Page 11 - Garden Tips & Plant Care Advice

Butterflies are one of the magical transformations of nature - how does a crawling caterpillar become a shimmering floating pollinator? Encourage butterflies to your garden and help their numbers increase, with the plants you choose

A lot of the time, a plant's botanic name can give us useful info about what it looks like, and behaves like. Even if, like most of us, you didn't do Latin or Greek at school, it's easy to pick up the main words. You'll begin to recognise them and before long you'll be speaking Plant!

National Eucalypt Day 23 March. This week, go hug a gum - or at least thank it for the shade, shelter, and beauty it provides. There's over 850 types of Eucalypt native to Australia to choose from.

St Patrick's Day is a great day to celebrate Irishness in all its many forms. And a big part of that is the green-ness of the country. Recreate some of that lush Irish greenery, with a smart choice of plants.

Many Australian native plants evolved in very poor, dry, ancient soils which are low in mineral and organic matter. As a result they have adapted to grow best with low nutrient needs. Using native-specific fertilisers ensures your natives stay healthy.

Our favourite deciduous trees and shrubs to give you autumn colour as the days cool and the nights lengthen. And for more tropical climates, our recommendations for evergreen plants with coloured leaves, for that toasty spice-coloured feeling.

To mark Australia Day, we asked some of the team here at Australian Plants Online to share some of their favourite native plants. Are any of our favourites, your favourites too?

Every year the hugely influential trend team at Pantone decide on a key colour, one that reflects leading fashion and style trends, and also one that reflects our current emotional mood. These colour trends show up in our homes, our cars, our clothes - and our gardens.

Have you always dreamt of a Balinese style garden? Do you wish you could be relaxing in one of their spa retreats right now, while nimble fingers massage your cares away?
We show you how to create the look of a Balinese garden in your own back yard.