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A variegated rubber plant in a blue pot sits indoors on a carpeted floor, exuding a touch of Hamptons garden elegance. In the background, another potted plant stands gracefully near a doorway.

Rediscovering the Beauty of Plants That Went Out of Fashion

Written by coldev on . Posted in Garden Advice, Garden Ideas, Plants.

It’s strange to think of gardens having trends in the way clothes and interior design does. Plants are so much more forever than a pair of flared jeans.

But it is true that certain plants can come in and out of fashion. It’s funny, plants like Hydrangeas and Rubber plants were SO well loved, that people, well, stopped loving them.

Here’s the plants we’ll be talking about today:

Hydrangeas
Rubber Plant
Flowering Currant
Viburnum Snowball Bush
Mother-in-Law’s Tongue
Silver Birch

Tall green snake plant with yellow-edged leaves in a round wooden pot, reminiscent of a Hamptons garden, against a dark gray background.

Rubber plant in a white pot on a pristine table, evoking the serene elegance of a Hamptons garden, with a clear glass pitcher and two glasses adding to the tranquil setting.

A branch from a Hamptons garden bursts with vibrant pink and red flowers, complemented by lush green leaves against a softly blurred background.

A modern backyard with a thoughtful garden design features a swimming pool, glass fencing, a paved stone pathway surrounded by greenery, and a dining table under a canopy of trees.

A cluster of vibrant blue hydrangea flowers in the foreground stands out, with pink blossoms and lush greenery creating a soft blur in the background, reminiscent of a picturesque garden during a rose clearance sale.

We get it, when every second house has a bush of Hydrangeas flowers or every apartment has a Rubber Plant in the corner, they start to lose their sparkle a bit.

But what’s interesting is that we’ve seen a resurgence of these once-popular plants, so we thought we’d take the time to go over the basics again. How to take care of them, what varieties to choose and what made them so loved in the first place.

Chris in the NurseryBeing a Nursery means we get firsthand knowledge on what’s selling, and what’s collecting dust on the shelf. We see the way certain plants are flying out the doors, where we can just never seem to keep them stocked up.

But we also see the exact moment this changes, when the sales start to die down and people turn to something else to fill their garden with. Hello Hello Plants has been around for a while, and Chris, the owner, even more so.

Think of it like a trip down memory lane, where we explore the nature of gardening trends.

There are quite a few plants that this is happening with, as listed out earlier. We’re even going to chat about some of the plants that are starting to go out of fashion. Let’s dive right into it.

The Charm of Hydrangeas


A close up of blue and purple flowers. Hydrangeas

Hydrangeas are one of those plants that everybody knows about, even if you’ve never done gardening a day in your life.

Back in the 60s Hydrangeas were all the rage, almost everybody had them in their garden. But then people seemed to forget about them, and nobody brought Hydrangeas for many years.

Vibrant pink and purple hydrangeas thrive in a sunlit garden, reminiscent of a beautifully curated plant nursery, surrounded by lush green leaves.Which takes us to today, where we are seeing a resurgence of this amazing plant. It’s no surprise, Hydrangeas are very beautiful and offer up so many different colour options.

Now we already have an incredible article that covers EVERYTHING you need to know about Hydrangeas. You can read that here.

It’s quite a lengthy article, so we thought we’d just recap some of the most important parts so that you can get to planting and growing them much quicker.

Hydrangeas ADORE water, they need plenty of water, especially if you’re growing them in the sun. But a lot of people choose to grow them in the shade where the water requirements are lower.

A lush display of oakleaf hydrangeas, one of the top indoor plants, with white blossoms and variegated green and bronze leaves. Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Oakleaf’Most Hydrangeas are deciduous and lose their leaves in winter, with the flowering season being from December through to April.

They can be grown in pots or garden beds, so you have a lot of versatility with where you choose to put them, whether it’s on the balcony or patio, or in spot somewhere in the garden.


CLICK HERE to see our full range of Hydrangeas at Hello Hello

The Indestructible Nature of Rubber Plants

A potted rubber plant with dark green leaves sits elegantly on a white surface beside a glass pitcher, evoking the serene charm of a Hamptons garden.We recently did a video about the indoors plant for Mr or Mrs Kill ‘em Quick and in Chris’ words “they were so common that they went out of fashion.” Check out that video here.

But Rubber Plants are just too damn tough to stay unpopular for very long. If you’re the type of person that kills every indoor plant you come across, this is the plant for you.

Grow them in the sun or shade, have it indoors or out on the gazebo.

They grow so easily and are so low maintenance, you’ll plant one and practically forget about it.


CLICK HERE to see our full range of Rubber Plants at Hello Hello

The Soft Beauty of Flowering Currants


A branch from a Hamptons garden bursts with vibrant pink and red flowers, complemented by lush green leaves against a softly blurred background.

It wasn’t until we accidentally stumbled upon one of these on our content shoot days that we remembered how wonderful this tree is.  You can check out that video here.

We found it in a country town in front of a cottage house, and it really suits that aesthetic perfectly.

In spring it is densely packed with small pink flowers that give off that sweet currant flavour. The Flowering Currant is an ornamental plant that doesn’t produce any actual currants, but it is a cousin of the black currant. It’s a very hardy plant that works well in a number of different situations.

The Delicate Wonder of Viburnum Snowball Bush


Clusters of white, spherical flowers with green leaves adorn the bush, reminiscent of a charming Hamptons garden.

This is such a gorgeous plant it’s hard to imagine it becoming unpopular, but there was a time where stock of it was just not moving that well. Not anymore.

When in flower, this large shrub puts on quite a spectacle, with big clusters of flowers that start out an apple-green shade and brighten to white, eventually fading into a rosy pink. They are perfect for cut flowers.

The Viburnum Snowball Bush grows in an upright mounding manner, meaning it’s not a lot of effort to keep it looking great. It also doesn’t produce any berries so there’s no messiness produced by the bush.

Not only do you get blossoms but come autumn the maple shaped leaves turn red and orange. So this is a bush that is going to give you interest in the garden year round.

The Indoor Classic Mother-in-Law’s Tongue


Tall green snake plant with yellow-edged leaves in a round wooden pot, reminiscent of a Hamptons garden, against a dark gray background.

Now this was THE present plant for ages, either you were buying it as a gift for a loved one, or you were the loved one receiving it.

It’s likely because they are so great at tolerating heat, coupled with the very interesting foliage. Those upright sword shaped leaves with a mixture of deep green, cream and yellow markings make for quite a striking sight.

Now they’re not completely immune to neglect, as they don’t do well in the cold. So make sure to plant it in full or part sun, and if you are in a cool climate, grow it indoors.

Mother In-Law’s Tongue are perfect for a low water or low maintenance garden, and look fantastic in pots.

The Classic Silver Birch


A grove of birch trees with white bark and green-yellow leaves creates a picturesque Hamptons garden in a sunlit forest setting.

Okay so Silver Birch never declined in popularity as much as some of the other plants on this list, but there definitely was a dip where people weren’t planting Silver Birch as much.

But this is such a classic option that it’s no surprise that it’s returned to being the go-to feature tree for so many people.

What makes Silver Birch so incredible is its versatility. It suits almost any garden design, from minimalist to classic to cottage and so on. They are cheap to buy, quick to grow and don’t require a lot of effort.

We love Silver Birches so much we wrote a whole article about it, which you can check out here.


CLICK HERE to see our full range of Silver Birch at Hello Hello

Plants That Are Now Going Out of Fashion

We couldn’t talk about the plants that are coming back, without mentioning the ones that are actually now going out fashion. But who knows, maybe in a couple of years we’ll be writing about how they’re once again rising in popularity.

Ornamental Pears: The Perfect Avenue Tree

A pathway lined with blooming white-flowered trees on both sides, reminiscent of a serene Hamptons garden, leads into the distance under a clear sky.Perhaps too perfect of an avenue tree, Ornamental Pears are starting to decline in popularity.

It seems that every person and their dog has a row of Ornamental Pears planted outside their house or business.

Both commercial and private owners have ADORED this tree for a number of different reasons.

The main reason is because the consistency in appearance. There’s nothing worse than a row of plants that look nothing alike, even though they’re the same species.

With the Ornamental Pear, in particular Cleveland Pears, their ability to leaf, autumn colour and blossom all at the same time is what makes for such a spectacle as an avenue.

Pyrus Everscreen Ornamental Pear Winter Glow banner

Three tall, green trees with dense foliage stand in a grassy area reminiscent of a Hamptons garden under a clear blue sky.Also just the fact that tree puts on such a gorgeous display year round is very attractive to commercial property owners wanting their property to look good all year. Of course this same principle applies to the homeowner.

But interestingly we’re starting to see a decline in their popularity, there are just so many of them planted everywhere, and it seems people are starting to get bored of it.

Now this is not us telling you you’re not allowed to plant Ornamental Pears anymore – they are clearly incredible trees. But we just wanted to point out how we are seeing a significant decrease in the sale of Ornamental Pears.


CLICK HERE to see our full range of Ornamental Pear Trees at Hello Hello

Are There Any Plants That Are Immune To Trends?

A Japanese maple tree with reddish leaves is growing near a building, surrounded by green shrubbery and a stone path.Or more accurately – are there any plants that will stand the test of time and always be popular.

Now we aren’t psychics (although sometimes we’re pretty sure Chris is with the way he knows everything about plants), but we reckon that trees like Flowering Cherries and Japanese Maples will never go out of fashion.

They are simply too beautiful, and particularly in the case of the Japanese Maple, the different varieties look so different you could never get sick of it.

Get Inspired

A plant nursery with various colorful plants and shrubs on display. A red building with "Hello Hello Plants & Garden Supplies" signage in the background promotes a Plant Clearance Sale.There you have it, the resurgence of some beautiful plants. It’s funny how trends can be quite cyclical in nature – just think about the return of flared jeans.

Now you never have to buy something just because it’s popular, but there’s definitely merit in checking out plants that a lot of people are buying. They’re obviously selling out for a reason.

If you’re not already following us on our socials, which is insane because we post educational and inspirational content literally every day, then be sure to check us out on Instagram, Tik Tok, Facebook and YouTube.

Feeling inspired to create your own garden, but want some expert advice? Try our one-on-one garden design service with Chris. Together you’ll come up with a selection of plants along with a layout plan that gives you the look you want, as well as being suitable for your local soil and conditions.

get your own tailored modern garden design:


FIND OUT HOW

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Front view of a house with a manicured Hamptons garden featuring shrubs, grasses, and decorative pots. The house boasts a white exterior, large windows, and a covered porch with elegant columns.

How to Design a Hamptons Style Garden Unique to Your Tastes

Written by coldev on . Posted in Garden Advice, Garden Ideas, Plants.

Is there anything better than having a garden that makes you feel like you’re always on holiday? Now we can’t bring the ocean and time off work of the Hamptons to you, but we can help you create a garden that is luxurious, classy and beautiful.

Small white wildflowers surrounded by green foliage and large rocks.

Two people standing in a lush garden, holding hydrangeas, in front of a shingled house with a white door. The garden path is lined with various flowering plants.

Field of purple wildflowers with tall, thin stems and clustered blooms, set against a blurred green and brown background.

A charming house with a porch and two chairs, surrounded by a blooming tree and manicured garden.

Pink flowers with yellow centers surrounded by green leaves and other purple and white blooms.

A dense bush with light green leaves and pink tips, set against a background of grass and trees.

A cluster of vibrant purple flowers with green leaves overflowing from a white planter.

The Hamptons style has been popular for a long time, and we find that almost every second garden design is asking how to do a Hamptons style garden, but with a little twist. Maybe it’s a Japanese element, or a Cottage leaning angle.

First, we’re going to define what the Hamptons style is. Then we’re going to chat about how you can make the style uniquely yours so that you stand out from the other Hamptons Style Gardens.

Here’s what we will be covering in this article:

THE ESSENTIALS
THE BEST PLANTS TO USE:
– Flowering Plants
– Trees
– Hedges
HOW TO ADD A TWIST:
– Hamptons with a Cottage Twist
– Hamptons with Australian Native Plants
– Hamptons with a Japanese Style
TIME TO MAKE YOUR HAMPTONS GARDEN

The Essentials of the Hamptons Style

The pathway, reminiscent of a Hamptons garden, is lined with white hydrangeas and manicured bushes, leading to a charming white picket gate. A stately brick building and lush trees provide an elegant backdrop.Let’s start with breaking down the essential elements. It’s important that you have a set parameter to work within, or you’ll risk having a hodge podge of random things thrown together.

Chris actually likes to define Hamptons as a “Cottage Garden but with a specific colour palette.” Whereas a Cottage Garden gives you the freedom to mix and match as many different colour plants as you choose, you want to stick to certain shades when it comes to a Hamptons style.

A Hamptons garden scene features blooming flowers in white and purple, bordered by wooden structures, with trees and lush greenery in the background.The colours at your disposal are white, pink, mauve, blue or purple. And of course green for the foliage of the plants, or even green-silver.

What you don’t want is any plant that has shades of yellow, red, or orange, whether that be in the foliage or from the flowers.

You’ll probably have already noticed but we’ll just point it out that essentially the colour palette is quite cool tones.

Two people standing in a lush garden, holding hydrangeas, in front of a shingled house with a white door. The garden path is lined with various flowering plants.

That doesn’t mean a warm-ish colour like magenta can’t ever find it’s way into a Hamptons garden, but you just want to make sure to use it sparingly and always strive for more cooler shades.

Now the secret to a Hamptons Style is finding the perfect balance between formality and looseness.
Lean too much towards formality and you lose the relaxed laid back quintessential vibe of the Hamptons. Err too much towards looseness and you abandon the sophistication and classiness.

To strike this perfect balance you want to bring the structure and symmetry by using hedges, topiaries and standard plants.

Then you add the soft romantic touches with your other plants like flowers, border plants, trees, shrubs, ground covers and climbers. You want to make it flowy and wild (but not too wild).
In every Hamptons Style Garden there is an interplay between structure and softness.

The Best Plants for the Hamptons Style

So you’ve got the basic elements down, what are the plants that are best suited? We’ll start with flowering plants.

Flowering Plants:
Nepeta ‘Catmint’


Purple flowering plants flourish in a garden bed with mulch, creating a vibrant lawn alternative. They're surrounded by lush green foliage and small rocks, offering both beauty and sustainability. Catmint

With the most gorgeous delicate purple flowers, Catmint is a no brainer when it comes to picking flowers. The foliage is also a perfect grey-green. Catmint is actually a herb, with a nice fresh scent.
Those gorgeous flowers will come about in summer and autumn, with the nice foliage filling your garden the rest of the time.

You could use Catmint for edging or large spaces you want to fill with a mass planting. They are so easy to grow so you don’t have to worry about spending a lot of time taking care of it.

If you are in a hot and dry area, you definitely want to be going with Catmint as they are excellent for those conditions.

Agastache ‘Sweet Lili’


Purple blooming flowers on green stems create a vibrant lawn alternative in the garden setting. agastache sweet lili

With larger bottlebrush flowers and a more pink-purple colour, Sweet Lili is another great option. They flower from end of December through to autumn, giving you colour for a long time.
They are fantastic for the hot summer conditions and are a resilient perennial that are drought tolerant once established.

Make sure to plant in full sun with well drained soil. If you want to prolong the flowering, deadhead regularly.

You can even eat the foliage! It is anise-scented and can be used in salads and teas, or you can just use it in the kitchen as a pretty flower arrangement.

Convolvulus ‘Blue’


Purple morning glory flowers bloom in a white planter with lush green leaves, offering a vibrant lawn alternative. Convolvulus Blue

Convolvulus ‘Blue’ is an excellent ground cover that is not only low maintenance, but also very long flowering. You can put this in a large space that needs covering or plant it by an embankment and let it spill over and down.

The flowers are a vivid purple-blue that absolutely cover the entire plant. But even when the flowers are gone, the foliage by itself looks wonderful.

You can also use it to fill spaces between shrubs and larger perennials or even by the poolside.

Salvia ‘Mexican Bush Sage’


Close-up of tall purple flowering plants with slender green leaves, offering an elegant lawn alternative in a garden setting.

Now here’s a plant that’s really going to add that looseness your Hamptons Garden needs. This is an evergreen shrub that flowers for a long period, from winter until end of spring.

You can choose between purple or white flowers (both fit the Hamptons colour brief!)

Mexican Bush Sage is great as a flowering hedge or a medium sized border plant. They are very easy to grow and can handle moderately dry conditions.

Make sure to plant it in a sunny spot, as it will only handle small periods of shade throughout the day.

Lavandula ‘Hidcote’ Dwarf Lavender


A close-up of blooming lavender plants showcases their vibrant purple flowers and lush green stems, offering a picturesque lawn alternative.

This is a dwarf bush with striking silver-green foliage and purple-blue flowers throughout spring and summer. Of course, it also smells incredible.

Hidcote is a hardy plant that does well in hot dry conditions, and to get the best flowering make sure to plant in full sun with free-draining soil. It doesn’t grow as tall as some of the other varieties.

This is great to plant as a hedge or in a pot and its perfect for creating a romantic vibe in the garden.

Leucanthemum ‘Shasta Daisy’ Shaggy


A cluster of white daisies with yellow centers flourishes as a vibrant lawn alternative in a garden setting, surrounded by lush green foliage. Leucanthemum Shasta Daisy Shaggy.

Those shaggy flowers really bring the wild looseness to your Hamptons Style Garden, but if you want flowers that are just a bit more formal looking you can always go for the regular Shasta Daisy.

It’s quite an unusual daisy with its ruffled petals, but we love how it’s something a bit different from normal daisies.

They have white flowers with yellow centres (don’t worry this yellow is fine in such a small dose) and green compact foliage.

Shasta Daisy can handle almost any soil and should be planted in a full sun position. Once established they are frost hardy.

This would be a perfect border plant amongst some of your other purple and blue flowers.

Japanese Anemone


Two pink flowers with yellow centers bloom among lush greenery, surrounded by an array of purple and white blossoms, offering a vibrant lawn alternative. Japanese anemones

The Japanese Anemone is a flowering perennial with elegant pink flowers that rise up quite tall from the foliage. They are resistant to most insects and diseases.

Now you don’t have to plant these in full sun, and they actually prefer partial shade.
They are great for a border or planted anywhere you want a pop of colour.

Arenaria ‘Mountain Sandwort’


White flowers with small petals flourish among rocks and lush green foliage, offering a charming lawn alternative. arenaria mountain sandwort

Here is a low growing evergreen perennial that flowers from late spring through to early winter, so you can enjoy flowers even in the colder times.

They are great for rockers and filling gaps in the garden and form compact small mounds.


Hydrangeas


Experience a Hamptons garden, where stone steps lead you through manicured shrubs and blooming hydrangeas, all nestled alongside elegant white columns. Hydrangeas

We couldn’t write an article about the Hamptons style without talking about Hydrangeas – they are practically THE Hamptons flower.

If you have a sunny spot you want to plant a Hydrangea paniculata, if it’s a shady spot you want to use a Hydrangea macrophylla. We aren’t going to go too much into Hydrangeas here because we already have a very in depth article all about Hydrangeas which you can read here.

So there’s a huge selection of flowering plants, let’s move onto trees now.

Trees:
Betula ‘Moss White’ Silver Birch


A Hamptons garden features a backyard with a small pool, stone pathway, and lush greenery. A modern house stands in the background, complete with large windows that invite natural light to dance across the serene landscape.

Silver Birch will always be a classic and we particularly love Moss White for its striking white bark and foliage that turns a vivid yellow in autumn.

This is a deciduous tree that looks incredible even in winter, because you get a full view of that distinctive bark.

Moss White Birches are best in a position of full sunlight to partial shade and look fantastic when planted in groups.

Lagerstroemia ‘Natchez’ Crepe Myrtle


A small tree with white blossoms graces a Hamptons garden in front of a gray house, complete with a porch and two inviting chairs.

Crepe Myrtles are the trees you buy when you want something that will look incredible all year and give you something special in each season.

Summer brings a riot of white flowers, then comes dark green leaves. In autumn you see the foliage turn a bronzy red shade. Then winter the tree will be bare, with distinctive bark on full display. Spring then circles back to flowers.

Truly a beautiful tree, you can’t go wrong in picking this as your feature and for your Hamptons garden we recommend the ‘Natchez’ Crepe Myrtle as a good option.

Salix ‘Hakuro Nishiki’ Variegated Willow


A variegated willow shrub with green and pink-tipped leaves thrives in a Hamptons garden, nestled in mulch and set against a backdrop of lush trees and grass.

You will mostly see this tree as a standard, but it looks incredible in its natural form as well. The green-white variegated leaves, pink buds in spring and catkin in autumn make for a very striking tree.

It originates from the Asian flower garden culture and elevates any garden it is added to. Hakuro Nishiki is quite low maintenance, so you don’t have to fuss over it much.

However if you want the best results plant in a sheltered full sun to part shade position. The exotic foliage is quite a wonder to look at, with even hints of pink in the leaves.

Magnolia ‘Little Gem’


In a serene Hamptons garden, a white magnolia flower blooms amidst the lush green leaves.

This is a classic beauty with two-toned leaves, one side is a glossy green, and the other one a velvety brown. On top of this in summer and autumn you get gorgeous creamy white flowers.

Little Gem is great for screening or as a feature tree, and once established is very hardy.

To add structure you’ll want to add some balls and topiaries which are best done with English Box.

Buxus ‘English Box’

This is Melbourne’s most popular topiary plant, and for good reason.

First of all, it is gorgeous and lush, remaining nice and green through situations that would turn other plants brown or scraggly.

Next it is low maintenance, only requiring pruning once or twice a year.

Lastly, you have practically no limits when it comes to what you can do with English Box, from the classic ball and cone, to more fancy options like spirals and standards.

To continue with creating that formality these are the plants you can use for hedges.

Hedges:
Buxus ‘English Box’


A hedge of Buxus 'Blauer Heinz' Box Hedge 6" Pot plants in a yard.

As we said before, English Box is such a popular and incredible plant. You can grow it up to 3 metres or trim it and keep it down to 1 metre

Viburnum odoratissimum ‘Sweet’


In a serene Hamptons garden, a white magnolia flower blooms amidst the lush green leaves.

This is a gorgeous flowering hedge that is great as a screening plant. The fragrant small white flowers in spring nestle nicely alongside large oval shaped leaves.

Then in autumn you get beautiful red berries, adding even more interest to the hedge.

Sweet Viburnum is fast growing, reaching a maximum height of approximately four metres.

Prunus ‘Portuguese Laurel’


Tall, dense hedge with bright green leaves atop a red brick wall, reminiscent of a classic Hamptons garden, stretching horizontally across the image.

When you really want to add the classiness to your Hamptons Garden, this is the plant you go for. With deep green foliage and elegant white flowers in the warmer months, Portuguese Laurel is a great choice.

It’s perfect for pleached hedging and large standard topiaries. Portuguese Laurel will tolerate most soil conditions and loves full sun to part shade.

How to Add a Twist to Your Hamptons Style Garden

A Hamptons garden scene features blooming flowers in white and purple, bordered by wooden structures, with trees and lush greenery in the background.So let’s say you’re one of our Garden Design clients that wants to add a unique spin to the Hamptons Style Garden. Here are some of the things we’ve heard our customers say they want:

  • I want Hamptons but with a Cottage twist.
  • I want Hamptons with all Native plants.
  • I want Hamptons but in a Japanese style.

Let’s tackle each option and go through how we would approach each one.

Hamptons with a Cottage Twist

Two people stand on a garden path in front of a charming Hamptons house, holding hydrangeas. The home features classic shingles and a white door, surrounded by lush greenery and vibrant flowers, capturing the essence of a serene Hamptons garden.Now because Hamptons is essentially a “Cottage Garden but with a specific colour palette” you have so much freedom of choice here. We’ll mention a few of our favourite Cottage Plants but you definitely aren’t restricted to just them.

Some of the Cottage plants that fit the Hamptons colour palette are:

Explore our entire Cottage range here.

Hamptons with Australian Native Plants

A modern house with a porch overlooks its Hamptons-inspired garden, where neatly landscaped shrubs, ornamental grasses, and potted plants create a serene front yard.

Topiarised Natives are a great starting point for a Hamptons style using Australian Native plants. Westringia and Correa alba are to great options for topiaries, or you can also make hedges out of them.

There is also quite a few Natives that will give you that wild loose look. This is plants like Prostanthera ‘Round Leaf’ Mint Bush which has an incredible show of purple flowers with a strong mint smell. You can keep it natural or shape it into a low hedge or neat round shrub (just make sure you still have those ‘loose’ looking plants).

Native Grasses are another great plant, particularly Lomandra ‘White Sands’ with its fascinating variegated foliage. White Sands is fast-growing and great for mass planting and rockeries.

Explore our entire Native range here.

Hamptons Combined with a Japanese Style

Two neatly trimmed trees with round canopies stand next to a high, well-maintained hedge, reminiscent of a classic Hamptons garden. Concrete pavement stretches in the foreground, completing this serene landscape.

Take the quintessential plant of the Japanese style – a Japanese Maple, and cloud prune it to make it Hamptons style. It looks absolutely incredible and gives you a feature tree unlike anyone else’s.

Then it’s just a matter of choosing plants that fit the Japanese style and criteria of the Hamptons style such as Ophiopogon ‘Dwarf’ Mondo Grass, Gardenia ‘Florida’, Jacaranda Tree, Prunus ‘Falling Snow’ Weeping Cherry and Wisteria sinensis ‘Purple Chinese Wisteria’.

Explore our entire Japanese range here.

Now it’s Time to Make Your Hamptons Garden

A backyard Hamptons garden with lush green plants and white flowers borders a swimming pool, surrounded by trees that create a serene atmosphere.Whether you go for the classic Hamptons Style, or incorporate some new twist to it, we hope this guide has helped you get started.

Remember, a few solid shapes combined with loose and wild plants that stick to that specific colour palette and you got a Hamptons style.

If you’re still feeling a bit suck and want some personalised advice, book one of our Free Garden Designs here.

Feeling inspired to create your own garden, but want some expert advice? Try our one-on-one garden design service with Chris. Together you’ll come up with a selection of plants along with a layout plan that gives you the look you want, as well as being suitable for your local soil and conditions.

get your own tailored modern garden design:


FIND OUT HOW

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Close-up of a small, green beetle with antennae on a verdant leaf, nestled under the gentle shade of a weeping cherry tree.

This is the Solution to Your Beetle Damaged Lilly Pillys

Written by coldev on . Posted in Garden Advice, Garden Ideas, Plants.

The Problem

There are so many people in Victoria that are facing this problem in their gardens – their beautiful Lilly Pillys that are being ravaged by beetles.

Close-up of green leaves on a bush, with some leaves showing signs of browning and curling.This beetle problem is quite recent, a decade or so ago this wasn’t an issue at all. Which is why so many people in Victoria were buying and filling their gardens with Lilly Pillys.

But in a way this popularity is what has now led to the downfall of most Lilly Pillys. This is because a beetle that used to always live up in Queensland has now migrated down, and finding such a bountiful feast, has decided to stay.

So if your Lilly Pillys look like this, it’s this slippery migrating beetle that is to blame.

A small green beetle on a plant stem with large leaves, reminiscent of the lush foliage of a bargain Weeping Cherry Tree, some of which have bite marks.

The Solution

Now we’re going to be straight up with you, there is nothing you can do to get rid of the beetles forever and keep your current Lilly Pilly plants.

A cluster of elongated green leaves with red stems in a dense arrangement.We know how frustrating this is, you probably spent a lot of money and time growing these bushes to the size they are now. But the unfortunate reality is that the best solution is to remove your current Lilly Pilly hedge and replace it with new plants.

Now you don’t have to abandon Lilly Pillys entirely, there are two varieties of Lilly Pilly that the beetles absolutely don’t touch. The Smithii and Waterhousia are the two families of Lilly Pilly that the beetles don’t eat at all.

Both of these are wonderful, stunning plants that can be planted and trimmed up as a standard or used as a hedge/screen.

Acmena smithii minor Dwarf Lilly Pilly foliage green leaves with orange red tipsLet’s say you’re not in a position to be ripping out your old hedge or plants to replace it with something new. What we would then recommend is to fertilise your Lilly Pilly very well, then in summer spray it with something like confidant once a month for the next three months.

This is not a good long term solution because confidant is a really nasty chemical, and you’ll be forced to fight these beetles every summer. But it’s the best thing to do in the short term to avoid you’re Lilly Pillys looking terrible.

More of a visual learner? Check out our video where we show a living illustration of this problem, and the solution!


A person stands in a garden with trimmed bushes, under the text "Sick Lilly Pilly?" A red car and houses are in the background.

If there’s any other plant problems you’ve been struggling with, be sure to come down to our weekly Live Q&As every Monday on Tik Tok, X, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Chris has decades of gardening knowledge and can answer pretty much any plant question!

Tomatoes of various ripeness stages, from green to red, are growing on vine plants in a well-planned garden, demonstrating an excellent solution to common garden design problems.

The Only Guide You’ll Need to Pick and Grow Your Own Tomatoes

Written by coldev on . Posted in Garden Ideas, Plants.

Growing your own food is an incredibly fulfilling process, but so many people shy away from it because they get too bogged down in choosing what to grow and figuring out how to grow it.

Well, we’re here to give you that nudge. Tomatoes are a perfect beginner plant and we’re going to be breaking down everything you need to know about choosing the right variety and how to take care of them.

This is everything we’ll cover today:

Why You Should Grow Tomatoes?

Person holding a variety of tomatoes in both hands, including one large red tomato and several smaller dark red tomatoes, a testament to solving garden design problems.Tomatoes are one of Australia’s most popular fruit/vegetables – they’re incredibly versatile in the kitchen and can be used in a huge range of dishes. You can eat them straight off the vine and enjoy their natural flavour.

They’re also quite easy to grow, so it’s no surprise they’re also one of the most popular homegrown fruit/vegetable.

Some other reasons for this popularity are that they are more cost effective than buying tomatoes at the store and home grown tomatoes taste MUCH better than store bought ones. Now this is with the right sort of fertiliser, good soil, right conditions and right care. Which of course we’ll be getting into later.

Another reason why the flavour is better is that when you grow it at home, you’ll often let it ripen on the bush and pick it just as it ripens. Whereas in a store situation, they might be growing it in Queensland or New South Wales, where they pick it before it’s ripe and then ripen it artificially so it’s not rotting on the way to the store.


Pots of tomato plants with ripe red tomatoes and green leaves are arranged in a plastic tray on a table, providing a glimpse into solving common garden design problems.

It’s also about picking the right variety for your needs and location, which is why we’re going to go through the different varieties of tomatoes to help you pick the right one.

There are so many benefits of home grown tomatoes, you’re saving money, you’re getting more delicious and healthier tomatoes, and you get the satisfaction of eating food you grew yourself. Tomatoes are a great beginner plant because they’re easy to grow and have many uses in the kitchen, such as relishes, salads, sauces, sandwiches, soups, wraps and so many more.

Rows of tomato plants with fruits in varying stages of ripeness, from green to red, highlight the beauty and potential garden design problems in this dirt plot.Chris has a little story about his experience with tomatoes:

I remember when I was a kid, my dad used to do everything big and he would plant a row of tomatoes, and some years he’d plant two rows of tomatoes, 50 meters long. So we’d have a 50 meter row of tomatoes, and there was only like a family of five, and he’d have this 50 meter row of tomatoes, and my mom would be up half the night cooking various sauces and all these different things, preserving tomatoes. We’d be having tomatoes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and it’d still be piles of tomatoes piling up as they fell off the bushes in the field.

How Do You Grow Tomatoes?


Person carefully planting small green tomato plants in a garden, meticulously addressing garden design problems by ensuring soil is gently packed around the base of each plant.

First you need to make a choice on where you want to grow tomatoes: in a pot or in a garden bed. For some of you the choice will already be made because you live in an apartment or place that doesn’t have a garden. But for those who could do either, here are some things to consider.

Regardless of whether they’re in the sun or a pot, they want a hot, sunny open spot. Something to consider when growing them is they need to be staked, especially your cherry tomatoes and smaller tomatoes. Without staking they tend to sprawl all over the place, and you’ll get fruit running on the ground. Also by staking them you are getting them up and into the airflow they need, meaning less disease and healthier fruit.

Growing Tomatoes in a Pot

A potted tomato plant with ripening tomatoes, supported by wooden stakes, sits on a marble surface, creating a charming focal point that effortlessly addresses common garden design problems.If you chose pot, make sure it’s a big pot. We’re talking at the very least a 13 inch pot for cherry tomatoes, but preferably a 16 inch pot and larger. Also with a pot make sure you are using a good quality potting mix; we have one called Nature Soil which is the best commercial potting mix on the market.

It’s not a bad idea to mix a bit of extra lime in there with something like Dolomite Lime and some homegrown compost from kitchen scraps. If you don’t have a compost heap, it’s not a bad idea to get started on one as they are really beneficial for any vegetable that you are growing.

The upside to growing tomatoes in a pot is the ease of portability – you can just pick it up and move it around whenever you want. For example, a time where you might need to do this is in the real heat of summer (over 30 degrees), it’s a good idea to move them to a place where they are going to get some afternoon shade.


A red pot filled with growing tomato plants, their green leaves adorned with clusters of ripe red tomatoes. The background showcases other potted plants and greenery, a picturesque solution for common garden design problems.

When it is hot day after hot day after hot day, you’ll find your tomatoes will go a bit backwards. For example in places like Golden Valley you can have this stretch of long hot days for ages. In Melbourne you should be fine because heat waves don’t tend to last more than three or four days.

But if they’re in a pot, you can just pick it up and move it to a more suitable location until the weather has cooled down again.
The downside to growing tomatoes in a pot is that you’ll have to water them more often than if they’re in the garden. It’s a good idea do put a saucer under your pot as it will hold water well and reduce your amount of watering.

Growing Tomatoes in the Garden


A person in a yellow sweater and jeans waters plants with a yellow watering can in a greenhouse, addressing potential garden design problems.

A cluster of cherry tomatoes in various ripening stages, hanging on a vine amidst green leaves, illustrates one of the common garden design problems: balancing aesthetic appeal with functional growth.As mentioned before, having them in the garden means less watering. Also you can always make a plan if those crazy heat waves come, such as setting a small tarp up or something to give your tomatoes shade.

If you are growing them in the garden you want to make sure there is airflow and choose a spot that gets as much sun as you can all day, particularly now in springtime. Then you want to dig it over and mix in some compost. A pH level test wouldn’t go astray, but we don’t blame if you can’t be bothered, you can also just mix in a bit of Dolomite Lime.

Tomatoes like to have a neutral pH, good loose soil, good draining and plenty of fertiliser. You can use either an organic fertiliser or an artificial fertiliser (but we reckon organic will make it taste better), and Osmocote is great for tomatoes.

The Best Time to Plant Tomatoes

A person planting a young tomato plant into a neatly prepared garden bed of soil.Okay so you’ve made your choice on where to plant them, now the question is when to plant them. For most of Australia, that time is right now in September.

However we want to preface that you have to wait until the last frost occurs. For some of those up in Mount Macedon or the higher regions of Victoria, this may not be the case right now. It’s possible the last frost could be a couple of weeks away still.

Something to note is that tomatoes love warmth, so if you’re in a cooler area it’s a good idea to warm the soil before planting. You would do this by getting some black plastic, cutting a hole in it and then covering the bed in that plastic.

Black plastic is good because it blocks out the weeds, whereas clear plastic will tend to encourage weeds underneath. Another thing you can do is having a raised bed as it warmer than a flat garden. Even if you don’t live in a cooler area, you can do these two tricks if you’re just keen to plant your tomatoes earlier.

If you are wanting to grow tomatoes from seeds, then unfortunately you probably should’ve planted them weeks ago in the bed, around early August. But most nurseries are selling several months old tomatoes that are well on their way to producing. So now is a great time to go buy your tomatoes and plant them up.

Hands holding ripe and unripe tomatoes still on the vine in a garden.Let’s say you might be in an area like Mount Macedon and you’re really keen to start planting now. This is where a pot could come in handy because on nights that they’re predicting a frost, you can just move them into a shed or bring them inside.

There are some areas in Victoria where you can get a frost right up until mid-November, so it’s fair enough if you don’t want to wait that long to plant your delicious tomatoes.

Maximizing the Flavour of Your Tomatoes


A close-up of fresh red tomatoes with water droplets on a plate, with green leaves blurred in the background, highlights how garden design problems can be overcome to yield such beautiful produce.

To maximise the flavour of your tomatoes you want to use good quality soils and potty mix, organic fertilisers and making sure you have the right pH levels. Also it’s important to be picking it at the right time.

The best time to pick them is when they turn red, just before the point they start to soften, and you’ll get the best taste.

Variety of Tomatoes: Choosing the Right One for You


A variety of tomatoes in different shapes and colors, some in bowls and others on a table, with a sprig of rosemary nearby, showcasing the solution to many garden design problems.

There is a HUGE range of choices available, which wasn’t always the case. About 60 years ago there was only about two types of tomatoes, and now there are so many it’s a bit overwhelming.

Which is why we’ve sorted it into three different categories:

Exotic and Gourmet Tomatoes


A variety of heirloom tomatoes in different shapes, sizes, and colors, including red, yellow, green, and striped, are displayed close together. Amid this vibrant display that could solve any garden design problems, some tomatoes are sliced to show their interior.

A close-up of a green tomato with a dark purple top, hanging from a leafy plant with water droplets on its surface.Our first tomato in this category is the Green and Black Tomato, which is an heirloom tomato and quite an old variety.

We just want to quickly take some time to extend our appreciation and gratitude to Diggers Seeds, a company that has worked tirelessly to preserve the seeds of fruits and vegetables like tomatoes.

Because there was a period of time where big chemical companies were trying to wipe out all the varieties people have cultivated for hundreds of years. However Diggers Seeds gathered tomatoes, like Green and Black, and grew them on his seed farm so we still have all these fabulous varieties.

Ripe red and yellow striped heirloom tomatoes growing on a vine with green leaves in the background.Then we have Tigarella which is appropriately named for it’s faint tiger like stripes.

Tigarella has abundant yields, beautifully flavoured fruit, and crops nice and early.

So if you are in a hurry to gettomatoes, Tigarella will crop a bit earlier than other tomatoes. It is also an English heirloom tomato.

A cluster of ripe yellow cherry tomatoes on the vine with green leaves in the background. Dew droplets are visible on some of the tomatoes.Next is Yellow Cherry Tomato, which are the first to ripen and are sweet little tomatoes. So you could have one producing fruit in six or eight weeks from now. They are also high in vitamin C, and that gorgeous yellow colour makes them look wonderful in a salad.

In general, Cherry Tomatoes are self-sufficient much sooner than any other tomato.

Two yellow heirloom tomatoes from the Tomato 'Truss' 4" Pot (Copy), with green stems, set against a white background.Next is Mellow Yellow which is quite a sweet tomato that isn’t acidic like other tomatoes can be. So if you don’t like acidic tomatoes, it’s a good idea to go for a Mellow Yellow Tomato. They are high yielding and quite a large size.

Buy these Exotic & Gourmet Tomatoes here:

Sauces and Cooking Tomatoes


A ladle scoops tomato sauce from a cast iron skillet, with fresh tomatoes and basil on the side. It's a comforting moment that makes you momentarily forget about garden design problems.

If you’re somebody who wants to use their tomatoes in relishes and sauces and other types of cooking, these are the varieties to check out. Essentially, you want high production and great flavour tomatoes.

Tomato Principe Borghese Solanum lycopersicum red tomato fruits edible plant climbingFirst one is Principe Borghese, a type of Italian heirloom tomato that is one of those old varieties that has been saved by Diggers Seed.

The fruit is small and elongated and is best for sundried and semi-sundried tomatoes because of its low seed and moisture content. It has an exceptional flavour and high yield, making it a perfect choice for cooking and making sauces with.

A hand holds a vine with nine small, oval-shaped, red tomatoes, one of which has a slight greenish tint, offering a glimpse into the rewards of thoughtful garden design.Then there is Cherry Roma, which has more recently become popular with cooking. Cherry Roma is used a lot by Italians and Greeks that buy vast amounts to make their sauces in autumn.

The Cherry Roma will start producing sooner than your normal Roma, and still has a high yield and great flavour. The fruit is smooth and oblong, growing up to 4cm long. It has good disease resistance and few seeds. Cherry Roma is a good variety for cooking, bottling and drying.

Of course, we also need to talk about the classic big Roma Tomato, which is the one that a lot of Italians love to get for their sauces. They buy truckloads in autumn or late summer and make the most delicious sauces for pizza and pasta. So if you want to make some pizza and pasta, go for the Roma Tomato.

Similar to its Cherry Tomato type, Roma has good disease resistance and is great for cooking, bottling and drying. The fruit grows to about 10cm long.

A close-up of numerous oblong red tomatoes, with one tomato prominently displaying a green stem in the center, highlights the beauty that fresh produce can bring, even to those tackling garden design problems.Next is San Marzano, which is a climbing Italian heirloom variety. It is a heavy producer and has great flavour. San Marzano is best persevered for pasta sauces and tomato pastes. The fruit is long, cylindrical and thin.

Close-up of a ripe, red tomato with prominent ridges on a green vine surrounded by leaves, highlighting the beauty that often contrasts garden design problems.For the classic big tomatoes, Beefsteak is a great choice, it almost looks like a red pumpkin. It’s a great all-rounder, you can chop it up and put it in a salad or cook with them and make some sauces.

It’s especially important to be staking big tomatoes like Beefsteak. Beefsteak is of the heritage variety and the fruit is ribbed with juicy flesh.

Close-up of a ripe, red heirloom tomato hanging from a green vine in a garden, surrounded by green foliage and other unripe tomatoes in the background. Even amidst common garden design problems, this vibrant scene showcases nature's brilliance.Oxheart Tomato is a heavy producer, great flavour and a big, beautiful tomato. Also a great all-rounder.

Three vibrant red tomatoes with green stems are arranged in a triangular formation against a white background, reminiscent of a well-planned garden design.Grosse Lisse is an Australian favourite, with lovely medium sized tomatoes, great flavour. It is also quite a heavy producer.

Close-up of three ripe red tomatoes and one halved tomato with seeds and juice visible, all surrounded by green leaves, capturing the vibrant essence that well-planned garden design can solve many problems.Mortgage Lifter is a large beefsteak variety tomato with barely any seeds. The fruit is rich and sweet in flavour, with low acidity. It is also a heavy producer.

Buy these Sauces & Cooking Tomatoes here:

Cool Climate Tomatoes


Clusters of red, orange, and green tomatoes growing on a vine can be a delightful addition to your garden, though addressing garden design problems may enhance their aesthetic appeal.

If you live in an area with a cool climate, then you should go with any tomatoes below as they will grow successfully in such places.

Close-up of ripe, red tomatoes growing on a vine in a garden, showcasing the perfect solution to common garden design problems.Rouge de Marmande has been developed in France over many years and is a popular French heirloom variety. It’s good for sauces, cooking and preserving. It has ribbed foliage, juicy flesh and is also good for slicing. Rouge de Marmande is delicious eaten raw or cooked. It’s a heavy producer.

Three ripe red tomatoes attached to a green vine rest on a white background, showcasing the effortless beauty that can solve garden design problems.Apollo is bred for early maturing, it’s high quality, firm and well flavoured.

Close-up of a ripe red heirloom tomato on a wooden table with another red and green tomato in the background, resting on burlap—a picturesque scene that belies common garden design problems.Red Russian is a popular heirloom tomato with medium-sized fruit. Russia tends to have a short season, where it will be quite cool in the early part of it. Which is why Red Russian is good for places with a cooler climate.

Buy these Cool Climate Tomatoes here:

In Conclusion

So there you have it, the guide on how to grow your tomatoes and which ones to pick for your situation. All the tomatoes we’ve discussed today are available at Hello Hello in big sizes so you can be producing tomatoes nice and early.

Tomatoes are so easy to grow, and you can even do it yourself from seed but keep in mind it’s best to plant them in early August. You have the choice between a pot or the garden bed, meaning anyone can grow it regardless of whether you have a backyard or not.

So whether you’re a veteran of growing your own food, or this is your first step, plant tomatoes and in a few weeks, literally enjoy the fruit of your labour.


A person's hand is picking ripe red tomatoes from a plant with green tomatoes and leaves, showcasing a harmonious balance often sought in garden design.

Feeling inspired to create your own garden, but want some expert advice? Try our one-on-one garden design service with Chris. Together you’ll come up with a selection of plants along with a layout plan that gives you the look you want, as well as being suitable for your local soil and conditions.

get your own tailored modern garden design:


FIND OUT HOW

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Alternative Lawn Solutions For Small Patches of Ground

Written by coldev on . Posted in Garden Advice, Garden Ideas, Plants.

Lawns just aren’t what they used to be. With more and more units popping up and land getting smaller, lots of people are ending up with a tiny little piece of green.

That patch of green is so small that it’s really not worth having grass there that you have to mow and muck around with. It can actually be quite tricky figuring out to make this space pretty.

 

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Four stone blocks partially buried in lush green ground cover, surrounded by some of the best magnolias blooming with grace.

 

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Dense green moss with small white flowers growing on it in a landscaped garden, surrounded by wood chips, other plants, and a stone walkway leading to the best magnolias nearby.

 

Now there are people who think the solution to this is putting down plastic grass, which we… strongly disagree with. Honestly, we hate the stuff. It’s ugly, it’s expensive, it’s hard to lay down, and it makes any garden look ten times worse.

So we’re going to steer you away from plastic grass to much better, prettier, and cheaper options. Let’s get right into it.

Here is a list of the plants we will be talking about today.

Dichondra repens
Dichondra ‘Silver Falls’
Ophiopogon ‘Dwarf’ Mondo Grass
Pratia ‘White Star Creeper’ and ‘Blue Star Creeper’
Thymus ‘White Creeping Thyme’
Dymondia ‘Silver Carpet’
Myoporum ‘Yareena™’
Soleirolia ‘Baby’s Tears’
Sagina ‘Green Irish Moss’
Scleranthus biflorus ‘Lime Lava’
Mint ‘Corsican’
Zoysia ‘No Mow Grass’

Dichondra repens


A garden path with rectangular stepping stones surrounded by green ground cover and the season's best magnolias. The "Hello Hello Plants" logo is in the bottom-left corner.

This is a very popular groundcover and is perfect if you have a shady spot. You might have a big tree that casts shade over the whole area, or it’s on the south side of the house.

Close-up of vibrant green plant foliage in a garden center under a clear blue sky. The logo "Hello Hello Plants" is visible in the bottom left corner, showcasing some of the best magnolias around.

Lawn typically doesn’t grow great in these spots. But Dichondra repens is going to absolutely thrive.

Dichondra repens will also grow in full sun, so if you have a mixed spot with sun and shade in different patches, then this is a great option.

It’s great around pavers, most people like to choose Mondo, but Dichondra repens is faster, easier and cheaper. Also, it looks a lot better.

It has a kidney shaped leaf and looks very green and lush with minimal effort. It also will take low foot traffic.

It needs a reasonable amount of water and fertiliser, and reasonable soil. If you plant it now as we go into the warmer months, it will cover the ground really quickly

Dichondra ‘Silver Falls’


A garden bed features a dense cover of light-colored small flowers in the foreground and a cluster of tall, purple flowers with lush green foliage in the background, providing the perfect setting to showcase some of the best magnolias.

This is Dichondra repens’ silver-green coloured cousin. Now Silver Falls can grow in the hottest sun, or the deepest shade.

It will give you that pop of bright silver that contrasts beautifully with the rest of the greenery in your garden.

It’s great for covering any area, particularly an embankment where it can cascade over. It can cascade for more than a metre, so is really perfect for those situations where you want a lawn besides a retaining wall.

We’ve often used it in our garden designs at the base of a large pot and also love to use it around paving.

Ophiopogon ‘Dwarf’ Mondo Grass


Close-up of densely packed, long, green grass blades with a mix of dark and light shades, resembling the intricate beauty found in the best magnolias.

This is very, very popular. We do want to note that Dwarf Mondo Grass doesn’t seem to blanket out the weeds all that great though. We’ve seen many plantings of it where it has quite a lot of weeds coming through it, so just be mindful of that.

Dwarf Mondo is also only good in the shade, if you put it in a place with hot sun it will get sunburn. So the whole area you’re planting it in needs to be shady, and you have to stay on top of the weeds.

But don’t let that dissuade you from buying it, Dwarf Mondo is very beautiful. It’s lush, low and a gorgeous shade of dark green. It will take a bit of foot traffic, but nothing crazy.

Pratia ‘White Star Creeper’ and ‘Blue Star Creeper’


Close-up of a dense cluster of small, white, star-shaped flowers with green foliage. The bottom left corner features a colorful "Hello Hello Plants" logo, renowned for offering the best magnolias.

Close-up of a cluster of small, light purple flowers with green leaves in a garden, showcasing nature's best magnolias.

If you love flowers, then you’ll love the White Star Creeper and Blue Star Creeper – it has the most beautiful starlike flower which you can get in a striking white or a soft blue.

Best of all, you’ll get these stunning flowers for eight months of the years, which is a very long flowering period.

It’s a low groundcover that is great to put around paving or make a whole lawn of.

It loves the hot sun but can do well in partial shade. However, absolutely don’t plant it in deep shade. It needs fairly good soil, a regular feed, and a good amount of water, especially in the heat of summer.

But it is a very pretty and reliable groundcover that’s going to make that small patch of land shine.

Thymus ‘White Creeping Thyme’


Close-up of a low-growing herbaceous plant with numerous small white flowers, surrounded by small rocks and soil, offering a glimpse of nature's simplicity that complements even the best magnolias in your garden.

Creeping Thyme is a spectacular option, with our favourite being the white one. It is a beautiful moss like green mat and flowers from mid spring through to late summer. So another groundcover with a long flowering period.

The flowers also give off a gorgeous fragrance when you brush over the top of it. It will take some light foot traffic, but again, don’t go stomping all over it.

It will grow well in hot sun through to partial sun, but just make sure you aren’t planting it in a completely shady spot.
It’s easy to grow, and spreads quite quickly, particularly in the warm weather. It needs good soil and fertiliser.

You also have a couple variations, of course the white one we love the most, but also crimson, pink and purple. We’d say the Purple Creeping Thyme is the second best, and the Crimson Creeping Thymeis the third best.

Some of the other variations are a bit more shaggy and not quite as smooth and flat as the ones we just pointed out.

Dymondia ‘Silver Carpet’


Close-up view of a dense patch of variegated foliage with a few scattered small yellow flowers, reminiscent of the elegance found in the best magnolias.

Silver Carpet is closely related to the Marguerite Daisy, but it hardly ever flowers, you may get the odd yellow flower on it every now and again.

It’s a beautiful silver-grey that would pair very nicely with dark paving, like a dark blue stone.

It takes light foot traffic – maybe the occasional dog running over it or person walking on it. Silver Carpet is very tough and has a neat appearance.

It loves the hot sun but will take partial shade.

Myoporum ‘Yareena™’


A lush, green grass lawn in a garden area, bordered by stones and tall grass in the background, perfectly frames some of the best magnolias in full bloom.

This is a good Australian native that has a broad dark green leaf and grows fairly flat on the ground. All through the summer you get lovely starry white flowers that have an amazing honey fragrance.

It can take quite a bit of foot traffic, you can jump on it, lay on it, do whatever you like, it’s very tough stuff. It is a bit fatter than some of the other options on this list.

Once established it will end up about 20 or 30cm tall. Yareena is incredibly low maintenance, occasionally you’ll have to cut around the edges but that’s about it. It also blankets out the weeds really well.

One of the best patches we’ve seen of it was Shepparton on the side of the road where it never gets watered and it’s a really hot dry climate with hard clay soil. Yet, it remained lush and green all year.

So if you want something really tough and low maintenance that is going to cover a large area, Yareena is the one to go for.

Soleirolia ‘Baby’s Tears’


Close-up view of dense green foliage with textured leaves, reminiscent of the best magnolias. The bottom left corner features a logo with the text "Hello Hello Plants".

If you have a spot that is in really deep shade, Baby’s Tears will absolutely thrive there. You get in a green or yellow shade, and it is a beautiful delicate looking plant.

The best time to plant it is now at the end of August/start of September and it will spread like crazy in the warm weather. Keep it well watered and fertilised, and out of the hot sun.

You can put it around pavers, along garden walls and in between cracks. It would do great in a fernery or undercover courtyard.

Sagina ‘Green Irish Moss’


Dense green moss with small white flowers growing on it in a landscaped garden, surrounded by wood chips, other plants, and a stone walkway leading to the best magnolias nearby.

We know we’ve said this a few times, but we are providing a list of the best options, so here is another popular one.

Irish Moss has starry white flowers in springtime and looks just like moss, but it’s much hardier than moss.

It’ll grow in full sun through to partial shade, such as planting it under a tree where it gets speckled sun.

It’s low, lush and smooth with a luminous limey-gold colouring. It looks very attractive in the garden.

It needs good soil, and a fair amount of water and fertiliser.

Scleranthus biflorus ‘Lime Lava’


Close-up of green grass blades, showing sharp, pointed tips and a lush, dense texture, reminiscent of the best magnolias.

This has an incredible texture, that grows into a mound with a very smooth finish. It is this special quality and softness about it that makes a lot of people pat it when they walk past it in the nursery (we see this happen every day).

A gray, round planter is covered with thick, green moss, resembling a shrub. The planter is placed on a gravel surface with a dark background, creating the perfect setting to showcase the best magnolias in your garden.What’s interesting about Lime Lava is that it’s actually an Australian Native – even though it looks like something that would have originated in Scotland. In truth it grows naturally in the cracks of the rocks above the snow line on top of Australia’s mountains.
In winter it will be buried in the snow, then once the weather warms up and it thaws out, it needs the full sun. You really don’t want to be planting it in the shade because it will get all shaggy and weird.

Instead, it needs full sun, well drained soil and plenty of water and fertiliser. When we use it in our Garden Designs, we pick out the sunniest spot in the whole garden and then plant two or three of them together. They look really great as a clump, and we also like to blend them with a little bit of Black Mondo for some contrast.

They are not suitable for foot traffic, so don’t grow them in a spot where a lot of people, or animals, will be walking over it. In this situation you would be better off with a Creeping Thyme.

Mint ‘Corsican’


A garden pathway with large stone tiles surrounded by lush green ground cover plants, best magnolias, and anthuriums near a dark wall and red door.

This is a really interesting one that you don’t see round that much. It’s pretty much Baby’s Tears for the sun – so if you loved the look of Baby’s Tears but your spot isn’t in the shade, then Mint Corsican is the choice for you.

Now Mint Corsican does flower, unlike Baby’s Tears. It has a gorgeous mauve flower and a fine mossy look. It’s great for growing over rocks and right in the cracks of pavers.

It also has a delicious minty fragrance when you brush your fingertips over it or squish it.

Zoysia ‘No Mow Grass’


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Also known as Temple Grass, Zoysia is a fine and dense grass that grows in hilly tuft mounds. It will take light foot traffic and grows best in warm weather.

It will grow fine almost anywhere in Victoria and even though it’s a little tropical it can take quite a bit of frost. It needs plenty of fertiliser and water.

When you first plant this, it’s important to keep really on top of the weeds until it has had enough of a chance to form a thick mat. Once it’s established, you’ll find that it will blanket out the weeds.

Then you just need to make sure you keep it well watered and fertilised, and you will have this gorgeous soft green mat that you never have to mow.

It’s not your conventional flat lawn and the reason why you don’t have to mow it is because the blades of grass have no real length to them.

Choose The Right Option For You

An oval rock is surrounded by a dense carpet of small white flowers with green foliage, creating a picturesque setting reminiscent of the best magnolias in bloom.So there you have it, an excellent round up of lawn alternatives for that tricky small space in your garden. We hope this has shown you how easy and cheap it is to create a beautiful lawn – and to steer FAR away from artificial grass.

If you’re struggling to make your mind up, here are some questions you should ask yourself:

  • Do you want flowers?
  • Do you want shade loving or sun loving?
  • Do you want a mossy-like look or more of a grass-like look?

Now is the time to be thinking about it because all of these options grow and spread much better in the warm weather. Which means the time it takes to get coverage from your plant is much shorter. And we are very happy to say this, but the weather is getting better, and we are drawing closer to summer.

If you’re someone who wants more interactive content, come join our lives! We typically do two a week, a Live Q&A 12PM on Monday and an educational lecture 12PM on Tuesday (like this one on lawn alternatives!). Now these aren’t set in stone times, so please be sure to check our socials for updated information.

Spread the word and help us make gardening accessible for everyone.

A landscaped garden bed with grasses, shrubs, and large rocks bordered by a curved stone edge offers stunning lawn alternatives.

Feeling inspired to create your own garden, but want some expert advice? Try our one-on-one garden design service with Chris. Together you’ll come up with a selection of plants along with a layout plan that gives you the look you want, as well as being suitable for your local soil and conditions.

get your own tailored modern garden design:


FIND OUT HOW

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A single-story white house with a green roof and symmetrical landscaping featuring trimmed hedges, topiary, potted plants, and a stone path leading to the entrance showcases expert garden design.

The 7 Most Common Garden Design Problems and Their Solutions

Written by coldev on . Posted in Garden Advice, Garden Ideas, Garden Makeovers.

We are writing this article to help people identify and easily fix some of the issues they may be having when coming up with a garden design. On average we do about thirty garden designs a week.

The 7 most common problems we see everyday  in our garden design consultations:

1. Going on the market soon
2. A combination of hot sun and deep shade
3. A need for privacy
4. Needing extra low maintenance plants
5. Having a small garden
6. Having a tight budget
7. Creating a modern style garden for current times

Going on the Market Soon

A "For Sale" sign in front of a suburban house with surrounding garden and neighboring houses in the background.A lot of people come to us wanting help for their garden as they are going to put their property on the market. These are the smart people that know a garden can greatly affect the value of a property.

The standard situation with this is people are on a very tight timeline, where the photographer is coming around the next week.

So the first question that we always ask, and that you should ask yourself now is – when? When will you be putting it on the market?

This is really important because depending on the season, different plants are going to look their best at different times. If someone was selling their property in June – we would not plant deciduous tree. We would be recommending an evergreen. But if it was September, then that Weeping Cherry could be a huge selling point.

Or we might have plants that are in flower right now looking absolutely stunning, but you won’t be going on the market for another six weeks. By that time it’s likely the flowering would’ve finished, and you’ve just spent all this money on something that is bare when it comes to auction day. Not ideal.

Aerial view of a landscaped garden featuring thoughtfully planned pathways, various flower beds with green and blooming plants, and a gazebo in the right corner showcasing exquisite garden design.

Planning ahead of time is ALWAYS the best method. The earlier you start planning, the more money, time and effort you will save. For example, if you had months before selling than you can buy quite small plants and give them time to grow and flower.

But we get that life doesn’t always allow for such long planning. So we’re going to focus on the situation where it’s Saturday morning and you’ve got the photographer coming on Tuesday.

Close-up of hands using wooden-handled hedge shears to trim a green hedge, showcasing expert garden design in action.The first step you’re going to take is subtraction. This is where you want to bring in some outside opinions like your mum, brother, friend, whatever.

The reason for this is when you’ve been living somewhere for a long time you are blind to the ugliness there. But someone with fresh eyes will easily be able to point out the eye sores and ugly points.

Now this could be something like a couple of branches that were roughly hacked off a tree and just need some nice trimming to clean it up. It could be a hole in the lawn, where you need to buy a bit of turf and repair it. Maybe it’s stained concrete needing a pressure blaster to clean up.

Whatever it is, identify it and fix it. Keep picking out all the ugliest things and subtracting them.

But don’t go crazy. You don’t want to overdo it and accidentally remove something that could’ve been salvaged. For example big bushes are quite expensive, so if you have some but they’re looking a bit scraggly, invest some time in trying to get them lush and green again.

A red-brick house with one side showcasing a well-tended garden labeled "YES" and the other side with sparse, dry grass labeled "NO" serves as a testament to thoughtful garden design.

You want to step into the shoes of a potential buyer and imagine what they would be seeing as they drive up to your house. You might have a fabulous kitchen but if their first impression is of a scraggly hideous tree and brown patches of shrivelled up grass… well that’s what they’re going to remember.

A quick good tip for that grass situation – annual ryegrass is a cheap way of covering up holes in the lawn, or wheel marks on the nature strip. Right now it will only take about 14 days to turn it green. Once the weather warms up, it will only take seven days. Pretty impressive.

Hello Hello Plants Nursery Campbellfield Melbourne Victoria Australia soil conditioner lawn clippings mowerMow the lawn, rake out a bit of potty mix and then seed the lawn with annual ryegrass. Problem fixed. Also if you have young tender grass, mow it up high and often.

So just get rid of the really ugly things that are devaluing the place.

The next step is to look at what is needed and wanted. A mistake that a lot of people make is buying the plants they really like, but not thinking about the broad market.

For example, you might love a Weeping Peach, but a safer choice would be an evergreen Magnolia which nine out of ten people like. Other good choices are big bushes, Weeping Cherries and English Box.


Promotional graphic for a 2024 winter clearance sale. Text reads "Minimum 25% off. Hundreds of plants on sale, including the best magnolias for early spring." Shows a stylized plant in a shopping cart wearing sunglasses and a scarf.

Illustration with the words "Let's Get Bare Rooted" showing tree roots. Text below reads "for the 2024 garden design season at Hello Hello".

Our next piece of advice is to buy plants on special. Here at Hello Hello we pretty much always have a sale going on. Right now is our Winter Clearance and Bare Rooted specials so it’s a good idea to come check those out. But be clever with what you buy, don’t get something just because it’s on special.

Then finish it off with black mulch, pine bark mulch or pebbles.

A Combination of Hot Sun and Deep Shade

A quaint house with light grey siding, a blue metal roof, and a white picket fence features thoughtful garden design. A child and an adult are standing in the open doorway amidst greenery and trees.

The next problem is a garden that has both hot sun and deep shade, whether that be from a big tree or the neighbour’s two storey house.

The problem with this is that some plants are sun loving, and others are shade loving. So if you try and plant something that covers a large part of the garden, it may thrive in the sun but do terribly in the shade, or vice versa.
Here are the plants that are going to do great in both the shade and sun and give you a uniform look throughout your garden.

A white picket fence with green foliage growing over the top and through its gaps against a cloudy sky backdrop.Viburnum odoratissimum ‘Sweet’
The Viburnum ‘Sweet’ loves the sun and the shade. So if you wanted to make a nice even hedge that ran under a big tree or spot of shade and all the way through to a sunspot, this is a great choice. You’ll find that planting something else could have the hedge flourishing in the sun and then turning scraggly and brown in the shade (or the other way around).

A neatly trimmed, green shrub hedge with small leaves lines a sidewalk. The ground beside the hedge is covered with soil and shows no other plants or grass.Buxus ‘English Box’
Another great option is an ‘English Box’, we’ve seen it grow great in places that have a combination of hot sun and deep shade. We couldn’t see any difference between the sun-spot and shade-spot – it just looked beautiful and lush all over.

Climbing vine with small white flowers and green leaves growing against a textured gray wall.Trachelospermum ‘Chinese Star Jasmine’
The next great example is ‘Chinese Star Jasmine’ for a groundcover. We’ve seen Toorak gardens that have great big trees, with burning hot sun areas next to it. Then they’ve planted Chinese Star Jasmine all throughout, and it looks divine.

Chinese Star Jasmine is great if you’ve got a big area that needs covering, and it also has an incredible fragrance in the summer when it’s in flower.

Now, of course you could just plant a shade-loving plant in the shady area, and then a sun-loving plant in the sunspot. But we find that when you start planting a tonne of different things, your garden can start to look a bit messy and lack cohesion.

This was a bit of a problem back in the 80s where it would be more like a collection of random plants than a garden. Nowadays the modern style is more geared towards less plants, mass planted in the garden.

A modern, white single-story house with a green roof is framed by expertly curated garden design, featuring neatly trimmed hedges, small trees, and potted plants lining a stone pathway leading to the entrance.

Next time you see a nice garden, count how many different plants they have. You’ll find it’s actually not that many. You could have as little as three plants and create a very stylish look or have up to about seven different plants.

So that number limits you from dividing your garden up dependant on where the sun does and doesn’t fall.

Need for Privacy

Two white lounge chairs on a wooden deck beside a narrow, rectangular pool with clear water. A tall, dense green hedge runs parallel along the side of the pool.This problem has become much more prevalent nowadays as more two storey houses and units are being built. For example, you may have brought a place 20 years ago but now there is a unit next to you that’s nine metres tall and looks into your backyard pool and you would really like to not have strangers watching you swim. Fair enough.

So the first thing you’re going to look at is going back to that sunshade situation – is the place sunny or shady? Is it a combination of both? If yes, then check above for good plant options.

If it was shady, we would still choose Viburnum odoratissimum ‘Sweet’, it’s the second tallest screen option from our collection here. Our next choice would be Buxus fastigiata ‘Upright English Box’. It’s great in a south facing situation when you need something up against the house, or you just have limited space in the garden. It’s tall, skinny and gives you a bit of height without getting out of hand.

Another option is a Prunus ‘Cherry Laurel’ which is bigger, more aggressive and faster grower. This is the tall screen for a shade spot. Or you have Rhagodia ‘Creeping Saltbush’ with lovely silver grey foliage and grows to about 1.5 metres. It trims and shapes up beautifully.

A collage showing well-maintained garden hedges and shrubs, including leafy green hedges, shaped topiary, and flowering shrubs.But let’s say you have a sunny area, a really great and practical option would be a Cupressus ‘Glauca Pencil Pine’. This is particularly good for elderly people or someone who can’t be climbing up tall ladders to trim their hedges.

Within five years, a Glauca Pencil Pine can grow to nine metres tall and block out a three or four storey building, and they have the lush look of a Sweet Viburnum. But what makes them so practical is that once they get up high, they never grow more than a meter wide.

A row of tall, conical evergreen trees stands along a dirt path under a bright blue sky with clouds. An area of green grass is visible in the foreground.They are also super tough, when they’re young make sure to give it plenty of water and fertiliser and you could get a metre and half of growth per year.

If you want something that is a bit wider and not as tall, go with a Juniperus ‘Spartan’ Conifer. It loves a trim, and you can make it thinner or chop the top off. They grow great in small narrow spaces and are both drought and wind tolerant.

The next option is a Cupressus ‘Leighton Green’ Conifer that are fabulous for making a tall narrow hedge. They can get to around seven metres high and stay only a metre wide.

They are very fast growing, you can get a three metre hedge in two years. We actually had a customer experiment with a Leighton Green Conifer, and he got it to grow seven and a half metres in three years. Insane.

So Leighton’s Green is one of the fastest growing and most trimmable Conifers on the market.

Another favourite of ours is a Waterhousia ‘Weeping Lilly Pilly’. They are really easy to manage and trim and look very luscious and nice. Now please note that there is a beetle going around that is eating a lot of the Lilly Pillies, however the Weeping Lilly Pilly is completely fine – the beetle won’t touch them.


A well-trimmed green hedge stands behind a white concrete fence with stone finials, framed by leafy trees and a flower bed, showcasing impeccable garden design.

Then there is of course the Ficus hillii ‘Flash’, which is very popular for how fast growing it is. Under ideal conditions we reckon they could grow almost two metres in a year. Be mindful of the fact that Ficus Flash has a bit of an aggressive root system so don’t put it right up against the house and contain it to a reasonable size by trimming it.

Extra Low Maintenance


A man poses with two bush sculptures dressed with bowler hats and sunglasses, kneeling on the ground and smiling, showcasing his unique garden design.

SO many people want low maintenance. We all have busy lives – full time jobs, children, hobbies, multiple commitments, and it’s fair enough that you don’t have the time to be spending hours in the garden.

Also not everyone can afford to have a contractor come in and take care of the garden. So that’s where ultra-low maintenance plants are very handy.

A garden design features five moss-covered mounds, round gray stepping stones, and small gray gravel, with plants along the edges.When we decide what plants are low maintenance, we look for things like are they self-shaping, do they attract bugs, are they disease resistant, do they require a lot of water and so on.

Here is a quick list of some of our favourite choices:

We do have an entire section on the website that is dedicated to low maintenance plants which you can check out here.

Small Gardens and Limited Space


A small, zen-style garden design features a harmonious mix of rocks, gravel, green shrubs, and a delicate tree adjacent to the glass building exterior.

A serene Japanese garden with a stone water fountain, surrounded by green foliage, bamboo fencing, and a thoughtfully crafted stone pathway—a perfect example of exquisite garden design.It’s quite a struggle to find a decent sized garden nowadays, we’ve seen some that are the size of a single car park or a little square of soil at the back of the townhouse.

These are actually quite difficult to design. The first thing we do is ask where they view the garden from – is it a bedroom window or the kitchen or some other room. Then we ask what is important to them – do they want lots of colour or what plants do they really love?

Look, even the tiny handkerchief of a garden can be beautiful – you just have to be tactical about it. We find that a Japanese Zen style garden actually does really well in these micro spaces.

A kitchen with a sink island, countertop appliances, and a window door opening to a lush garden with seating and thoughtful garden design.

The next thing we do is look at the sunshade factor, then we get the budget of the customer.

Let’s say you’ll be looking at the garden through the kitchen – we like to look at the kitchen to see what would compliment or contrast it nicely.

We advise not choosing too many different types of plants to avoid the space looking cluttered. Also be very economical and clever with the decision of what plants. Maybe you have space for just one tree – well then you want a tree that is going to look great for most of the year.

We would not put something like a flowering Cherry there because it may look fantastic for a few weeks in spring, but the rest of the year it can be quite boring.

Our three favourite trees to put in such a space would be a Crepe Myrtle, Senkaki Maple and Princess Gum.

Crepe Myrtle

Crepe Myrtle

What makes Crepe Myrtles so fantastic is the combination of distinctive bark, lush foliage, summer blossoms, and autumn coloured foliage. So you’re getting great beauty all year.

A garden design scene featuring a prominent tree with bright red branches, surrounded by various green shrubs and plants, set against a background of a wooden fence and a river.Senkaki Maple

Senkaki Maples are striking with their red bark and bright green foliage, then in autumn you get a medley of fiery hues. A deciduous tree that still looks fantastic in winter.

A weeping eucalypt tree stands by a bench in a meticulously crafted garden area with a building in the background. The "Hello Hello PLANTS" sign is at the bottom left of the image, showcasing thoughtful garden design.Princess Gum

Princess Gum is an evergreen that gives you gorgeous silver grey foliage all year round. It also has red flowers and big silver nuts that make it even more interesting.

A bush with bright pink flowers and dark green leaves, thoughtfully placed in a garden bed with mulch, exemplifies elegant garden design.Bushes

We like to use bushes such as Loropetalum ‘Bobz Pink’ which is round and compact with purple, burgundy foliage and pink flowers. Another great choice is Abelia ‘Kaleidoscope’ (Glossy Abelia) which is a lovely golden green round bush.

Other Plants to Use

Then you could pair it with plants like Ophiopogon ‘Black’ Mondo Grass, Liriope ‘Stripey White’ and Sagina ‘Green Irish Moss’.

We suggest taking your time and being really careful with the plants you choose because a small garden has to work a lot harder than a big garden.

Tight Budget

It’s unavoidable what is going on in the economy and we understand that people can’t fork out a lot of money on a garden, but rightfully still want something beautiful.

We actually love the challenge of a tight budget because it’s where our creative problem solving comes out. Over the years we have done so many amazing cheap gardens, so please never feel that money is a hindrance.

We have an incredible range of three inch pots that are $4.99 each and you can put together a really great garden with these. Of course, it will take longer for these plants to grow nice and bushy, but if you are willing to have patience, you’re going to save big.


A person holds Australian banknotes (five and ten dollars) while standing on a patio, with a white dog enjoying the garden design in a fenced yard nearby.

TA small birch tree with a thin trunk and lush green leaves stands gracefully, adding a touch of elegance to the garden design filled with various plants and shrubs.his is a bit obvious but keep an eye out for sales, like we mentioned before, we pretty much always have a sale going on. One of our current ones is a six foot Weeping Birch for $79.99, something that would normally be around $200.

A Silver Birch is a fantastic centrepiece for a garden and can make it look very expensive and elegant, without breaking the bank. Also right now is the BEST time to be buying plants, it is the cheapest you will ever get any plant. Come spring, everything would’ve increased greatly in price.

Hunt down the bargains, take your time and pick up a plant here in that sale and there in that sale and slowly build a beautiful garden. Make it a fun project you chip away at over a few weeks or months, rather than trying to get it done in one day.

Also be sure to follow us on our socials and be notified of any bargains happening.

The New Modern Garden

The whole point of a modern garden is, well, being modern. Something that is current and on trend right now. Of course, garden styles don’t change as quickly as say fashion, but there have definitely been shifts in what is considered modern.

We see ultra-modern gardens as a minimalistic kind of landscape. The advice from a Landscape Architect is “only plant three species in one vista.”


A white building with arched doorways and windows, partially obscured by trees, stands elegantly amidst thoughtful garden design, viewed from across a blue swimming pool.

So you have to be very tactical with what three plants you’re choosing. Our recommendation is using Hedera ‘Canary Island Ivy’ all over the front garden instead of having a patch of lawn.

Then you can pair it with a spectacular tree like a type of Crepe Myrtle, perhaps one with gorgeous white flowers, but you have so many colour options.

A garden with expertly crafted garden design features, including neatly trimmed bushes, spherical topiaries, and geometric paving stones leading through lush greenery.The final touch would be some English Box topiaries, you could plant a range of sizes, and have fun with what shapes you choose.

This garden is really easy to do and maintain. It’s also not very expensive – but it looks very classy and elevated.

You could drive up Hopetoun Avenue in Toorak and you’ll see quite inexpensive plants like your English Box and Canary Island Ivy, or Chinese Star Jasmine and Silver Birches. For the modern look you should mass plant for a cohesive and slick look.

Another thing we’re noticing is that people are doing lots of sculptures with plants like English Box. But you could also grow a green Coprosma or a Cotoneaster ‘Bearberry Cotoneaster’ and cut it into a large freeform shape. Then plant a couple of Maples in front of it.

Modern garden design with rectangular water features and concrete seating areas. Tall slender trees and various green plants surround the space, bordered by a reflective black water pool.

We’ve also seen gardens where they have pebbles or sand and large, interesting sculptures around it with some Japanese Maples. They look incredible.

When your house also has some spectacular modern architecture, the addition of a modern garden just really sets it off.

The Main Takeaways

So there you have the seven most common garden design problems, and how to go about fixing them. The main thing is to be clever with the plants you choose, plan ahead and take your time, and when in doubt get a second opinion.

Ready to take the next step in your garden plans?

Book a Free Garden Design here.

Feeling inspired to create your own garden, but want some expert advice? Try our one-on-one garden design service with Chris. Together you’ll come up with a selection of plants along with a layout plan that gives you the look you want, as well as being suitable for your local soil and conditions.

get your own tailored modern garden design:


FIND OUT HOW

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A winter garden featuring various types of coniferous shrubs and trees arranged in rows, with spherical and conical shapes, against a backdrop of lush green foliage.

Don’t Get Conned by Conifers

Written by coldev on . Posted in Garden Ideas, Plant Sales & Plant Specials, Plants.

Now we’re not talking about your uncle Richard emailing you that he urgently needs $500,000, but rather how many people choose the wrong Conifer for their garden. Slight difference.

A variety of densely packed evergreen trees and shrubs, including blue spruce and pine, with vibrant green and blue-green foliage.You may think you’re getting a cute little Conifer and next moment it has taken over your yard and kidnapped your kids for ransom. Okay maybe not that last part. But there are so many cases where people have a monstrous Conifer towering over their suburban home, or farmers have puny dying Conifers in the yard. When you don’t have the gardening knowledge, it can be really hard knowing what Conifer is right for you.

A row of tall, dense green evergreen trees, closely planted, with a leafy tree in the background.Especially when there are SO many different types of Conifers that all grow to different sizes and shapes. At Hello Hello we have around 40 different types. Some are really tiny, and you can keep them in nice pots. But some are gigantic and best suited for farm life. It’s all about choosing the right Conifer for the job.

Today we’re going to break down the best Conifers for different types of application, including:

Conifers for Large Gardens

Conifers for Small Featurs

Conifers for Hedging

Conifers for Feature Trees

Conifers for Large Gardens


A well-maintained garden path in the Winter Garden is surrounded by various green and blue-hued conifer trees and bushes on a sunny day. Conifers

Pencil Pines are tall, skinny Conifers that are best for large gardens where you are wanting a focal point. Plant them as an avenue, where you could have them lead up to an even greater feature at the end of the garden. If planted close enough together, they also make an excellent narrow hedge.

These are some of the best types:

Cupressus ‘Swanes Gold’ Conifer

Swanes Gold is a lovely, neat shape with golden-green foliage. It doesn’t grow very quickly and keeps that nice tight shape forever. It grows to about five metres in height in ten years. They love full sunlight or partial shade.

Juniperus ‘Blue Arrow’

Blue Arrow has a very elegant look and is the best option for keeping really narrow and tight as it won’t grow too big. It trims up beautifully and has blue-green foliage. Once established, Blue Arrow is hardy and drought tolerant.

Cupressus ‘Glauca Pencil Pine’

Glauca Pencil Pine is absolutely fabulous – tough, fast-growing and requires minimal maintenance. Yet even though it grows like crazy, it still stays neat and tight.

The dark green towering column grows to about nine metres tall. Glauca is the one we recommend for people that don’t want to be climbing up ladders and using all this special equipment to trim it and keep it looking nice. Especially for people who are a bit older but still want something tall to block out other units.

Where a hedge needs trimming, the Glauca Pencil Pine will shoot up nine metres very quickly and only stay a metre wide. Best of all, you will never have to get up and trim it. Glauca is also a fabulous avenue option on a farm or big space.

Juniperus ‘Spartan’ Conifer

Then there is Spartan, which some people wouldn’t call a Pencil Pine, but we like to say is a fat Pencil Pine. Just like the warriors, Spartan is very tough – it doesn’t need much water or good soil. Yet, it is still such a fast grower, ending up at about six metres tall and 1.2 metres wide.

Spartan is excellent as a windbreak, dust/dirt screen and sound block because of its thick foliage. For example, if you live near a railway line or freeway and want to block off some of that noise, you are not going to want a hedge, but rather something dense like the Spartan. Similarly, if you live on a dirt road, Conifers are great at absorbing the dust and dirt.

Conifers for Small Features


A well-maintained Winter Garden with various green shrubs, bushes, and a small tree on a sunny day. Conifers

Although not tiny by any means, these are some of the smaller Conifers that would look great in a regular garden:

Thuja ‘Smaragd’ Conifer

Smaragd is perfect for the suburban garden, it makes an excellent feature reaching a maximum height of three metres. However, with some trimming you can keep it just over a metre tall. Smaragd is fairly slow growing and has a slightly higher water requirement. It will form a pointed top.

It’s beautiful, thick, and lush, and can be planted in a large pot or as an obelisk style feature. They look excellent in a variety of garden styles, such as cottage, coastal, formal or Mediterranean.

Thuja ‘Golden Biota’ Conifer

A cousin of the Smaragd, Golden Biota grows in a lovely golden-green ball shape, that with a bit of a trim you can keep to one metre tall. Or if you leave it, the end height will be of about two meters tall. The round shape and dense foliage make for a stunning garden feature.

You can plant them as a row along the front fence, or up the driveway. It has more of a rounded top than the Smaragd.

Juniperus pingii ‘Prostrata’

Prostrata is commonly made into a bonsai, by wiring the branches to hang down and arch over. They make for a spectacular small feature and can be kept in pots.

But you can also plant it as a groundcover, and it will fill a large area and grow really low. Prostrata is also extremely hardy for things like the heat and wind.

Conifers for Hedging


A tall, green hedge neatly trimmed into a perfect rectangular shape stands alongside a wooden fence in a grassy Winter Garden. The sky is partly cloudy.

Whether it’s for privacy or looks, Conifers make fantastic big and bushy hedges. These are the best ones suited to the job:

Juniperus ‘Spartan’ Conifer

Back again, Spartan is also an excellent option as a hedge. What’s interesting is that you can actually topiarise Spartan into whatever shape you’d like – we often sell them as a spiral, but you could cut it into the shape of chook if you were so inclined. But let’s chat hedging, plant them up close and cut them into a beautiful square for the most fantastic hedge.

Out of all the Pencil Pines discussed before, Spartan is the best choice because you don’t need to plant them as close together due to the thicker foliage.

Cupressus ‘Leighton Green’ Conifer

Leighton Green is one of the most popular options for hedging because it grows at an enormous speed. You need something quick? Plant a small one of these and you can have it up three metres in two years. Trim it up and it’ll grow thick and bushy.

It’s one of the fastest three metre hedges ever. There was a case where someone got their Leighton Green hedge up seven metres in three years from a small plant. That was with perfect conditions, water and fertiliser, and no grass or weeds around the bottom. Leighton Green is great as a tall screen on a farm.

Cupressus macrocarpa

Many of the most expensive properties around Melbourne have macrocarpa hedges because they look incredible and are such a classic look. A lot of people believe macrocarpa is slow growing, but the reason for that is because they receive so little care and attention. Most farmers stick them out in the paddock and never water or fertilise them.

But what we found is if you properly watered and fertilised it, macrocarpa actually grew quite quickly. If you take care of it in the first couple years, you’ll get fantastic growth, and then after that it doesn’t need very much water. So if you are in quite a dry area, then macrocarpa is the perfect option.

We sell the ‘Monterey Cypress’, a vivid green shade and ‘Lemon Scent’, a striking yellow-green colour with a lovely citrus smell.

Cupressus ‘Castlewellan Gold’ Conifer

This is the gold version of Leighton Green, although it isn’t as fast growing, it is a bit hardier. The foliage is dense and a stunning golden green hue. Castlewellan Gold is best suited for medium to large sized properties. They are easy to maintain and shape.

Conifers for Feature Trees


A winter garden scene with various green and blue-green coniferous plants, including weeping blue atlas cedar surrounded by other conifers on a bed of gravel.

Conifers make the most wonderful feature trees. Some will grow quite large and are best suited to bigger properties, whereas others are great for a suburban backyard. Here are some of our favourite choices:

Pinus ‘Japanese Black Pine’

The lovely dark green foliage is contrasted beautifully by white candle shaped needles. In Japan they trim and train these into beautiful shapes. It will reach a maximum height of 15 metres and has an irregular spreading habit. The Japanese Black Pine is perfect for sunny spots but will tolerate afternoon shade.

Araucaria ‘Norfolk Island Pine’

If you live by the beach, then Norfolk Island Pine is a great option. Being both hardy and beautiful, you’ll find that Gold Coast and South Australia is absolutely filled with them. They are fast growing and make for a stunning specimen tree.

Picea ‘Stone Pine’

The Stone Pine has a fascinating turtle shell like finish on its trunk with a flat head and a widespread body. They are a beautiful tree for big fields and do quite well in hot, dry, difficult sites.

Cedrus ‘Himalayan Cedar’

The most common Cedar is the Himalayan Cedar, also known as the Indian Cedar. It has a natural weeping form that is covered in fine long needles and cones. They are fast and easy to grow. Once established, the Himalayan Cedar can withstand frost and some drought.

Cedrus atlantica ‘Atlas Cedar’

Atlas Cedars are beautiful with short needles, as they get older, they develop a really interesting shape to them. They start off slow, but once they’re more established, they will start growing at about one and a half to two metres a year.

They trim really well, and so even though they can become huge, they are still suitable for the suburban garden. If you don’t trim it, in about thirty years, you’re going to have an absolutely massive tree (may or may not kidnap your children).

Cedrus ‘Feelin’ Blue’ Cedar

This is a very interesting, grafted miniature cedar that will need training. It has lovely blue weeping foliage and is kind of like a collector’s item. Feelin’ Blue loves the sun and doesn’t need much water once it has been established. You can grow it in a pot.

Sequoiadendron ‘Giant Sequoia Tree’

The Giant Sequoia Tree is considered one of the biggest trees in the world, so if you are to plant it in your little suburban backyard, it will kidnap your children. But on a big property they’ll make an excellent feature. Once they get going, they grow surprisingly quick. They have a thick trunk with lovely red bark.

In Conclusion

ConifersSo there’s a taste of some of the incredible types of Conifers, now it isn’t the full range we sell in the nursery, or even what is available in general. But we wanted to keep it to the best types for different applications.

Conifers are incredibly versatile, from a small to a gigantic feature, avenues to ground covers, screens to hedging, your options are endless. They’re fast. They’re tough. They’re beautiful.

Just make sure you choose the right Conifer, so you don’t get conned.

Feeling inspired to create your own garden, but want some expert advice? Try our one-on-one garden design service with Chris. Together you’ll come up with a selection of plants along with a layout plan that gives you the look you want, as well as being suitable for your local soil and conditions.

get your own tailored modern garden design:


FIND OUT HOW

Articles you may also like

Pink camellia flowers in full bloom with green leaves, seen on a lush bush in a winter garden.

Harness the Versatility of Camellias

Written by coldev on . Posted in Garden Ideas, Plant Sales & Plant Specials, Plants.

Are you a fan of tea?

Well, all green and black tea is made from the foliage of Camellias, from a particular variety called Camellia sinensis ‘Tea Plant’. So you can actually grow your own Tea Plant and have an unending supply of tea. Heaven.

A clear glass teacup filled with green tea, surrounded by loose tea leaves and green foliage in the background.Now we know Camellias are an all-time classic – for years they’ve been a beloved plant in many gardens. But most people don’t know just how versatile the Camellia truly is.

Let’s change that.

We’re going to be talking about:

Here are the DIFFERENT TYPES OF CAMELLIAS that we’ve picked out for you, some of our favourites. Jump straight to them from here if you wish:

Camellia sasanqua:
‘Setsugekka’
‘Pure Silk’
‘Shell Pink’
‘Hiryu’
‘Avalanche’
Camellia sinensis ‘Tea Plant’
Camellia japonica:
‘Volunteer’
‘Pope John XXIII’
‘Black Tie’

The Benefits of Camellias

A wooden bridge in the winter garden with a blooming pink camellia shrub in the foreground.So why should you want to plant a Camellia at all?

First up, they are so easy to grow. For very little effort you are getting this gorgeous, lush, flowering plant.

Next, they are very long living. Unlike perennials, they’re not going to be a sudden flash of beauty that dies quickly thereafter. You will get year after year of wonderful blossoms.

Finally, which is the whole point of this article, is the fact that they are so versatile.

The Different Applications of Camellias

A long hedge of pink camellia flowers in full bloom with fallen petals creating a pink path on the grass alongside it, forming an enchanting Winter Garden. Trees are visible in the background.From the apartment balcony to the deep shade of suburban backyards, Camellias are kind of like that one size fits all leggings – but in this case it’s actually true.

HEDGES & BORDERS

First of all, Camellias are very popular for hedges and borders. We’ve seen hedges that are over a hundred metres long, and a couple of metres tall. Simply spectacular.


A neatly trimmed hedge densely covered with pink flowers borders a paved area, creating a picturesque winter garden scene with a light-colored house and greenery in the background.

POT PLANTS

Two potted trees with pink blossoms sit beside an outdoor wall, creating a charming winter garden ambiance, accompanied by a potted plant with green leaves and purple flowers. Camellia in PotsThe next use is as a pot plant. A lot of us live in apartments nowadays, which can make you feel like you don’t get to share in the joy of having your own garden. But just because you don’t have a backyard, doesn’t mean you can’t have an exciting, lush garden.

Pots let you put your plants wherever you want, free of the constrictions of soil. We actually stock our own range of pots, so you can easily get everything you need in one place. But what’s fantastic about Camellias is how well they grow in a pot.

So get creative with where you put them – whether it is that apartment balcony or just the patio. You can trim and shape them in this pot to however you like. Make sure you fertilize and water them to keep your Camellias lush and green.


A potted bonsai tree with dense green foliage is placed next to a flowering plant with numerous pink blossoms in a black pot, set in a winter garden with lush greenery in the background.

SPECIMEN IN THE GARDEN

White blooming flowers with green leaves in the foreground, set against a backdrop of vibrant fall foliage in shades of orange and red, create a stunning contrast that transforms your outdoor space into a Winter Garden masterpiece. Camellia in GardenNext thing is growing them as a specimen in the garden. Depending on what variety you choose, you can grow them in the shade with other shade lover plants like Helleborus or Azaleas. Or you can put them in the hot sun with other sun loving plants like Daises or Lavender.

If you are lucky enough to have your own backyard, you might come up against a different problem – the absence of sun. This can come from your neighbour’s house, it could be from other big trees in your yard, whatever the case, shade can be a limiting factor to what plants you use. But certain types of Camellias thrive in the shade, giving you colour and lushness where you most need it.


A tree with lush green leaves is covered in vibrant pink flowers, some of which have fallen to the grassy ground below. The tree, a stunning focal point in this charming Winter Garden, is surrounded by a layer of brown mulch. Camellia in Garden

A potted plant with a round canopy of pink flowers is placed on a stone patio, evoking the charm of a Winter Garden. Other potted plants and greenery surround the area, enhancing its serene beauty. Camellia Standard in PotSTANDARD (BALL ON STICK)

Then you can have them as a standard, which is a ball on a stick style plant. You’ll find that most standards don’t flower, but a Camellia standard will give you gorgeous blooms and evergreen foliage. The standard we sell uses a Camellia sasanqua ‘Yuletide’ which has stunning hot pink/red flowers and is a slow grower. You can plant a row of standards in your garden or have it in a pot with some flowers planted underneath.

Three potted plants with white and pink flowers are placed in front of a lattice fence, creating a charming winter garden scene. Fallen petals are scattered on the gravel ground beneath them. Trees and a cloudy sky can be seen in the background. Espaliered CamelliaESPALIER (USING TRELLIS)

The next application is a bit trickier, but so worth the effort. Get some trellis and use Camellia as an espalier. The best type to plant for this is Sasanqua. Espalier Camellia is perfect for a tight situation up against the wall. For the whole year you will have lovely evergreen foliage and then in autumn and winter you get this gorgeous show of flowers.

camellia sculptureSCULPTURE

The last application is even more unusual, but perfect for those who are wanting to do something a bit more different in their gardens. If you are intentional with the trimming, you can shape your Camellia like it was a sculpture, and have it as an exquisite centrepiece in the garden.

One of Chris’ first jobs was to do just this, here is a story from him:

“When I was seven, I went and got myself a gardening job and I used to work every Saturday morning for an elderly lady. Anything that was a bit tricky like climbing the ladder or lifting heavy things, I used to do for her. She planted a sasanqua Camellia that was cut into a perfect cylinder shape with a flat top. I was the one trimming it. It would take me hours, she would direct each snip and I would trim it little by little. But it was a beautiful thing.”

You’re practically spoilt for choice when it comes to deciding how to plant a Camellia in your garden.

The Different Types of Camellias


Close-up of pink camellia flowers blooming amid green foliage on a bush in a serene winter garden.

There are MANY sorts of Camellias, each with their own unique characteristics and strengths.

We bet you’re dying to hear more about that tea producing Camellia, so let’s jump straight into that one first.

Camellia sinensis ‘Tea Plant’







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These are grown all over the world for tea plantation, from Australia, to China, to India. The flowers themselves smell like green tea, but really, it’s the new growth you’re looking at to make that delicious cup of tea. Also yes, you can make green OR black tea, from the same plant. It’s all in the way you harvest the leaves that make the difference.

Close-up of a metal tea strainer filled with dried tea leaves and garnished with two fresh green leaves, placed on a dark surface with scattered tea leaves around. Camellia TeaYou have to wait until summer for the new shoots, pick a few grams and dry it in the microwave or oven. Then chuck on the kettle and make yourself a cuppa. This is going to be like no tea you’ve ever had before, that old stuff at the grocery store can’t measure up to freshly plucked and brewed tea.

But of course, the Cammellia Sinensis is so much more than just a tea producer, it’s also a very attractive feature in the garden. You can plant them in a pot, have them as a specimen in the garden, or create a hedge out of them. The flowers are gorgeous, delicate white petals with a golden/yellow centre.

Camellia sasanqua











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We get it, not everyone is a tea fanatic, so here is a Camellia that is purely for show. It’s actually our most popular Camellia in the nursery.

Sasanqua Camellias have smaller flowers and finer leaves than most Camellias. But they also have greater versatility in that they can grow in hot full sun, but also deep shade.

A potted camellia plant with dark green leaves and vibrant red flowers placed on a wooden deck near a light blue wooden fence. CamelliaAs we mentioned before, a lot of gardens have those spots where the sun never quite reaches, and it can be tricky to find a plant that will work there. But you’re also not limited to the shade, if you have a big kitchen window or an ugly fence you want to cover and it’s in full sun, this is no problem for the Camellia sasanqua. Just make sure you’re watering it more if it is in a sunny spot.

Beyond this, they are also nifty in a tight area because they don’t need a lot of root space as long as you use really good soil. They’ll grow up and then with a bit of a trim you can keep them nice and narrow.

You can grow them under verandas or pergolas, or they make beautiful pot plants. They flower from autumn to mid-winter.

THERE ARE A LOT OF DIFFERENT COLOUR CHOICES, SO THESE ARE SOME OF OUR FAVOURITES:

‘Setsugekka’

Setsugekka is great for hedging and has beautiful dark green foliage with lots of white flowers. They are the perfect option for a green and white garden style.

‘Pure Silk’

Pure Silk have gorgeous white flowers with hints of pink in the petals and fresh buds. People are drawn to Pure Silk because of the lack of a big yellow centre that most other Camellias have.

‘Shell Pink’

Shell Pink is a very strong and rapid grower with massive pink flowers. They are perfect as a dense hedge or specimen in the garden.

‘Hiryu’

Hiryu has vivid pink-purple flowers and is the strongest grower of all the Camellias. It’s great as a hedge and an excellent option for those who are wanting a brighter pop of colour.

‘Avalanche’

Avalanche is a new type on the market that is very handy for lots of people. It is a dense and bushy column that is quite tall and skinny. You can have it as an individual specimen or plant it as a hedge.

Camellia japonica







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Japonica has a wider leaf and tend to grow bushier and fatter than the Sasanqua. They grow quite tall and will live for many, many years. But keep them out of the hot afternoon sun or you’ll get brown patches in the middle of the leaves.

They flower from late winter into spring, so will have blossoms at different times than the Sasanqua. If you plant both species then you can have flowers for five or six months of the year.

JAPONICA ALSO COMES IN DIFFERENT COLOURS, HERE ARE SOME OF OUR FAVOURITE PICKS:

‘Volunteer’

Volunteer has the most amazing flowers, it is an eruption of red-pink flowers into white tips. It is the only Japonica that flourishes in the hot sun (provided there is adequate watering), as well as the deep shade. Volunteer is a good strong grower, nice and bushy, and what’s interesting is that the flowers become richer in colour the more you progress through the season.

‘Pope John XXIII’

Pope John XXIII is a classic white with semi-formal double flowers and really nice foliage. They are another great selection for that green and white garden style.

‘Black Tie’

Black Tie is a more formal double flower in a brilliant shade of red with large leaves. It’s another strong grower that is going to form a dense rounded shape.

How to Take Care of your Camellias

A green and pink container of Scotts Osmocote Plus Organics, 800g. Intended for feeding roses, gardenias, and azaleas, and improves water retention and soil. Organically enriches the soil for up to six months. fertiliserOkay so you’ve decided what type and where you’re going to use it, now you need to know how to take care of it.

Camellias like loose well-drained soil that is acidic. If you don’t have quite the right soil, then dig a big hole and mix in some fine composted pine bark or acidic potting mix. They love lots and lots of fertiliser.

If you’re Camellia is looking a bit crook, what’s likely happened is that you’ve started taking your old Camellia for granted and not watered it enough. So make sure you give it plenty of water. Another solution is to mulch it with fine pine bark or Osmocote. If it was really crook, try the Osmocote liquid fertiliser for acid loving plants, this will almost bring it back from the dead.

Close-up of hands using a pair of pruning shears to cut a branch of a green leafy plant. Pruning CamelliasIn general, your Camellia needs regular feeding – water it and give it Osmocote, and Camellias will absolutely flourish. The best time to prune is immediately after the flowering is finished. The reason for this is that pruning them halfway through the season inhibits next year’s growths.

Although Camellias flower in winter, you won’t get much foliage growth. But being evergreen means that you will still have gorgeous green leaves all year.

In Conclusion

A cup of black tea sits on a wooden table next to fresh green tea leaves, loose black tea, and a potted tea plant. Camellia Tea PlantCamellias are a stunning plant with so many applications, from a thick hedge to a pot plant, you have so much freedom with where you want to put it in your garden.

There is a huge range of colour choices so you can go bold or stay subtle.

And if you love tea as much as we do, then chances are you’re gunning for the Camellia sinensis ‘Tea Plant’.

So pour yourself a cuppa and get to thinking about how you want to harness the versatility of Camellias.

Feeling inspired to create your own garden, but want some expert advice? Try our one-on-one garden design service with Chris. Together you’ll come up with a selection of plants along with a layout plan that gives you the look you want, as well as being suitable for your local soil and conditions.

get your own tailored modern garden design:


FIND OUT HOW

Articles you may also like

A cluster of purple flowers with green leaves grows in a garden bed, reminiscent of one of the top indoor plants. The background includes a concrete wall and scattered dry leaves.

Inject Colour into your Winter Garden

Written by coldev on . Posted in Garden Ideas, Plant Sales & Plant Specials, Plants.

Take a peek out the window or have a think about your garden. Is it looking a bit grey and bare? Have all the leaves fallen off those once gorgeous autumn-coloured trees? Is there even a single blossom left?

You may be suffering from winter-itis. A very real and not made-up disease where one believes that winter is the ugliest time of the year for the garden. If you drive through Melbourne right now, at the end of May, you’ll see there is a bit of an epidemic of this.

Now a lacklustre garden in winter is not inevitable, but rather a lack of forethought and knowledge on what plants will keep your garden looking lush and colourful, including this list of plants that flower in winter:

Nandina ‘Moon Bay
Heuchera
Loropetalum
Cordylines
Coprosmas
Ajuga
Camellia Sasanqua
Erica ‘Ruby Shepherd’ Winter Heath
Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Oakleaf

A winter garden featuring a bed with red and green foliage plants in the foreground and orange flowers blooming in the background.In this article we will cover:

Now the first part of winter is the most difficult. Many plants have stopped flowering such as summer Perennials, Roses and Magnolias. Deciduous trees have lost their leaves, and their bare branches can be quite a stark sight.

Late winter you’ll see things start to pick up again, plants like your Quince, Plum, Magnolia or Peaches will start flowering. The further you move along, the more exciting gardens get.

But we’re here to talk about how to get your garden looking incredible ALL winter.

Your Current Garden Check Up

A frost-covered winter garden with bushes, bare trees, a birdhouse on a post, and three bird-shaped ornaments in the foreground. A hedge borders the back of the garden.

First things first, let’s run some diagnostics on your current garden.

Can you find any spots of colour or lushness? Is anything still flowering? Are your trees deciduous or evergreen?

Now don’t freak out if you step outside and see a barren landscape. Even Chris, our master horticulturist, didn’t always have a perfect garden as he explains here:

A small tree with dark purple leaves stands in front of a house with shingle siding, accompanied by various green shrubs. loropetalum topiary

“I remember when I built my first home, and I carefully chose all my plants. This would be my first ever garden I was designing myself. I was nowhere near as experienced as I am now, but I still had a good sense of gardening.

“I loved deciduous trees, especially maples. So I planted pretty much just deciduous trees, and all kinds of different perennials. It was late spring, and I had the most beautiful garden all through spring and summer.”

Then winter came. The perennials shrivelled up and lost their flowers. The maples all dropped their leaves. Suddenly I had the saddest, most barren looking garden you’ve ever seen. But I learned a lesson from that, and that lesson was balance.

But how do you create balance in your garden?

Having an Holistic Approach to Gardening


A collection of mixed foliage plants with vibrant colors, including green, purple, and variegated leaves, and a few purple flowers, set in a well-maintained winter garden.

What everybody wants is a garden that is going to look great all year. Not just in the spring. Not just in the winter.
All year.

But that means being clever with your selection of plants, and for most of us with no horticulture background, it can be incredibly difficult. But this is why we are writing this article today and why we offer services like the free Garden Design with Chris and here’s what he says about them:

“I’m very careful in my garden designs. When someone comes in with a list of plants they want and they’re all deciduous, I make them aware of the problems they could have in wintertime.

I would never tell someone what they can and cannot plant. But I suggest bringing in some more evergreens. For example, they could have all their favourite deciduous trees, but plant some larger evergreen shrubs.”







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Let’s take this lesson and apply it your own garden:

PLANT A HEALTHY MIX OF EVERGREENS AND DECIDUOUS
Having evergreens in your garden will help eliminate that bleakness. Consider Magnolias, Camellias, Pittosporums, Olive Trees, the list goes on. Browse our entire category of evergreen trees here. Also don’t forget about other evergreens like Shrubs or Grasses.

USE INTERESTING DECIDUOUS TREES
Close-up of a plant with bright red stems and vibrant green, deeply lobed leaves, set against the serene backdrop of a winter garden's green grass. senkaki japanese mapleNot all deciduous trees look terrible as soon as they drop their leaves. For some, their beauty actually increases. Consider the popular Senkaki Japanese Maple. The trunk and branches are a bright, bold red. It practically looks more sculpture than tree. But this isn’t the only tree with interesting bark. There’s the classic Silver Birches with their lovely white and speckled black trunk. If you want to be adventurous, look at trees such as Acer ‘Winter Gold’ Japanese Maple and Betula ‘Wades Golden’ Birch, that have yellow/gold coloured bark.

BE TACTICAL WITH TYPES OF SPECIES
We’re going to use the example of Lavenders to explain this, but you can apply this to a lot of flowering plants. By being clever with what type of Lavender you plant, you can have your Lavenders flowering 365 days of the year. A good plan of attack would look like this:

Deep Purple for the winter. Avonview for spring into early summer. Hidcote for the full summer. French Lavender for autumn. Then back to the start with Deep Purple.

Plants that are Colourful in the Winter


Close-up of a plant with dark purple leaves and small, bright pink flowers, covered in water droplets against a blurred green background, evoking the serene beauty of a winter garden. Loropetalum

There’s two ways a plant can give you colour – foliage or flowers. Both have their advantages. Plants with colourful foliage give you colour all year round. Flowering plants give you extra interest and excitement. We’re going to first talk about foliage.

Nandina ‘Moon Bay’







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With fiery red foliage and an economical price, Moon Bay is an excellent way to keep those winter blues away. We’re not going to get into them too much here, as we have an article coming out soon about Adding Warmth to Your Winter Garden Using Nandinas. But they’re a very versatile plant that is incredibly low maintenance – so many commercial gardens chuck them in and never think about them again.

Heuchera







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Aren’t these just the cutest looking plant? You’re spoiled for choice when it comes to colour, from the amber hues of Marmalade to the vibrant fuchsia of Wild Rose.

Because they’re so petite, they are perfect for a tiny garden bed. Or pop them in some pots on a deck and have fun with the different colour combinations.

For a dark dramatic look, take Obsidian and pair it with our Urban Style Olive Pot Matt Black. Or keep it light and sweet with Peach Flambe and our Limecrete Egg Pot Antique Rust.

Be gentle with Heuchera and place them in a sheltered spot, with dappled shade.

Loropetalum







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Rising in popularity is the Loropetalum. We love them so much we wrote an entire article about how to Add Excitement to Your Garden with Loropetalum. They have great versatility – trim them into any shape or let them sprawl artfully.

Cut on top and have them as a tall groundcover/low spreading bush. Trim them into a hedge to create privacy from your neighbours. There is a huge selection to choose from, with each type having its own strengths and suitability. So it’s important to read up about them so you know which type will work the best for you.

Cordylines











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If you bought Cordylines a while back, you may have found that some of them discoloured badly in the winter. But with the genius of our plant breeders, this has actually been bred out of them. Nowadays, you have a huge variety of different shades, from pink to purple to brown.

They are very tough growing, tolerating almost any soil type, and love an open sunny spot. One we love in particular is Pocahontas – a rich burgundy intermixed with vibrant purple-pink hues.

It grows up like a palm tree and adds a tropical look to your garden, making you feel like you’re on island getaway and not, well ah, stuck in miserable Melbourne. There are also clumping Cordylines that don’t grow trunks and have a bushier look, such as Electric Flash.

Coprosmas







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Okay we harp on a lot about Coprosmas but it’s because they’re just such damn good plants. They’re tougher than cactuses and have fabulous colours. The colder it gets, the more intense the colours become.

For those living in apartments and have either a rooftop or balcony garden, these are an excellent choice. Wind, heat, salt spray, frost, sun – Coprosma can take anything. They are a great pot plant. Flex your creativity and experiment with different pairings. Use Ignite with our Seafoam Bronte Planter Copper. Pair Pacific Sunrise with our GardenLite Trough Black. Try different shapes, colours and sizes.

Or plant them in the garden, shape them into a round ball, cut them into a square box hedge. Stick with one colour or alternate between different colour combinations. The world is your oyster.

Ajuga







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These are great placed next to plants that look bleak in the wintertime, such as most Hydrangeas or the Arthropodium ‘NZ Rock Lily’. We don’t want to discourage you from buying the plants you love because they don’t look so great in the winter.

Rather, we want to encourage you to include other plants that are a supporting act to your fabulous summer plants. Then in the summer you can enjoy all those Perennials and Hydrangeas and come winter your garden still looks great.
In particular we love the Burgundy Glow with its medley of pink, green, purple and burgundy hues. They’re great as a border in the garden or can be planted in a hanging basket on the patio.

Okay so there’s plenty of colourful foliage options, but let’s chat about some of the plants that flower during winter.

Camellia Sasanqua







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This is one of your best sources of flowers in the winter. What’s really interesting is that in the summertime, the white Camellias sell like crazy, but come winter, no one wants to buy the white. This is because the white shade is quite cold and doesn’t do much to uplift the rest of the garden during winter.

We’re finding that a lot of people right now are buying the soft pink shade because it just looks warmer and friendlier. You can even take it a step further and plant hot pink Camellias. So a little hint: when looking at flowering plants, don’t just look at your whites. Camellias are also just a great, reliable plant that are super easy to grow.

Erica ‘Ruby Shepherd’ Winter Heath


Close-up of pink and purple heather flowers with green stems and leaves. The blooms are densely clustered, forming a vibrant and delicate display perfect for a winter garden.

Originating from Africa, these are incredibly tough and very popular. The flowers are an exquisite purple/pink shade and stick around all throughout autumn and winter.

They’re unbothered by the cold wet weather, whereas other flowers can struggle in a particularly miserable spell. They’re going to grow about a metre tall and are great for mass plantings.

Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Oakleaf’


Close-up of a plant with red, purple, and green leaves in a Winter Garden. The plant has clustered, dried flowers in the center.

If you are really wanting Hydrangeas, but the horror-quality they take on in the wintertime scares you, then Oakleaf is perfect.

Instead of shedding its leaves, they turn a gorgeous purple shade for all of winter. Then in springtime, new bright green leaves push through, for a time giving you a mix of purple and green leaves.

Curing Winter-itis

If any of your friends or loved ones are suffering from winter-itis, please be sure to share this article with them. We want to help as many people as we can bring colour and lushness into their lives. If you’re hungry for more options, go check out our YouTube playlist How to Have a Colourful Garden During Winter.

Let’s bring beauty into all Australian gardens during winter.

Feeling inspired to create your own garden, but want some expert advice? Try our one-on-one garden design service with Chris. Together you’ll come up with a selection of plants along with a layout plan that gives you the look you want, as well as being suitable for your local soil and conditions.

get your own tailored modern garden design:


FIND OUT HOW

Articles you may also like

A row of closely planted, advanced field dug trees under a blue sky with an open grassy field on the right side.

Advanced Field Grown (Field Dug) Trees 2024

Written by coldev on . Posted in Garden Ideas, Plant Sales & Plant Specials, Plants.

Buy years in a matter of moments. Am I a crazy scientist? Someone from the future?

No, I’m just a nurseryman who wants you to have a beautiful garden. The quickest and easiest way to do that is by buying advanced field grown trees.

Field Dug SHADE Trees
Field Dug SCREENING Trees
Field Dug FLOWERING Trees
Field Dug SMALL ORNAMENTAL Trees
Field Dug MEDIUM ORNAMENTAL Trees
Field Dug FEATURE Trees
Field Dug LARGE FEATURE Trees
Field Dug HARDY COUNTRY PROPERTY Trees
Field Dug SPRING & SUMMER FOLIAGE Trees
Field Dug AUTUMN FOLIAGE Trees
Field Dug AVENUE Trees
Field Dug WEEPING STANDARD Trees

A person standing next to leafless trees in an outdoor setting, touching one of the branches. The sky is partly cloudy, and there's greenery in the background.There’s a lot of scenarios in which you need a garden to look great, really quickly. Perhaps you’re finishing off a property to sell, or you just bought some land and don’t want to wait years upon years for it to look good.

For under $1000 you can get a seven to ten year old tree (or two) that is going to:

  • Elevate your garden to the next level
  • Give your property an established look overnight
  • Increase its market value
  • Give you instant privacy

Buying an advanced field grown tree is buying time. Time that would have been spent watering, fertilising, maintaining, and waiting for a sapling to mature.


A man stands in a tree grove, resting his right hand on a small tree. He is dressed in black and smiling at the camera. A grassy field dotted with advanced field dug trees for sale is visible in the background.

A row of green-leaved, advanced field-dug trees for sale stands proudly in a field, with a bright blue sky in the background.What is a field grown advanced tree?
Nurserymen start by planting a selection of trees out in their field. These trees are already two to four years old when planted, then are grown for three to six more years. When they are ready for their forever home, they are dug up with a special tree spade. Check out our video below on the exact process.

So you normally don’t see these trees in retail nurseries or chain stores, as they don’t have the equipment or the room to handle them. We can offer them because of how large our retail space, trucks and delivery equipment are.

Advantages of field grown over pot grown
Because they are planted in fields, they have much more space between one another than pot grown trees. This results in thicker trunks and better developed branches. They have a straighter root system, whereas in a pot the roots will coil.

Advantages of field grown over pot grown
Because they are planted in fields, they have much more space between one another than pot grown trees. This results in thicker trunks and better developed branches. They have a straighter root system, whereas in a pot the roots will coil.


A man in a black jacket stands next to leafless trees in a field on a sunny day, with green hills and scattered trees for sale in the background.

Utilising your advanced trees
Plant one to five in key positions in the landscape, then fill up the rest of the garden with lots of smaller plants. Your garden will look established and elevated. When you consider the age, size and impact of the advanced trees available today, you may decide to plant the whole garden screen or avenue with advanced trees.

Advanced trees are much cheaper nowadays, because the transportation technology had improved greatly. Nurseries can now dig and deliver trees in mass. Before they were hand digging them!


A man stands in an orchard, pointing at a tree with one hand. Sunlight filters through the leaves, illuminating the ground covered with fallen leaves. He is wearing a black jacket and black pants. In this scenic setting, he gestures towards advanced field dug trees for sale.

Planting and establishing your tree
A man stands next to a tall tree, touching its trunk, in an open area with more trees in the background. Nearby, a sign advertises advanced field dug trees for sale.Your field grown tree will Trees with green and orange-red leaves, available for sale from advanced field dug selections, stand in a sunlit park, with a clear blue sky in the background.come with its roots enveloped in an earthen ball, wrapped in Hessian and secured with a wire mesh basket to hold it all together. Lean it up against a wall and make sure to keep the root ball moist. Dig a hole that is an extra 50cm wide than the root ball. Combine potting mix through the parent soil. You want the root ball high in the hole and surrounded by loose permeable soil.

Then cut the wire basket and string around the foliage. Undo the hessian from the trunk. If the hessian is not badly rotted, you can use it as a sling to help lower the tree into the hole. As long as the hessian is not tied to the trunk, it can be left in the hole to rot.

Top dress your tree with Osmocote and soil wetter. Keep it watered so that it is moist, but don’t go overboard and waterlog it.

If trees are less than 2.5 metres tall, or if they are in very sheltered area, they may not need securing. But if they are bigger than this, then you will need to secure it. We will be posting a video soon that takes you through this special process.

A person stands among trees with autumn foliage, holding a large leaf in front of their face, as if surveying the beautiful landscape and contemplating the advanced field dug trees for sale nearby.Green and yellow leaves on branches against a clear blue sky, reminiscent of the advanced field dug trees for sale.Chris’ Experience with Advanced Trees
In 1985 I was operating a mail order business called Farm Fodder Trees Australia. One evening, a friend of mine, John Fenton called and said that a load of 500 advanced trees had been dropped on a farm in Yarra Glen.

He wanted me to take a look and work out what to do. So I drive out there and check out these 500 trees. They were three to nine metes tall, laying on their side, coming into leaf and drying out. Yikes. Because there was no plumbing in the field, I had to buy a pump, get it going, and set up a system of pipes and sprinklers to water them all. It felt a bit like I had a hospital of trees that all needed me to stay alive.

I made a deal with the landscape architects, and I spent the next eight weeks from dawn to dusk, seven days a week, tending to these patients. I watered, moved and planted them in conjunction with the landscape architect’s plans.

The farm where I purchased these trees had now become TarraWarra Estate winery. As you drive into TarraWarra Estate winery you drive through a magnificent forest of tall straight Poplars and the surrounding hills are covered in beautiful deciduous trees. Most of those trees are part of the original 500 trees that I planted.


A neatly aligned row of advanced field-dug trees stretches into the distance on a bright, sunny day, with a grassy field to the right and a clear blue sky overhead.

A Huge Range of Advanced Trees
Now obviously you’re not going to have to go to this extreme for your tree. So why tell you about advanced field grown trees? Well, we have an exciting new range of quality advanced trees that have just been added to our website. From Silver Birches to Forest Pansies, there is a huge selection to choose from. Time travel and browse our range here.

Advanced Field Dug Shade Trees

With a good canapy of shade, use one or more of these trees to create a haven of shade for you and your family in the warmer months of the year.

Top picks:


View all mature shade trees

Advanced Field Dug Screening Trees

These trees are great to make a barrier of privacy between you and your neighbours. Also great to plant along the fence line for a more lush and intimate yard.

Top picks:


View all mature screening trees

Advanced Field Dug Flowering Trees

If you want a blossoming garden for a lot of the year then we’d suggest including one or more of these trees to add to lower flowering plants for plenty of colour and interest.

Top picks:


View all mature flowering trees

Advanced Field Dug Small Ornamental Trees

Our Advanced Field Dug Small Ornamental Trees category offers a selection of mature, ready-to-plant ornamental trees, ideal for adding immediate visual appeal to your garden or landscape. In this category, you will find trees good for small gardens and spaces.

Top picks:


View all mature small ornamental trees

Advanced Field Dug Medium Ornamental Trees

Our Advanced Field Dug Medium Ornamental Trees category offers a selection of mature, ready-to-plant ornamental trees, ideal for adding immediate visual appeal to your small to medium sized garden or landscape.

Top picks:


View all mature medium ornamental trees

Advanced Field Dug Feature Trees

We have many field dug feature trees to choose from here. Feature trees create visual interest, provide a sense of scale, and add personality to outdoor spaces. For our bigger feature trees scroll down to our next section.

Top picks:


View all mature feature trees

Advanced Field Dug Large Feature Trees

Check out our larger field dug feature trees here for making a real statement on your property and for commercial properties too. Feature trees create visual interest, provide a sense of scale, and add personality to outdoor spaces.

Top picks:


View all mature large feature trees

Advanced Field Dug Hardy Country Property Trees

These trees are as tough as they come, to withstand the harsh weathers that properties out in the country can experience.

Top picks:


View all mature hardy country property trees

Advanced Field Dug Colourful Spring & Summer Foliage Trees

Vibrant leaves that really display their beauty best in the spring and summer months.

Top picks:


View all mature colourful spring & summer foliage

Advanced Field Dug Autumn Foliage Trees

For some beautiful autumn leaves in your garden, choose one or more of these trees for your property.

Top picks:


View all mature autumn foliage trees

Advanced Field Dug Avenue Trees

Line your driveway with these beautiful trees  making a real design statement to your property entrance.

Top picks:


View all mature avenue trees

Advanced Field Dug Weeping Standard Trees

Weeping trees make a magnificent, low maintenance garden feature. Their elegant weeping habit and restricted height make them the ideal choice for both large and small gardens.

Top picks:


View all mature weeping standard trees

Silver Birch Trees with Chris

Our Favourite Tree, the Silver Birch & a Story For You

Written by coldev on . Posted in Garden Advice, Garden Ideas, Plants.

Did you know my dad and I planted a forest of Silver Birch trees in Mt Dandenong? You might have visited Woolrich Lookout before, but if you travel a bit further down the road, you’ll find this spectacular grove of Silver Birch trees. Sounds crazy right? You would think that a forest just grows naturally, rather than being intentionally planted by someone. But let me tell you how it all happened.

A grove of birch trees with white bark and green leaves in a wooded area. Sunlight filters through the foliage, creating a dappled light effect on the ground. Silver Birch
Silver Birch Trees with Chris
View looking up at a tall tree with a slender trunk and green leaves against a pale sky. Sparse yellow foliage indicates early autumn. Silver Birch
Tall birch trees with white bark and green leaves stand closely together in a forest under a partly cloudy sky. Silver Birch
Silver Birch Trees
A forest scene with slender birch trees standing closely together, surrounded by green underbrush and lit by soft daylight filtering through the foliage. Silver Birch

So we need to time travel to around 60 years ago when my dad started buying Birch seeds from a seed merchant in Europe. He would have these seeds sent to us by post, where we were currently living in Mt Dandenong. My dad was determined to perfect the art of growing Birch Trees, so he created and followed a really strict process.

Illustration of a beige cloth bag with a pink ziplock seam, sitting on a windowsill. An inset shows the bag's contents, which appear to be green beans with numerous red spots. Grow Silver Birch TreesFirstly, in the winter he would mix up the seeds with moist peat moss, put it in a bag, and stick in the refrigerator for two months.

The next step was to spread the seed on soil that had been sterilised with methyl bromide. He would lightly rake over this soil, and then go over it again to make the bed flat and compact the seed into the soil. This made sure that the seed was very close to the surface.

Then he put a timber frame with some hessian over the top of the soil bed to provide shade and contain the humidity.

A hand planting a seed in soil on the left side of the image. On the right side, soil is being watered from a watering can.Twice a day he watered the bed. Once they had germinated and were half an inch high, he would lift the hessian and timber frame to about 50cm off the bed. This allowed for airflow and reduced humidity. Dad also decreased the amount of watering at this point.

An illustrated young green plant with multiple leaves growing in soil, with a textured, gray background. Grow Silver Birch TreesBy the next winter these Birches were about 80cm tall. Now around this time that my dad was perfecting the growing process of Silver Birch Trees, we had a Finish family move in next door to our growing field. It was a husband and wife with ten children! Now the Toorkolas LOVED the Birch trees. They actually took scraps from the Birch Trees and created all sort of things with it such as brooms. They even said that if they were back in Finland, they would’ve made shoes out of the Birches! It was pretty incredible to hear about the other uses of the Silver Birch. Especially because during this era, Silver Birches were one of the most popular ornamental trees in Melbourne. Even now they’re still popular because they grow very vigorously and are a very pretty tree that don’t grow too big.


A forest scene showing multiple birch trees with white bark and black markings, surrounded by green foliage and undergrowth. Sunlight filters through the leaves, casting a dappled shadow on the ground during a serene Easter Long Weekend. Silver Birch Trees

A grove of slender, white birch trees with green leaves stands amidst ferns and grass on a sunny Easter Long Weekend day.So my father spent five years figuring out how to grow Silver Birches. His biggest breakthrough was finding out that if you picked seeds locally it was much cheaper and more fertile. Once he had perfected the process, he was getting a yield of about 3000 trees per 50m x 1m seedling bed. This translated to about 100 thousand Silver Birches a year. These would be dug up and used for either potting or further field growing. There were also growers that would graft other cultivars such as weeping or purple varieties.

Close-up of a birch tree trunk with distinctive white and dark brown bark textures, surrounded by grass and additional birch trees in the background, evoking the serene beauty typical of an Easter Long Weekend in nature.Let’s fast forward to 1971 where I come into the picture. My dad asked me to go into the one-year-old stock and pick out 200 of the best Birch Trees. Why? Because we were delivering all of them to the RJ Hamer Arboretum. So we sent 200 Birch Trees, and they were planted in this place with fairly acidic volcanic soil, really high rainfall, and a lot of grass and weed competition. They also likely received no care. But over 50 years later and they are doing spectacularly. I was actually a bit surprised. If you’re ever in the area I really encourage you to check it out. There’s a beautiful walking track alongside it that pops out at the bottom of Woolrich Lookout.


A forest scene with a mix of tall trees and underbrush under a partly cloudy sky. Some trees have green leaves, while others have yellowing foliage, offering the perfect backdrop for an Easter Long Weekend adventure. Siver Birch Trees

Now if I’m being honest with you, I haven’t thought about this Silver Birch Forest in a long time. The only reason I visited it, or am talking about it now, is because of Matti Rousi. He is a Finnish scientist that is writing a book all about Silver Birches. It’s set to be published this year under the title Book of Birch (Past and Present Use and Ecology). Betula pendula is the national tree of Finland and is planted very profusely there.

A snowy forest with numerous bare birch trees standing close together, displaying distinctive white bark with dark markings, offers a peaceful retreat during the Easter Long Weekend.A dense grove of tall, white birch trees with some yellow and green leaves stands in a field of dry, brown grass, ready to welcome the Easter Long Weekend.In his research he stumbled upon our website and was shocked when he discovered that we were growing Silver Birches here. As he details in his email to us “present foresters consider Silver Birch to be strictly adapted to local conditions” and “can be transferred only 200km N or S.” Australia is much further than that. So scientifically you shouldn’t be able to grow a Betula Silver Birch at this latitude. However, Rousi is trying to argue to the contrary, where Betula pendula “is very plastic” and can adapt to other conditions.

An older man in a black jacket stands beside a birch tree in a forest, with his right hand resting on the trunk. The background features various trees and undergrowth, creating an atmosphere that perfectly captures the tranquility of an Easter Long Weekend.This Silver Birch Forest is living proof of that. So not only has this Silver Birch grown without any maintenance, but it also defies what many Finnish foresters believe. If you want to hear more about this, I highly recommend reading Matt Rousi’s book once it has been published.

Hope you enjoyed this little trip down memory lane. Goes to show how some dedication and a good understanding of horticulture can achieve the impossible.
Here’s to my dad,

Chris
Olive branches with ripe olives against a sunset, with text overlay stating "after planting this in your garden, you'll be obsessed with olive trees.

After Reading This You’ll Be Obsessed with Olive Trees

Written by coldev on . Posted in Garden Ideas, Garden Makeovers, Plants.

A man in a black jacket stands in front of an olive tree, with a video play button overlay and text promoting a YouTube channel about planting a garden. Youtube Video of Chris about Olive TreesHello Hello!
Today we’re going to be talking about how spectacular Olive Trees are. If you’ve been considering getting one, then this article is perfect for you. But even if it hasn’t been on your mind, this may convince you to get one.

Olive Trees are incredibly hardy. They grow in the most barren, windswept sites that have poor soil and hot conditions. They’re even frost hardy, wind hardy and drought hardy. Despite this, they grow lots of fruit with little effort. Also they’re easy to grow and are very long living. Olive Trees have many different applications – from the fruit they bear to the ways you can use them in the garden. Let’s dive into each of these points deeper.

Applications


Various bottles of olive oil and a selection of green and black olives with olive branches, evoking the essence of a planting garden, on a wooden table. Olive oil

Three bottles of olive oil body wash from olive oil skincare company, displayed on a marble countertop.The most obvious benefit here are the olives! Sure you might just be thinking about plucking them and tossing it in a salad, but there’s actually so many different things you can do with an olive. You can make it into pickled fruit. You can extract the oil, which can then be cooked with or tossed over some bread. You can even use the oil in hair care or skin care. Also the leaves can be used in herbal applications. The options just go on and on.

Well-maintained hedge bordering a concrete fence along a sidewalk, with residential buildings and a planting garden in the background.But what about in the garden? Apart from using it as an orchard, there are lot of other ways you can plant an Olive Tree. One of those ways is as a hedge or windbreak. I’ve seen beautiful windbreaks around vineyards, and it gives you that wonderful Mediterranean look to have Grapevines and a beautiful Olive Hedge. You can trim them up quite nicely to make a tall, narrow hedge or stick them in a pot and make a topiary out of it. Really, you could shape them as you please – a pleached hedge, a ball on a stick, even cloud pruned. Cloud pruned is when you trim the branches into lovely little series of balls – we have pictures on our website if you’re still confused.


Olive tree in a white pot on a sunny balcony with various potted plants in a planting garden and a wooden floor.

Elegant courtyard dining area with a planting garden, plush sofas, and hanging lights, framed by brick walls and arched windows.If you have an apartment, you can grow Olive Trees in a pot on the balcony and trim them down to the size you want. They’re actually perfect for a spot like this, because a lot of the time a balcony in a high-rise apartment is a hot windy spot, where not a lot of other plants can survive. They’re fantastic as a feature plant – I’ve seen so many restaurants use them as such, and they look incredible. Don’t feel restricted to growing your Olive Tree just in the backyard. They work fantastic on the nature strip as well. This is because it doesn’t seem like the birds go for them. I visited a street of Olive Trees in Campbellfield and there were heaps of olives. If that had been apples or plums, birds probably would’ve eaten them all. So they’re a hardy tree that you don’t have to worry about too much. From a landscape point of view, the Olive Tree provides you with so many choices.


A tranquil garden pathway lined with lush green shrubs and trees under a clear sky, perfect for planting.

Also a little note – I often get the owners of Italian or Greek restaurants that want a Mediterranean feel to their interior décor and so want to put an Olive Tree inside. But see the thing is, Olive Trees don’t do so well as indoor plants. What I’ve found from talking with customers is after a few months they go backwards. So what I’d recommend is buying two Olive Trees, placing one indoors and one outdoors, and then about every week or so, changing them around. Which I get is a lot of effort, but hey, if you really want an Olive Tree indoors this is just what you’re going to have to do if you want to keep it alive and thriving.


Garden Style


A tranquil garden pathway lined with lavender and large pots, ideal for planting, leading to an arched entrance flanked by olive trees.

An elegant outdoor seating area with plush cushions on a built-in stone bench, surrounded by a lush planting garden and trees.

I’ll often use Olive Trees in my Garden Designs. Now if someone is wanting a cloud pruned one, I’ll typically steer them towards getting an advanced Olive and trimming it themselves, as a cloud pruned one can be really quite expensive. I like to plant an Olive Tree as the centre feature and then surround it with plants such as Correa alba balls, ‘Blue Fescue’ Grass or any other nice grasses. So then your feature is this hardy evergreen tree that is low maintenance and going to last for a long time.

An olive tree in a wicker basket next to a citrus tree in a white pot, in a lush planting garden setting.Let’s say you want to lean in completely to that relaxed Mediterranean style garden with your gorgeous Olive Tree. I would recommend planting Rose ‘Pink’ PBR Carpet Rose, Lavandula ‘French’ Lavender, Rosmarinus ‘Blue Lagoon’ Rosemary, Blue Convolvulus and all those plants that just give off a fabulous Tuscan Italian feel. We actually have an entire section on our website that is dedicated to plants that have a Mediterranean style and we give you some pointers on other bits of design you can incorporate. Check it out here.


A tranquil garden setting with olive trees, planting shrubs, a striped couch by a glass-paneled building, inviting a peaceful outdoor relaxation.

The Fruits of Your Labour

olives, olive treeLet’s chat about how you can get the best out of your olives. First step – decide what sort of olive you want. There’s the kalamata olive, which is delicious, and for the best performance you need to grow it alongside another Olive Tree that it can cross pollinate with. In general it’s a good idea to plant a couple varieties together, and make sure to do you research about what varieties compliment each other nicely to get the best amount of fruit. For example, there are types of Olive Trees that have been bred for hundreds of years just for their oil, or Olive Trees that are very productive but have fairly small fruit. Then you also got your Olive Trees that have medium sized fruit and are good for oil or pickling. This is why you need to first think about what you want out of your olives – fruit, oil, or both?


A variety of green and purple olives in a rustic metal bowl with olive branches from the planting garden on a wooden surface.

A modern white house with large windows surrounded by lush green trees and a planting garden with low shrubbery in a landscaped front yard.Next step is to figure out how many trees you can fit in your garden for optimum cross-pollinating. Don’t freak out – I’m not saying you need to go and shove as many Olive Trees in your garden as possible. You really just need two to three Olive Trees, if you got space for more and you want more, be my guest. Even just one is sufficient. I have a friend in Adelaide, and they keep their family going for the whole year with the oil press from just the Olive Tree in their suburban backyard. By the way, everything I’ve said here does apply to an Olive hedge as well – so don’t forget that is an option too.

Suitability & Care

Most of the places where Olive Trees are growing is broken limestone country. So the alkalinity is fairly high, and luckily most of Victoria tends to be more acidic. So for your Olive Tree plenty of Dolomite Lime is really good, a bit of fertilizer – organic or artificial, and some summer water. Keep the grass and weeds away from the bottom. They love a hot, open, and sunny spot. If you live on a beach front an Olive Tree is perfect. A lot of plants would shrivel and die from the salt spray coming in. But an Olive Tree just takes it and keeps on thriving. A real trooper of a plant.


A person sprays water on an olive tree in their garden, examining its dark ripe olives. watering

Pricing

What a great tree, it must be so expensive! Nope. They’re actually very much a reasonably priced plant, and if you buy them small, they can be quite cheap. If that isn’t already great enough, we’ve got a special on some Olive Trees going on at the moment.

















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If you go to our website, you’ll see a lot of different varieties for sale (some linked above), and we have advanced options as well. I get the website can be a bit overwhelming with all the different types so please don’t hesitate to reach out to us for some help. You can come down to store or ring us up, we are more than happy to give you advice and figure out what type is best for you.

Things To Be Aware Of

Freshly harvested olives with leaves on a wooden surface in a planting garden.Let’s dive into some rapid-fire technical details. Black or green olives? Well, actually your tree has both. Generally speaking, your tree will start with green olives then as they ripen up, they’ll turn black. If you get a super heavy crop one year, it’s likely you’ll get a much lighter crop the next year. But this tends to happen more with the older varieties, as the newer varieties have been bred to be more consistent. Which is why it pays to have a few different Olive Trees working together, cross-pollinating, and increasing the crop.


A person scooping fresh green olives from a white bucket in a planting garden, with more buckets of olives around them.

Close-up of an olive tree branch with dark ripe olives among silvery leaves in a planting garden.Olive Trees don’t have a particularly dangerous root system, I’ve never heard an architect saying to be cautious of planting an Olive Tree around the house. You need to be mindful of the fact that some Olive Trees don’t fruit such as the Swan Hill or the Tolley’s Upright. The Tolley’s Upright is very tall and upright and has a different style of foliage. The Swan Hill is more spreading and conventional with barely any fruit. So if you’re after the look of the Olive Tree without the olives then these would be perfect options. Or you can just take a fruiting Olive Tree and treat it like an ornamental plant – the black olives look quite lovely against the silver foliage.

In Closing

An olive tree in a decorative pot on a paved garden patio, surrounded by blooming yellow flowers and green shrubbery.Okay that was a lot of information. So let’s go over the basics again. Olive Trees are incredible. Olive Trees can be used as a hedge, feature tree, windbreak, or screen. They’re low maintenance and tough as rocks. They give you delicious fruit that can be used in many different ways. They’re more reliable than a Toyota Corolla. And right now we’ve got an excellent sale going on.
Well, I hope that was enough to get you to jump on the Olive Tree bandwagon.
Until next time,
Chris

Feeling inspired to create your own garden, but want some expert advice? Try our one-on-one garden design service with Chris. Together you’ll come up with a selection of plants along with a layout plan that gives you the look you want, as well as being suitable for your local soil and conditions.

get your own tailored modern garden design:


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