Proteas
Not just any old blossom, protea flowers are blooms with attitude. If you can give them full sun and reasonable drainage, proteas will love you.
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Bamboo is one of the world’s most versatile plants. Favoured for centuries for not only its aesthetics, but also its myriad of industrial and culinary uses. Bamboos are giant perennial grasses, with uses ranging from simple garden specimens, to use as scaffolding on building sites, fresh shoots used in cooking, fibre for paper production and textile manufacture (producing a super soft and hardwearing cloth), timber converted to flooring and household items and as a fodder for such famous animals as the giant panda.
Many species of bamboo are grown nowadays as a renewable resource for an ever expanding world. They also have a position in many Asian histories. It is also famed as one of the fastest growing plants in the world. Some old species have a bad reputation as an invasive garden specimen, however most cultivars now available are clumping varieties, ideal for growing in the home garden.
How to grow Bamboo in a garden
- Choose a position in full sun or part shade with well drained soil.
- Enrich the soil with Yates Dynamic Lifter Organic Plant Food. If the soil is clay based, add gypsum and fork in well.
- Dig the planting hole twice as wide and to the same depth as the root-ball. Remove the plant from the container and gently tease the roots.
- Position in hole and backfill, gently firming down. Form a raised ring around the plant, creating a well so that water will go where it’s needed most. Water in well.
- Mulch with an organic mulch like woodchip or pea straw.
- Water deeply, once or twice a week, depending on weather conditions.
- Feed with Yates Thrive All Purpose Granular Plant Food. TIP: for an added boost apply Yates Thrive Fish Blood & Bone Plant Food Concentrate.
How to grow Bamboo in a pot
Choose a smaller growing variety which is suitable for pots.
- Choose a large pot at least 600mm wide.
- Choose a position in full sun or part shade and fill with quality potting mix, such as Yates Premium Potting Mix.
- Remove the plant from the container and gently tease the roots.
- Position in hole and backfill with potting mix, gently firming down.
- Water in well.
- Feed with Yates Thrive All Purpose Liquid Plant Food. TIP: for an added boost apply Yates Thrive Fish Blood & Bone Plant Food Concentrate.
Growing tips
- For a screen or hedge, plant bamboo in a trench lined on either side with builder's plastic, sheet metal or hardboard. The barrier need not go deeper than about 45cm as bamboos are shallow rooted but may spread naturally by underground stems or rhizomes.
- Keep very well watered until established. Bamboo dislike to dry out.
- To minimise problems with bamboo, choose varieties of bamboo that are clumping rather than spreading.
- To eradicate unwanted bamboo that has got out of hand, cut the canes down to ground level, and apply Yates Zero Super Concentrate Weedkiller as per label instructions. Any suckers which emerge later should be similarly treated being careful not to let the spray drift onto other plants.
Azalea
Azaleas vary from small, delicate shrubs that are happy in pots, up to hardy 1.5m shrubs ideal for border planting. Here's how to grow azaleas in your garden.
Lavender
Lavender are hardy perennial plants with silvery-grey, aromatic foliage & dense spike of flowers in shades of purple, blue, pink and white.
Echinacea
Echinacea is a hardy herbaceous perennial with large fragrant pink daisy-like flowers. Used for therapeutic purposes and as a delicious tea.
Recommended products
Yates Thrive All Purpose Granular Plant Food
Easy-to-use granular plant food specially formulated with both fast acting and gradual feeding for up to 3 months, in the garden or pots.
Yates Thrive All Purpose Liquid Plant Food
A liquid plant food suitable for most types of plants and provides balanced feeding to promote stronger, healthier growth and greener foliage. Feeds through the leaves and roots for fast results.
Yates Premium Potting Mix
A premium potting mix, ideal for all potted plants and shrubs, including ornamentals, fruit trees, vegies and herbs.
Yates Dynamic Lifter Organic Plant Food
Releases nutrients slowly, improves the structure and moisture retention of the soil and encourages earthworms and beneficial soil micro-organisms.
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