Gardening Australia

It's week 4 I think... doesn't matter

I have a depressingly destroyed lawn. Partly dog damage, partly lack of care.

Its mostly buffalo, but some couch self seeded and grows better than the buffalo does, so i'm inclined to leave it and let the two types grow where they like it most. Is this a good idea?

We are thinking to get some top soil, but don't know what time of year to put it on.

We also need to replace the sprinklers, but i haven't really found a type/brand that i'm happy with yet.

Any ideas and advice anybody has would be greatly appreciated!

I've been reading up on the various persistent herbicides that are out there and how they can pass through animals and composting intact and I was wondering how significant an issue this would be for those of us gardening in Australia.

For my fellow gardeners, I'd like to know whether you've encountered this issue in your gardens and what steps you take to reduce the risk of contaminated materials entering your garden?

First photo was the 9th of October 2023.

Second photo was the 15th of March 2024.

I've got a young silver banksia that is getting a bit unruly and I'm looking for a useful guide for understanding how they respond to pruning. Ideally want to understand what they respond well to and how I can train them to grow to suit my garden.

I basically want to encourage it to grow upwards more, so that it can rise above a fence to gain better access to light and provide screening from neighbours. Also hoping that as it grows it'll create room for a bit of an understory in the same location.

Does anyone have any recommendations?

This year I grew tomatoes, and found rats are stealing them. I am certain it’s rats because I have seen them. Have tried netting the tomato plants, but rats found ways in. Called an exterminator to bait in the roof and under house. Feel ambivalent about it, because if a predator bird takes an affected rat it may get ill. But I’m located deep in suburbia and have never seen an owl or eagle so I think it’s unlikely. Didn’t work though, still have rats. Have given up on the tomatoes, plants are destroyed. What are your strategies for ridding yourself of ratty pestilences?

Some close up shots of the damage:

Or plant? Sorry if only tangentially related! Second time I don't notice any bites, just itching and after a day or two the monstrosity pictured appears and stays for like a week :( Tropical North Queensland.

I've converted my front yard to be mostly edible plants, I think they are often underrated in how ornamental they can be.

How does your garden grow?

Welcome to the weekly discussion thread for the Gardening Australia community. Use this post to dscuss anything garden related that you don't think justifies its own post.

University of Tasmania currently have a Certificate and Diploma in Sustainable Living available with a HECS waiver - meaning that if you are eligible for a Commonwealth Supported Place you can enroll and they will waive the student contribution. The courses are fully online with no fixed times you need to be available, so are quite flexible to fit around other commitments.

Many of the courses are practical and the assignements relate you your own situation and local area. I am just finishing the Science of Gardening subjects, which has deepened my understanding of how plants grow and the interactions between different organisms in the garden. The assignments have included things like assessing the soil in my garden, and the final assignment is pulling together everything to create a comprehensive design plan for my own garden.

There are also subjects on sustainable housing and biodiversity, if you are interested in doing some study I highly recommend looking into this.

Welcome to the weekly discussion thread for the Gardening Australia community. Use this post to dscuss anything garden related that you don't think justifies its own post.

Welcome to the weekly discussion thread for the Gardening Australia community. Use this post to dscuss anything garden related that you don't think justifies its own post.

My zucchini produced a beautifully matched set of flowers yesterday morning.

The one on the left is female, the one on the right is male - you can tell the difference as the male has only a single stamen in the centre. You can also tell the difference if you look behind the flowers, the female has a tiny zucchini attaching it to the plant, the male has a normal stem.

If your baby zucchini are withering on the vine rather than growing you need to hand pollinate them. You can either pull off the male flower, remove the stamen and brush it onto the centre of the female flower or use a brush to transfer the pollen (the flowers wither soon anyway, so I just remove the flower).

Is there any way to salvage a coriander plant when it does this, or am I best to mulch it and start from scratch?

My parsley is looking like it is about to do the same thing. Is there any way to prevent it and help it continue producing?

Welcome to the weekly discussion thread for the Gardening Australia community. Use this post to dscuss anything garden related that you don't think justifies its own post.

Bot #001 has identified today as Wed

I've certainly had plenty of these butterflies around my place. I'm hoping that there are enough predatory insects built up from snacking on my aphids that will cross over to butterfly larvae.