right down here
11:56okay
11:58now anything else that's coming out like that make sure that you tie them up flat against that trellis
12:04and you'll find that that's the way to grow any sort of fruit tree as an espalier
12:09gets more sun more ventilation hence more fruit and it also saves space
12:16you know us gardeners we're always striving to leave things in better shape than we found them
12:28and sophie's met someone who certainly ticks that box a local legend whose garden is not only growing beauty
12:37but also connection kindness and community
12:44i'm in adelaide's outer north to meet gardener conservationist lifelong volunteer and all-round inspiring local hero
12:59elizabeth penny hello elizabeth oh hello sophie lovely to see you lovely to see you too
13:08now this banksia rose is a picture clamoring up the tree
13:11ron my husband gave me this about 25 years ago
13:14wow it's just going to the heavens
13:16everyone talks to you about the fact that your name matches where you live
13:21yes they do elizabeth from elizabeth who used to run the elizabeth red cross shops
13:26and i was quite famous for that
13:29so i'm really excited are you going to take me on a tour
13:32i would love to i'll follow you
13:34okay
13:35wherever you turn there's something to see
13:38that's the idea sophie you never know what you're going to get
13:41everything everywhere you look is something different
13:43i love this isn't this cassia beautiful
13:47i just love it it was a seed i've got for my auntie mary's down at narracool
13:51now a lot of the plants in your garden have special associations
13:54they do
13:55most of my plants are all cuttings that somebody's given me from a friend or something
13:59so this is auntie mary
14:01okay
14:02so they have names
14:03oh yes they have names a lot of them do yes
14:06particularly if that person's passed away
14:08you know you can walk around you think
14:10oh this is jan this is such and such and such and such you know
14:13and it it just it's just gorgeous i love it
14:17gorgeous memories
14:18yeah that's right
14:25i love the fact that wherever you turn there's something to look at elizabeth
14:29i just love it
14:30it's like the ocean every time you look it's different
14:32absolutely
14:33when we came here though it was nothing here
14:3630 years that this is what i've done it was all just lawn
14:39really it was just lawn so i dug it all up
14:41now elizabeth you're a bit of a collector and i believe it continues inside
14:48now what gives you that idea sophie but would you like to come inside and have a look
14:52i'd love to thank you
14:58look at all of this
14:59wow
15:00wow
15:10well this is 82 years of my life sophie
15:13if you're not up there you've never been very important in my life
15:16oh my goodness
15:17and you're collecting everything from mickey mouses to teapots
15:21and up there i've got the 2006 australian of the year south australian local hero award
15:26wow
15:27which we went over to canberra and we met mr howard the former prime minister
15:30and all these other important people
15:32how amazing
15:33it was
15:34would you like to come out and see my back garden sophie
15:37oh please
15:40even more collection
15:41oh yes a lot of that stuff was my aunties that she left to me
15:44oh beautiful
15:50wow look at all these cacti and succulents
15:53oh beautiful aren't they this is my passion
15:56well one of my passions which i have many of
16:00what do you love about them
16:01um the thing i love about them they're tough and prickly like me
16:05and no two are alike
16:07no
16:08because there's so much structure i love the structure
16:10well that one just had a hairdo today just for you
16:12oh did it
16:13normally it's straight
16:15i love the firm
16:16so do i i just love that
16:17i just love that
16:18they're just so faithful you don't have a
16:20if you forget to water them for a few days
16:22they will survive you know
16:23they will
16:24that's right and they don't just turn up their toes and say well bugger you
16:28i'm off
16:31and you've also got quirky installations everywhere
16:35some recycled but i love your repurposed blue bottles
16:39well i just love it particularly when the sun shines on them
16:42because it puts blue lights all up and down the path
16:44oh
16:45and it's just magic if you come out here at a certain time
16:48when it reflects you've got blue lights everywhere
16:51amazing yeah
16:52let's go exploring still
16:53okay
16:54so i've got some lovely geraniums i love my geraniums
16:57if you don't look after them they don't cark it
16:59they're tough like me
17:02and resilient i think we should say
17:04that's the word
17:05i think so
17:06have you got any favourites
17:07i think this one here i think that is one of my favourites
17:09that come from aunty mary's as well down at narrow court
17:12oh okay
17:13we called it peaches and cream
17:15so where did your love of gardening come from
17:17well when when we were kids we grew up in um at longwood in the adelaide hills
17:21and we were terribly poor but you could walk around all day
17:25and you never knew what you were going to see
17:27wildfires donkey orchids
17:29oh
17:30and um it was like you were rich
17:31you've had a lot of challenges in your life
17:35i have i have and i was married for a couple of years and um we had a terrible tragedy
17:41um we had a house fire we lost um we lost everything i lost my two children and um everything we owned and um i got badly burnt and i was in hospital for quite a long time and for two years um there was no support there was nothing i could have been in the hospital for quite a long time and for two years um there was no support there was nothing
17:59i couldn't help my husband and my husband couldn't help me
18:02so it was two years that it was just terrible yeah
18:08and that experience has made you passionate about supporting other people and volunteering
18:14i think so
18:15i've done a lot of volunteering over the years i've coached netball teams i've um i worked for red cross for seven years because um i felt that i could help people and you know people sometimes just got nobody to talk to and that and i did enjoy that and then i worked um volunteering with special needs people i did that for seven years i looked after them
18:37which i enjoyed um but planting trees is my passion volunteering to do that that is my passion
18:49elizabeth's son barry and his wife nadia have a three hectare property in nearby anglevale
18:55and for nearly two decades the three have spent several days a week together planting native plants watering and weeding
19:05so what have you been planting here barry
19:07we've been planting lots of um trees bushes and plants and we've planted about 15 000 so far
19:13my goodness and these are all local to the area
19:15these are what you call endemic
19:17and that means they're locally grown and they're originally from the area
19:19and how much of that has your mum helped with
19:21look it's been absolutely amazing what she's done she's probably planted well over half the amount
19:25of plants and elizabeth how does it make you feel to have the ability to come back and see what you've
19:30been doing for nearly 20 years here and see how well it's grown on a wednesday i'll come out i work all
19:35day and it's a different world um you don't have a trouble or a woe or a care in the world and the birds
19:41just sing to you and the little critters run around and it's absolutely gorgeous i do you can't explain
19:46it you can't put in words excuse me doc excuse me excuse me
19:56and hopefully by me planting the trees i can make a little bit of difference
20:00and at the end of the day we don't own this earth we're all caretakers that's all we are
20:05to leave it a better place than what we come in but trees hopefully will be there forever
20:10what a wonderful legacy that's what i'm hoping that's what i'm hoping
20:31using walls to divide our backyard into garden rooms
20:34has been a key element in our garden design and greening up the walls with creeping fig
20:41softens them visually and helps keep the outdoor spaces cool but you do need to stay on top of it
20:47to keep it looking good and to keep it from getting away from you
20:54cutting the vine back to the wall keeps foliage small and tight the mature foliage has larger leaves
21:01and branches outwards it can be invasive so this sort of maintenance is about containment
21:09as well as appearance i set key points to prune to like the edge of the shed door
21:15and the top of this wall when it gets past this i know it's time to prune
21:20the clippings can reshoot so compost them properly or put them in your green waste bin
21:31this is a job that needs doing two to three times a year and i reckon it's well worth the effort
21:36millie's known to be a thrifty gardener and her next budget friendly tip is a cracker
21:49not only will it save you money but the long-term results will speak for themselves
22:02like every moment in the garden this time of year is something special in cool and temperate climates
22:12so many species are going through their winter dormancy they're deciduous and they are asleep
22:17and while you could be fooled into thinking the gardener should be resting too it is a great time
22:22of year to get so many things in the ground so i want to give you my best tips for choosing buying
22:28and planting bare root
22:33bare root plants are exactly what they sound like they're plants that are grown in the field and then
22:39winter when they're dormant they're dug up out of the ground and sent straight to you or to the
22:44nursery you can see that they are essentially the whole plant without soil or a pot which means they
22:51can be a lot cheaper because the transport costs are less now it is worthwhile when you go looking
23:00for a tree to look for something with a really strong root system it is a bit of a shock to be
23:05wrenched out of the ground but if they're in really good shape down below you're going to have great results
23:10up top this is an ashy pear a really great variety and you can see that's a really strong root system
23:17there's lots of fine roots it's going to be a fantastic plant when you put it in the ground
23:22while a bare root tree will always be a few dollars cheaper than their potted cousin
23:28the variety available is really for me one of the best reasons to look for bare root in the nursery
23:34you'll get loads of different varieties that aren't as easy to get in pots through the growing season
23:39and then when it comes to things like roses there are so many to choose from the other thing that you
23:45can get at this time of the year are the berries so there's loads of different berries most of them
23:49are deciduous and there'll be a great variety available at this time of the year and even
23:55perennials you can order dormant perennial plants beautiful ornamentals and also things like this
24:02the beautiful octopus of asparagus it's one of the most robust plants to grow perennial vegetable
24:08you get 20 years out of it and it all starts in winter like this
24:18when it comes to picking the actual tree it is worth being a little bit fussy about the one you
24:24take home and it's good to pay a little bit of attention to what you might want to do with it
24:28now a lot of our fruiting trees are incredibly compliant plants and they can be pruned and trained
24:34into almost any space so when you're picking your plant it's worth thinking about what you want to
24:38do with it so for example if you want to train something on a flat plane known as a spellier
24:43then i would look for something with branches that could potentially do that this is a mulberry and it's
24:49got three really nice bits of growth which are almost on the same plane you are going to prune them
24:55when you plant it but you could imagine you could tie that in place and you'd get a really instant effect
25:02alternatively you might want to have a tree that forms a really nice big open and vase shaped shade
25:07tree so you can see here the tip of this has actually come out last year which caused it
25:12to do this nice even branching it's going to get a further prune when it goes in the ground
25:17that's going to do a fantastic job
25:23now commonly you can get bare rooted roses in a little plastic bag and they'll usually have
25:28a bit of lightweight sawdust on there to keep those roots a bit moist but it is not suitable to
25:34leave those roses in for a long period of time so what you need to do as soon as you get it home
25:39split the bag open dunk it in a bucket of water wash all of that sawdust off and that is an amazingly
25:46healthy plant
25:55when you come home with your plants it's really important to deal with them straight away don't
26:00leave them in the car for a couple of days before you think about it because if you're not going to
26:04get them in the ground straight away you still need to give them lots of cover over that root system
26:08it's called healing them in so you do it in a pot and some potting mix even in your compost heap
26:14simple way to do it is just to dig out some loose soil and then you just need to cover them up
26:21compost or whatever you've got and that'll keep them protected and cool until you're ready to plant
26:28if you are going to plant your tree you're going to need to dig a hole so chuck it in some water while
26:32you do that
26:44beautiful soil
26:50now i've dug a nice wide hole but not particularly deep because i still want to make sure that this
26:55drains really well so i put a mound in the middle of the hole that i'm going to sit that root ball on
26:59it'll spread those roots out into the surrounding soil and it should work perfectly well
27:04now before i get this tree in the ground i do want to have a close look at the roots because obviously
27:11they get wrenched out using really great machinery but it can cause some damage so it's really worth
27:17having a little look checking if there's anything broken and where there is you just give it a nice
27:22clean cut that's going to heal up and you'll get really good root establishment from there
27:26it's a bit broken so i'm actually just going to come back in
27:34and they look pretty good now for the big moment now i'm going to position the tree with the mound
27:40supporting the center of the root ball and those other roots sitting down around the edges i just want
27:45to make sure visually that my finished soil level is going to end up above where it was in the pot you
27:52can see this is a grafted plant so i don't want to bury that bud union but i do want to bring the
27:56soil up to come around that stem and give it lots of stability in the ground
28:02you can see i'm just giving it a little jiggle as i backfill just to make sure that i'm getting that
28:07soil in around the root system because the last thing you want is a big pocket of air
28:11come summertime it'll kill off those roots
28:21now the last thing you need to do when you're planting a tree like this
28:24is balance the shoots of the tree with those roots which have been greatly reduced by being
28:29dug up out of the ground and transported they've been cut multiple times so it's important to get
28:34these out now you can get this done at the nursery if you get a tree there they'll do it for you
28:39but it's pretty simple really you need to look for the buds they literally are pointing in the
28:44direction they're going to shoot i want to create a nice open shape with this pear tree
28:49and so i'm going to come down this branch because i want that branching to occur down low and i'm
28:54going to choose this bud and i'm going to prune to it this other limb is quite a bit less vigorous so
29:00it might be counterintuitive but i'm going to prune it harder because pruning in winter particularly
29:05does encourage a strong growth response so i'm going to follow those buds down again just looking
29:09for one that's pointing out and then i'll snip it there and then i'm going to watch and wait and
29:17see what happens in response here next year i might give it another formative prune to really create
29:23the structure and the fruiting wood i want you might notice i haven't added anything to this soil
29:31compost or fertilizer that's because this soil is really beautiful it's well drained but also because
29:37i want the tree to get used to its new home the bare root season has so much diversity so many
29:46varieties to choose from it is a great time to get your forest in the ground by digging some holes and
29:52planting in winter still to come on gardening australia hannah plants out a cozy nook for native bandicoots
30:04we meet a gardener who's blending design with nature to create a thriving tropical oasis
30:13then grab your gloves it's time to dig into your jobs for the weekend
30:25next up it's jerry with a concerning topic invasive and aggressive red fire ants are on the move
30:33exacerbated by recent flooding but we as gardeners can stay one step ahead and help stop their invasion spreading
30:45our gardens can be places of rich diversity both vertebrate and invertebrate
30:54and among those invertebrates are ants generally speaking they're friends in the garden
30:59they're seed sowers and they can play a vital role in breaking down organic matter and burying it in
31:06the soil australia is home to thousands of species of ant and of all the states and territories
31:14queensland is home to the most diverse range however there is an invasive aggressive foreign ant which poses a
31:23significant threat
31:29red fire ants were first identified in queensland in 2001 thought to have arrived via a cargo shipping
31:36container from north america
31:41red fire ants solenopsis invicta are considered among the worst invasive species in the world
31:48we actually have an ability to track them we want marnie manning is helping lead our battle against
31:54this unwanted visitor with the national fire ant eradication program the fire ants stands to cause a
32:02greater ecological damage than cane toads camels feral pigs foxes feral cats and feral dogs all combined
32:11so this is a super risk it is a super risk it's not called a super pest for nothing so it's recognized
32:18globally as one of the world's worst so what's at risk what's at risk is the australian way of life
32:24and it's not being alarmist we've got a huge amount of information from countries who have failed or given
32:29up the eradication dream and they actually show us in a clear example of how much they lose their outdoor
32:37lifestyle so the way we enjoy outdoor barbecues picnics with the with the family all of that
32:44is put at risk by this super pest what is the sort of damage that they cause well the united states
32:50probably has the most documented damage they've had fatalities of humans due to anaphylactic response
32:57they've had deaths of livestock and other vertebrate animals they've had to barbecue in wading pools
33:02so that they can actually enjoy the outdoor lifestyle in areas like texas they've had to
33:08close public facilities like this one where there's playgrounds money is clear about the nature of the
33:15threat posed by these tiny terrors and just what's at stake what are the implications for our environment
33:23and for our wildlife fire ants if they're disturbed they will immediately as a behavioral characteristic
33:29attack and sting and bite so koalas when they come down in mating season in particular and might move
33:35between trees and they're on the ground they actually are susceptible to fire ants we're also concerned
33:40about other iconic species like the echidna platypus turtles for example we have seen impacts
33:47here in australia on turtles moving between ponds they're unbelievable in terms of attacking in mass
33:55and particularly attacking anything that's slow moving we know that the ant is probably able to
34:00inhabit around about 95 to 97 percent of our country wow which is much more than what they have
34:07in other countries so the astronomical impacts for us are completely magnified so how do they spread
34:15they spread by flight it's called a nuptial flight they'll come after rain particularly and do a mating flight
34:22and then they'll spread not all fire ants are capable of flight only the fertile males and females
34:30also known as alates have wings they mate mid-flight and the females are the future colonies queens
34:39there can be multiple queens in this nest that's a characteristic of the fire ants so you'll see
34:44multiple colony establishments coming from that flight the flights can go up to five kilometers
34:50the biggest risk for us at this particular time and our eradication effort is human assisted movement
34:56these are great hitchhiker pests so pot plants pots soil turf mulch that's where these guys love to be
35:04so they're quite good at actually hitchhiking and moving beyond our containment barrier
35:09recent extreme queensland weather events have provided another highly effective way for fire ants to travel
35:16further afield here comes more rafting fire ants by forming rafts with their bodies they can survive
35:24and travel on flood waters while protecting their queens and build new nests when the waters recede
35:31for greg locky the floods brought an unwelcomed guest his property now infested with fire ants
35:38so what are the characteristics of a fire ant one they're a coppery color with a darker abdomen
35:46secondly you'll always see a whole range of different sizes in the one ant and that's something
35:52that's characteristic to the fire ants so you'll see quite large ones anywhere up to five mils right
35:57down to the very small ones which are around about two mils and one of the most easily identifiable
36:03characteristics is at at all when they're disturbed they immediately come out aggressively towards you
36:09they will just keep coming and coming and coming and whoever or whatever has disturbed them
36:14why are they called fire ants well i've actually been stung myself and i think it's a very apt name
36:21so they all sting in mass and it is actually like burning fire on your skin wow
36:29well mani's team has identified two fire ant nests in this public park so we can observe this invasive
36:36threat up close we're entering into a children's playground now which is a concern for us and we
36:44can see right near the path the very first example of a quite a pronounced fire ant nest you can tell that
36:52it's a fire ants nest because it's quite messy it doesn't have a defined entry and exit point like a lot
36:58of australian species of ants will have and they build up after rain and they do that in a very purposeful
37:05response to make sure that they control the temperature to protect the queen
37:09if i disturbed that though at the moment you'd see them come out like a lava
37:13so this is more what i was expecting to see it's slightly smaller but in rough grass this one is less
37:19pronounced and yes you're right this probably is what people would notice in their grass it doesn't
37:24necessarily have to be with this type of grass but these are some of the things you will notice
37:28particularly after rain and that's when we ask home gardeners in particular to really look because
37:35after rain is when they respond like this fortunately there is something home gardeners can
37:41do to stop the march of fire ants the best thing to do is ring and report them and there's two ways you
37:47can do that one is through our fire ant website which is fire ants.org.au and the other way is
37:53through our new dedicated hotline which is 132 ant or 13 2268 and that's actually staffed by people
38:01who know about fire ants and can talk to you about the identification okay if you identify a fire ant nest on
38:09your property the task force will mail you out a pesticide to sprinkle around the nest to eradicate
38:16the ants it's called reef away it's using an active ingredient called indoxicab which is a fast acting
38:23ingredient and you'll actually also receive a whole range of instructions on how to do it as well
38:28so this is a bait that lures them correct you just put a band around there not on the nest no we don't
38:35need to put it onto the nest and also we try and tell people not to disturb the nest and risking any
38:40type of bites oh look at them all coming now as these nests have been found in a high-risk public area
38:49mani has called an eradication officer to the site to apply a fast-acting direct nest injection of insecticide
38:58how do you find out if you live in a fire ant suppression area the best way is to go to our
39:08website and you can actually enter your address if you live within the suppression area of southeast
39:15queensland as i do you can help stop the spread even if you can't see fire ants on your property
39:22well if you're in a suppression zone and you can't see a nest but you are in a suppression zone where we
39:27would reasonably expect that there would be fire ants they'll actually dispense what's called a yard
39:32treatment kit out to you the task force can send you an insect growth regulator it's tiny pieces of
39:41corn grit soaked in soybean oil which fire ants love it's absolutely irresistible to the fire ant
39:48they will ferociously gather that and take it back to the nest and feed that through to the queen
39:54and that's what we really want it to do and it's very target specific to the fire ant
39:58and what will happen is the colony will collapse this growth regulator is for gardeners like me
40:05who haven't found a nest but still want to help the eradication effort before it's too late the soybean
40:13oil bait is designed to only appeal to fire ants while the growth regulator has no effect on other
40:20invertebrates studies have shown it has a minimal impact on native ants the damage to native ants is
40:29far less than what it would be if fire ants were allowed to grow in the area now that product isn't
40:36actually a poison is it no it's not it is a pesticide which is highly targeted to the fire ant for those
40:43who have concerns about applying insect treatments it's important to note the australian pesticides
40:50and veterinary medicines authority approves the use of this fire ant treatment and has deemed it safe
40:56for people animals and the environment it's safe for your pets it's safe for your dog what isn't safe for
41:04your dog is fire ant even if you think you don't have fire ants it's worth keeping an eye out
41:11not only in the home garden but in public parks and open spaces as well what does the future hold
41:18if we fail in containing them it's quite a dire consequence if we actually are unable to eradicate
41:25this particular super pest the countries who have not been able to eradicate provide the perfect
41:31illustration of just what a future holds if we don't eradicate fire ants if there's one thing that
41:39should unite queensland gardeners it's fire ants they're dangerous and they threaten all the good
41:47things in life so if you live in a fire ant suppression zone you can do your bit as a gardener report them
41:56it's a vital role we can all play fire ants not in my backyard
42:10living on the edge of kuna near mount wellington bordering onto state park my garden isn't just
42:15my family's home a lot of other species have been sheltering and foraging here for a lot longer than we have
42:22i do try to make space for all of them but some of the smaller visitors have very particular needs
42:28so it's worth getting a bit intentional about making them comfortable
42:33bandicoots used to be widespread all around the country with the kwenda in the west the golden
42:39bandicoot in the north and the eastern barred bandicoot and southern brown bandicoot in the southeast
42:45but land clearing and foxes have decimated mainland bandicoots
42:49and while we still have healthy populations in some places they're under pressure here in luchewita
42:54tasmania too
42:58this whole length of my boundary line has been planted out with short natives specifically for
43:04wildlife like bandicoot it includes things like lomandra grasses prostrate correars and quite a few
43:11different grevilleas but it's got a few spaces so today i'm going to beef it up
43:16you can plant a bandicoot or habitat nook wherever you live your local native nursery will be able to
43:24recommend plants for your particular area the aim is to choose a mix of dense low sometimes prickly
43:30plants that will give them lots of cover from predators
43:33these themata grasses are looking a bit sad because we got them from the cheapie table at the nursery
43:41but once i put them in the ground give them a bit of love they'll bush out beautifully into a nice tussock
43:48i've also got two varieties of the tasmanian chorea reflexa the northern bell and the round leaf
43:55both have beautiful flowers but the bandicoots will love the protection from the small leaves that grow
44:01nice and close together and finally some tassie grevillea this one will grow to about two meters
44:08so i'm putting it here where it'll have plenty of room to spread out
44:15i've also placed some logs and large rocks between the plants these will help encourage some more worms
44:21and grubs into the soil providing some tasty treats for my bandicoot friends
44:28i often see bandicoots in my garden late at night or really early in the morning so i'm in my garden
44:35busy turning compost they're also in my garden busy aerating the soil with their long noses and
44:41turning over any leaf litter i am so lucky to share this space with them so the more i can welcome and
44:48encourage them in the better like i have you can add some plants to fill out an already existing
44:55little nook in your garden but if you want to step it up a notch check out our website for some larger
45:01more intricate bandicoot bungalow designs
45:10well let's take a break from the chill of winter now
45:14and head to a tropical escape with lush foliage vibrant colors and warmth all year round this next
45:22story is with an iconic garden designer whose home garden is a reflection of its coastal surrounds
45:45people know far north queensland really is where the reef meets the rainforest
45:50we're at the wet tropics world heritage area and we have got the great barrier reef
45:54just off the coast so it's one of the most beautiful and spectacular parts of the world
46:01where i live is on the boundaries of three first nations areas the year in kanji
46:06the guguiulangu and the jabbukai the garden sits right by the coast it's uh unfortunately just above
46:14the highway but just below the highway is that iconic drive to port douglas and the beach is just
46:21below us we live on a beautiful little beach called pebbly beach which is part of oak beach the white quartz
46:26pebbles you can actually hear them at night with the stones washing and rolling on the sand
46:31it's a privilege to live in such an environmentally important part of the world it's not where i grew
46:37up but it was where i was attracted to because of the eternal summer i just love the warm weather
46:42and then i fell in love with the plants
46:44i'm a garden designer also i actually build landscapes and maintain them so what's really
46:58important about landscape design is understanding the history of design but also bringing in the
47:05environment and that the plant palette is also really important so that it works really well
47:14i think going out into the bush as you grow up and you do your camping trips and you do your
47:26whitewater kayaking and things like that it really became evident you watched the environment and you
47:31learnt where plants were and where things sat in the space it's not all second nature you know you do
47:39need to learn and and how things are placed and how they work in in the world and it's such an art
47:44such a skill to be able to create a native or a natural looking landscape compared to say
47:51formal landscapes and the skills in both sets which is really important
47:58so when we first bought the little beach house it was bright blue
48:02it was pretty run down everything from the swimming pool north sloped down and away from the pool
48:08and that was the really thing that got me was that we would be able to take away some of the fencing
48:14and create a partial like haha wall a haha wall is traditionally a retaining wall in the landscape
48:22that divides two spaces so that they can't be transitioned so it becomes a proper pool fence
48:28that would really envelop the pool area and keep it safe but really open up the view and that was just
48:35such a beautiful thing a striking part of the the garden that was here was a beautiful old cycas media
48:45it's a lovely cycab which is locally native but i've never seen one get to the size that we have here
48:52and it just really set the scene for the whole space and that really juxtaposition with the white poplar
49:01gum beside it sitting over the ocean really drew me in and just you know allowed me to work with
49:08the other cycads in the garden and work out where they should be placed in relation to the grand old dame
49:13the original garden was really quite close to the house and it felt quite claustrophobic so as we
49:21developed the garden we paired some of the layers back and opened up this this nice aspect out to the
49:26north and what we discovered was ultimately the coconuts which framed the view at the end of the
49:31former lawn and just to create that space we thought we really needed some tough coastal plants
49:36so we have the the carissa or natal plum growing just as the box hedge sort of look around the edges
49:43the native bamboo the murray island bamboo hides out our water tanks and at the end we've got the
49:50ixora campongs pride and then that's reflected back along the front of the house right along the edge of
49:56the pool just repeating those elements so that we have a consistency through the garden
50:00the transition from the pool area out into the native area really was to be really subtle it
50:08should be played down and that's where the cousin it's would just soften the wall and fall over with
50:13the chrysopogon or the native tall tamil grass really softens and it's just a textual thing it's not
50:20to be in your face it's not to show up too much so the edges of the garden were about blending back into
50:26the native plant system and the native garden just rolls off the back of the edge of the garden and
50:33it's a place where i really needed to work with some native plants that i didn't know would survive
50:40in the wet tropics and and that was a case of looking at the history and the breeding of native
50:45plants and how they worked or where they came from so the beautiful grevillea karura cascades and
50:52grevillea golden lyre are progeny of the grevillea formosa out of northern territory and they work
51:00really well similarly to some of the grevillea banksiais and their forms that come from central
51:06queensland they can actually cope with the wet season blended in with them i really wanted the
51:11xantherias the grass trees xantheria johnsonii that's something that is here and it grows along the coast
51:18right where our little bay is and so that was really important to use them and mix them in
51:22the other successes in the garden are really the native gardenias so gardenia scabrella from cape
51:29york also gardenia cidioides and our own locally native gardenia from the daintree work really well
51:37here and it's surprising to see how gardenia actinacapa comes from the daintree but pulling it out
51:44into the sunlight and giving it more space really makes it shine
51:54i'm really quite concerned about the environment and biodiversity loss
51:59there's so little we know about our own rainforests and i'm really concerned that we can't save our
52:04great barrier reef without knowing and understanding what goes on on the land
52:08it's really where the mountains come right close to the reef and the rainfall close to the coast
52:15allows the australian rainforest to persist and that makes me passionate about how do we preserve this
52:22and how do we have those genes left behind in the future so 10 years ago i got involved in the planning
52:29for moss and botanic gardens that hasn't been built yet but is a project well underway and really become
52:35more important than ever people were concerned about the loss of the local industry which is sugar
52:42and what if that wasn't there what could there be and when we looked at the environment and the way
52:49tourists and everybody want to know more and understand about our rainforests it was a no-brainer to
52:55look at a botanic gardens that could show that and educate people but also was the the basis for
53:01studying that biodiversity and understanding our rainforests and then moving that forward
53:07spaces like botanic gardens give us a sense of pride of who we are and i think the australia garden
53:12in victoria really showed that we could actually express who we are as a nation in landscape so when
53:18you take the botanic gardens concept and you insert it into a small town
53:22and you ask people to tell stories in that botanic gardens or what those stories might look like
53:29as we build the botanic gardens it starts to really raise a level of awareness so it's a really
53:36exciting concept and i think people start to buy into that and then want to come back and see more
53:41and see more and that's proven botanic gardens around the world i think in garden design when i started
53:49it was it was very much fashion driven i think in the future i really hope more for gardens for place
53:57you know which i think is a maturity that's occurring in australia right now
54:02yeah being privileged enough to work in the tropics for 30 years being able to play with the plant
54:09pellet that is quite exotic and unknown at times you know finding new plants and trying to put them in
54:15into gardens has just been a wonderful experience
54:25after basking in that beauty i'm certainly inspired to get my hands dirty this weekend
54:31and no matter where you are in the country we've got the practical tips to help you make the most of
54:37your outdoor space whether that's a tropical paradise or a simple backyard let's get to work
54:50cool climate gardeners who like greens with a bit of grunt why not try a crop of mizuna it's got a
54:57mustardy kick and its ferny leaves look awesome too create an oil bath for your tools simply fill a
55:04bucket with sand mix in some old oil and it will keep rust at bay rake in some of the garden gold that
55:13is fallen leaves add them to your compost or pile them up separately to make leaf mold in warm temperate
55:21areas it's strawberry planting time bare rooted types are available over winter or beg some runners
55:28from a friend if you're drowning in a lovely crop of lemons give preserving a go cut lemons in quarters
55:36smother in salt pack them into a jar with some spices and top with lemon juice harvest horseradish while
55:44it's dormant over winter the pungent roots make an awesome sauce it can take over gardens so keep it
55:52contained in pots get blades sharpened before the spring growth hits get lawnmower blades done as
56:00well as secateurs loppers and shears move established shrubs that aren't thriving where they are to see if
56:08they grow better in a different spot plant broad beans now so they finish growing before the warm weather
56:15hits soak seeds overnight before planting to speed up germination and stake to protect from winds in the
56:24tropics it's time to fertilize fruit trees to give them a boost before flowering if they're already
56:31flowering use a low nitrogen soil conditioner such as compost take cuttings from cassava leaves as they
56:39start to yellow choose thicker brown stems cut into 30 centimeter long pieces and simply lay flat and cover
56:48with soil to grow next year's crop plant sweet corn now choose a sheltered spot to avoid any damage from
56:56high winds in arid areas now's a good time to plant kohlrabi a type of brassica that is grown for its
57:04delicious swollen stem time to feed your soil build up beds with manure and compost to prepare your garden
57:13for spring planting how about considering a citrus the cool crispy nights are perfect for turning blood
57:20oranges a gorgeous shade of red so why not plant one in your patch have a ripper weekend in the garden
57:29and don't forget you can always head to our youtube channel for all sorts of gardening goodness anytime
57:42that's it for this week we hope you feel inspired to embrace the season with a cup of tea or a pair of
57:50secateurs in hand or maybe even both either way get out into the garden and get amongst it it's a
57:58great way to keep warm see you next time there's no doubt that one of the best ways to warm up on a
58:06freezing winter's day is to do a little bit of gardening work it's a great time to edit your garden
58:12take a few things out do a bit of work and of course get some new plants in the ground i'm in
58:18castlemaine in central victoria a small town known for its gold rush history and while gold digging may be a
58:26thing of the past there's plenty of locals now turning their hand to creating garden gold i really love
58:35ferns and i'm visiting a nursery that's one of australia's largest specialist fern nurseries and
58:42meeting the man who knows all about them and how to grow ferns