- 11 hours ago
Gardening Australia 2026 Episode 9
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TravelTranscript
00:00Whoo-hoo!
00:05Hey! Hi!
00:11Whoa!
00:17Hey!
00:18Hey, buddy.
00:22Hey!
00:23Hey!
00:35All might seem calm and tranquil on the surface,
00:40but underneath we are firing on all cylinders
00:44to get your gardening engines into overdrive.
00:49Hello and welcome to Gardening Australia.
00:52Here's what's coming up.
00:56I'm meeting a backyard grower to explore his collection
00:59of curious, captivating carnivorous plants.
01:02I'm catching up with a kindred spirit
01:04who's using recycled materials
01:07to create some experimental crevice gardens.
01:10From a rugby field to a swamp
01:12and now the internationally recognised Hunter Wetland Centre,
01:16a haven for birds, for plants
01:19and over 160 industrious volunteers.
01:22And we meet an artist growing her body of work.
01:26Gardening is, to me, the most important element of life.
01:46Almost everything in the garden I'm visiting today
01:48could be directly transplanted from another country.
01:52It's a reminder of a past life, growing up on a farm in Fiji,
01:57and includes varieties of fruit and vegetables
02:01not commonly grown in Australia.
02:06Vijay came to these shores from Fiji in 1989
02:10and has settled with his family in the Sydney suburb of Holsworthy.
02:15Every square inch of the garden
02:17is given over to the plants he nurtures.
02:21Vijay, I made it!
02:23Wow, Costa! Welcome!
02:26Oh, wow! Look at this!
02:28It's like the hanging gardens of Babylon.
02:30Thank you, Costa. Thank you.
02:33There is so much foliage and food
02:37from what I've seen just walking in.
02:39It's incredibly abundant.
02:41What are some of the Fijian species that you've got growing here?
02:45Quite a lot of the Fijian things
02:47that you normally don't buy from the local garden shops.
02:51So I have belly plants, which is a beautiful, like, spinach.
02:56We have karamua, which is a water spinach.
02:59I have amaranth.
03:01These are, like, things we eat on a daily basis in Fiji.
03:05What was the farm like that you grew up on?
03:07It was a 98-acre big farm.
03:12Mostly sugarcane, but we had lots of Fijian crops.
03:15Pigeon peas, cow peas, beans, lots of legumes.
03:19We had eight siblings, so they needed a big farm to look after us.
03:23Whereabouts are we going to begin to look around?
03:26Actually, you've come at a good time.
03:29We have a lot of produce in the gardens
03:31and we will be harvesting some for you.
03:34So is this a common gourd in Fiji?
03:38It is a common gourd in Fiji,
03:40but on the bigger size than normal we see in Fiji.
03:44And one like this, how long has it been growing?
03:48This one's been growing for probably six to eight weeks.
03:54That's all?
03:55That's all.
03:55Yeah, they grow very fast.
03:57This looks like about 10 kilos,
04:00so it should feed easily about 20 people.
04:05Easy.
04:06Let's harvest one and have a look.
04:10I thought we were going to cut this one.
04:15Wow, look at that!
04:18Let me feel it.
04:19Yeah, that's got some weight.
04:22That's almost the size of you, Costa.
04:31Is this a plant or vegetable of your childhood?
04:34Yes, we had it on the farm.
04:36When I grow this, it transports us back to Fiji
04:40and your childhood days, you know.
04:42This looks kind of familiar.
04:44Is it water spinach?
04:46Yeah.
04:47This grows naturally in the swamps in Fiji,
04:49so you don't have to plant them.
04:51It doesn't do well in dry areas.
04:55So how exactly are you growing it?
04:57We've created a swampy kind of condition
05:00with a 20-litre drum
05:03and just filled it with the soil and water.
05:06It's doing well.
05:08I harvest every two weeks.
05:10Really?
05:11Yeah.
05:12I ate this a lot, and for me to have this here
05:15is a lot of connection to my childhood
05:17and to the family at home.
05:20So it was a staple green.
05:21How did you prepare it?
05:23Normally we chop it and then finely sliced
05:29lightly fried with the garlic and onion and yummy.
05:33That sounds good to me.
05:34This looks like the sort of thing
05:36that I could grow easily in my nature pond.
05:39You could.
05:40You can't overwater it.
05:42So these are really good.
05:43And if I have planted it outside,
05:45I'll be wasting a lot of water.
05:49Good old amaranth.
05:51I know this one well.
05:52I see that you've got it growing in one main area for harvesting.
05:57Yes.
05:58This area is contained.
06:00The amaranth we call churia.
06:03And this is a very common vegetable in Fiji
06:06and well sought after because it's so vegetal.
06:10We mix it in so many different dishes.
06:13We take the leaves as a stir fry.
06:16Also mix it with eggplant, cook it with coconut milk.
06:20A lot of ways we can use this.
06:21In Greek we call this horta.
06:24Horta?
06:24Yeah.
06:25How do you prepare it?
06:26Oh, really just steamed.
06:28Mmm.
06:29Then olive oil, lemon, salt and pepper.
06:32Wonderful.
06:32The best side dish.
06:34Got enough there, Costa?
06:36Yeah, I feel like I'm about to get married.
06:39I'm about to get married too.
06:39Ha, ha, ha, ha.
06:44What are we looking at?
06:46This is very native to Fiji and the surrounding islands.
06:52This is called Belay.
06:54Very rich in iron and many minerals.
06:58So this is an ibica.
07:01Yes.
07:02I've seen this in Darwin and in the north.
07:05Yes.
07:05I've even grown it down here in Sydney as well.
07:08And there's different varieties.
07:09Some have a really full leaf.
07:11Some have really sort of almost like finger styled leaves.
07:15There's many varieties on them.
07:17Many varieties, of course.
07:18They reshoot very quickly, don't they?
07:20They reshoot very quickly, but they don't like the cold.
07:24They want to go home in winter.
07:25Yeah.
07:26Forget the cold.
07:27Yeah.
07:28I love the size that the leaves become so quickly as well.
07:32Like bigger than the palm of your hand.
07:34Yes.
07:36The tender ones are really, really yummy in soups and with fish,
07:42normally with fish, it's a very huge delicacy in Fiji.
07:48What an amazing harvest adventure it's been.
07:51You have so much growing in your patch.
07:54Exactly, Costa.
07:55This is just the tip of the iceberg.
07:57We've got in excess of 40 different vegetables in the garden.
08:01It's amazing how much we can fit in a small backyard.
08:04And I see there's a couple of other ones here.
08:06What's this?
08:07This is the Fijian Garandila.
08:09It's a hard shell passion fruit.
08:10It tastes beautiful.
08:12It's very, very hard.
08:13You cannot break it.
08:15It's like a nut.
08:16Yeah.
08:17Normally we'll break it in the back of our door.
08:20But here today we'll just use a knife.
08:25Oh, there it is.
08:27There you go.
08:28So we split this open.
08:30Here we go.
08:35It's got quite a banana flavour.
08:37Yeah.
08:38It's a different flavour to the passion fruit.
08:41Normal passion fruit.
08:41Yeah, yeah.
08:44It's sort of creamier and thicker.
08:46Yes.
08:48Vijay, it's time for me to go down to the port because I've got to head back to Australia.
08:52Thanks for showing me around your little Fiji.
08:56Thank you, Costa.
08:57You're most welcome.
09:02I can see how strong Vijay's connection remains to his family and Fijian heritage through what
09:10he cultivates in the garden.
09:12It's a relationship he's been tending for decades.
09:16And much like me when I grow, it's a chance for us all to nurture our roots.
09:27Are there native succulents?
09:29Yes.
09:30There are hundreds of Australian native species that can be classified as a succulent due to
09:36having succulent leaves or stems.
09:39Carpa brotis, or native pig face, is quite well known as a hardy ground cover that loves
09:45a sunny, well-drained position and grows equally well in pots or hanging baskets.
09:51It has brightly coloured flowers and is also edible.
09:55Lesser known succulents include calendrinius, which are related to purslane or portulacca,
10:01and they have brightly coloured flowers and make a great display.
10:05And then there's samphire, which are really important in mangrove and coastal ecosystems.
10:12They're hardy and can be grown at home in well-drained soil or pots, and they're edible too.
10:19What's happening to my sandpaper fig?
10:22Well, my sandpaper fig has got a bit of witch's broom.
10:26Here's a nice healthy branch, dark green leaves.
10:29Here we've got a proliferation of new growth, light-coloured leaves, looking a bit like a witch's broom,
10:35which is commonly what it's known as.
10:37This reaction to something happening within the plant, whether it's a fungus, a virus, a mite,
10:43some sort of bug's gotten in there, this is the reaction.
10:47Now, it won't kill the plant, but it will take a lot of energy out of it.
10:50So given this is one of my favourite native figs to eat, this section won't produce any fruit.
10:57So the easy way, just snip it off, get rid of it.
11:01Why is my Fijoa flowering, but not fruiting?
11:05This tree is five years old and it's only just started to fruit, so time is part of the answer.
11:12But not all Fijoas are equal.
11:14You see, some are happy to accept their own pollen and they will fruit, but others, they need a pollen
11:20partner.
11:21So now you're armed with that information, the best time to ask the question is at a garden centre.
11:27Do I need to plant one or do I need to plant two in order to get fruit?
11:39Some plants will always hold a special place in collectors' hearts.
11:43They represent something truly unique and the opportunity to grow them at home is just too good to pass up.
11:53Tammy's visiting a grower who's got the bug and I reckon after this story, you could catch it too.
12:09I'm visiting Ollie Evans.
12:11His backyard on the northern beaches in Sydney is brimming with Nepenthes,
12:16botanical curiosities in the world of carnivorous plants.
12:20You've got a lot going on here.
12:22Yeah, so these are all my easy growing Nepenthes hybrids and species.
12:27Like this beautiful maxima here.
12:30Oh wow, what do you love about them?
12:32I suppose it's just the different colours and different trap morphology of the pictures.
12:37So what we see is the leaf is actually the petiole of the leaf and the picture itself is a
12:43modified leaf.
12:45And that's evolved to catch insects.
12:48They're so cool. And there's so many different sizes. I mean, look at that one.
12:51Yeah, this is Nepenthes robcantleyi, which is a Philippine species.
12:56Yeah, this beautiful one here, trying to climb the fence.
12:58You can see the huge peristome, which is this lip at the top of the picture.
13:03Oh, right.
13:04You can see the peristome and gripping in and it's just caught itself between the two palings.
13:08And in nature, it would climb up trees that way as it vines.
13:11So they can be epiphytic species?
13:14Yes, there's both epiphytic and terrestrial.
13:17So the epiphytics obviously grow in the nooks and crannies in trees and the terrestrials grow up from the ground.
13:22So what's then the mix like? It's quite light and airy?
13:25Yeah, so this is a coconut chip and perlite mix.
13:29You can see they're very similar to aeroids or even orchid mixes, but it just holds a good amount of
13:35moisture while still being nice and airy and loose.
13:38Yeah, they're growing really well against the fence. And what got you into Nepenthes?
13:43I was working as a carpenter up in Avalon and the florist next door was bringing them out to give
13:49them some sunlight during the day and I'd never seen anything like it.
13:52So I ended up getting one from them and then went home and started researching them and all just the
13:59amazing adaptations that have evolved over the millions of years.
14:03And it just drew me in because they're just such weird, wonderful plants.
14:08And were you a keen gardener before that?
14:10I could never grow anything before that. I couldn't grow basil to save my life at that point.
14:16Ollie's still not growing any fresh herbs, but he does have a fridge full of Nepenthes in his lounge room.
14:23The majority of species in the Nepenthes genus are native to Southeast Asia.
14:29This is my personal collection of highland species Nepenthes.
14:33The highland species up around the cloud forests of Borneo and Sumatra and stuff, you're up into the cool temperatures.
14:40You're at 24 degrees during the day and it will drop down to 10, 12 degrees at night in beautiful
14:46tropical lush jungles.
14:48So that's why you've got it in a fridge?
14:49That explains the fridge. It's the easiest way to cool a small space.
14:54But then how do the insects get in there?
14:56There's always a few fruit flies, just little things like that.
15:00They don't take a huge amount of food to keep them growing happily.
15:03Oh, right. Can we have a look at what's inside?
15:05Yeah, sure.
15:06We've got all sorts of species in here.
15:09Nepenthes edwardsiana here with the beautiful toothy peristome.
15:14And this beautiful Nepenthes hamata with its amazing black teeth on the peristome.
15:19And these wings at the front with this almost ladder up the front for insects to climb up and fall
15:26into the pitcher.
15:27And next to that is Nepenthes jacquelineae, which as you see has no teeth, but it has this beautiful wide
15:34purple peristome.
15:37Right, so it's quite smooth.
15:39It's very smooth. You can see it almost acts like a funnel and anything that lands on there is going
15:44to fall straight into the pitcher and never to be seen again.
15:48In comparison, down here you've got this beautiful Nepenthes inimus, which is the only species that has absolutely no peristome
15:55whatsoever.
15:56Yeah, right. It doesn't have any of those decorations. It's not as ornate as the other.
16:00No, it's just this pure green, just beautifully coloured.
16:04But you can see the waxy coating on the inside.
16:06So anything on there would just slip down into the pitcher fluid.
16:10It looks like it'd be a fun ride until you hit your...
16:13Until you reach the stomach acid.
16:16Down here we've got some Nepenthes lolii and the wild.
16:20These actually develop a thick white sugary substance on the lid called an exudate.
16:24And it attracts a shrew, which is a small mammal, almost like a possum.
16:30It will come and sit on the pitcher and as it eats the exudate, it defecates into the pitcher and
16:35that's how they get their nitrogen.
16:36Yeah, right. So it's just sitting there and having a good time.
16:39Yeah, it's definitely a different way for a plant to feed.
16:44Ollie's greenhouse is a haven for growing Nepenthes.
16:47And his passion is breeding hybrids.
16:50Wow! Look at the size of this thing!
16:53Yeah, so this is Nepenthes truncata from the Philippines.
16:56They get the tallest pitchers in the genus and they're absolutely huge.
17:00That's why I've started using this in a lot of my breeding, just to try and get the biggest pitchers
17:04I can and cross with beautiful coloured pitchers.
17:08To produce seed pods, Ollie crosses pollen from the flower of the male plant with the flower on a female
17:15plant.
17:15It takes six months for seed pods to reach maturity. Seeds are then germinated in little domes in 100%
17:22humidity.
17:23So from each seed pod you have how many seeds?
17:27You can get about 50 seeds from a pod and I might sow two or three pods per pot like
17:32this.
17:33And you can see there that there's the tiny little seed with the embryo in the middle.
17:38Oh my goodness, I would have thought that was part of the potting media.
17:41Yeah, so they've evolved to blow around in the wind.
17:44So once the seed pod opens in nature they'll just drift off with the wind, land on the trees, the
17:49ground.
17:50Ideally for them a nice little bit of moss that they can germinate and grow in.
17:54And then these are the little plants that have germinated?
17:57Yeah, so you can see there they're starting to pop up quite nicely.
18:00And you can see the first pitcher just starting to come out on that third leaf.
18:05And they can actually start feeding from that size on tiny microscopic little mites and various things.
18:12Right.
18:13And just below there we've got some that are about six months old.
18:17And so they've been hardened off out of the domes.
18:20And then down here they're all about a year old now.
18:23So what results are you getting?
18:25Ah, so getting some good ones.
18:26This here is a Truncata cross lavicola that I made.
18:31And the Truncata parent gives these big huge pitchers.
18:36And the lavicola brings out a beautiful dark coloration.
18:39It looks so delicate I feel like I'd probably kill it.
18:43No, the joys of this hybrid, it can adapt to all sorts of conditions through the temperature ranges.
18:49Right, so like one parent comes from cold climates, cold mountain, and then the other one's in the...
18:54Hot lowlands.
18:55Right.
18:56So you've got Goldilocks.
18:57Hopefully a Goldilocks cross.
19:00So for the backyard gardener, what do we do when it comes to feeding your pitcher plants?
19:06Ah, look, if you're growing them outside, they'll definitely pick up enough insects themselves.
19:11That's what they've evolved to do.
19:12And when it comes to watering, how, I mean, are these very hungry for water?
19:18Look, they do like a lot of water.
19:19If you've ever been to the tropics in Asia, it does rain almost every day.
19:23I wouldn't water these every day.
19:24I tend to check the media.
19:26Just as it starts to dry out, I'll give them a good heavy watering, and that'll keep them
19:31going for a few days or a week, depending on the weather.
19:34And in a warm, frost-free area like coastal Sydney, you can boost the humidity that these
19:39plants love by grouping them with other plants and creating a little microclimate.
19:45As a die-hard enthusiast of these quirky plants, there is a serious side to his hobby.
19:52Poaching's a huge problem for Nepenthes, but also they come from that part of the world
19:56that is getting, unfortunately, very deforested.
20:01So if you're new to all of this and keen to start a collection, source plants from reputable
20:05suppliers.
20:07Ask questions about where the plant came from, and join the conversation within the Nepenthes
20:12community.
20:13I'm now part of the worldwide community.
20:16Everyone's sharing advice and information.
20:18And even here in Sydney, we've got the Australian Carnivorous Plant Society.
20:22We have meetings every month, helping each other, sharing tips, plants, and everything
20:28involved in it.
20:30It's been fascinating to find out about these bold and beautiful, highly evolved plants.
20:35I can see why Ollie is captivated.
20:38I get to live in this beautiful, tropical jungle now.
20:53Do you ever feel like you're stuck between a rock and a hard place?
20:57Incredibly, some plants love it.
20:59They thrive in impossibly rocky conditions.
21:03Well, next up, Millie helps create a crevice garden, where rock-loving beauties will flourish.
21:21Heronswood is an historic public garden on the Mornington Peninsula, nestled on the foothills
21:26of Wonga, or Arthur's Seat, with views of Melbourne across the bay.
21:34The garden surrounds an iconic 19th-century Gothic revival mansion, and the whole site is owned
21:40by the Diggers Foundation, a non-profit with a mission of promoting gardening and the conservation
21:45of seeds and plants.
21:48It has a special place in our hearts, because it's where Gardening Australia celebrated our
21:5330th year on the ABC.
21:55Oh, look who it is!
22:00But this has long been a place for gardeners to get inspiration by seeing experimental styles
22:06and ideas in practice.
22:08So this is a really challenging but also beautiful site.
22:12Bill Bampton is the head gardener here, and today I've brought my gardening gloves, because
22:16I'm going to help him extend this existing crevice garden, so we can show you how it's done.
22:22Yeah, this area was just developed about three years ago, and what we're looking at here was
22:28a whole heap of old sheds, and then we knocked down the sheds and found ourselves with a pile
22:34of concrete.
22:35We thought, what can we do with it?
22:37Make a crevice garden.
22:39What is a crevice garden?
22:40Well, a crevice garden is replicating the crevices you'd see on the side of a hill or a cliff top,
22:47but in this case we're using concrete, or you can use stone as more traditional.
22:52So tell me about how you put it together, like, it's all quite a linear form.
22:57It's very important that it's book-leafed all on this parallel lines, and I lined every rock up
23:03north-south, and that gets that really great aspect.
23:06It's sunny on top and moist and cool below, and it's a perfect habitat for all the little plants
23:14adapted to that situation.
23:17Here we've used just general plants that are available to the public, but a lot of this
23:21is done through alpine societies, trying to grow those plants that only grow in little
23:25craggy crevices in the Himalayas or somewhere.
23:30Bill's got all our materials laid out already.
23:33Some more pieces of old concrete, the more angular the better, and a pile of crushed granite
23:38that they use in the footpaths around the garden.
23:41It's a waste product from the local quarry.
23:45So what we're doing here is we're just laying a base for the rocks to go on, so we'll, like,
23:50create some ledges higher at the back, grading out to lower down the front, and this is where
23:55we'll start then laying the rocks.
23:58Right.
23:58They're going to sit on sort of solid, flat ground, and then the sort of soil will backfill
24:03around them.
24:03That's right.
24:04That's correct.
24:05You happy with that?
24:06Yep.
24:06Looks like we're ready to rock.
24:08Oh, I've got it.
24:16Happy with these, Bill?
24:17Yeah, that's great.
24:18So we just lay them out here so we can get a feel for what the rocks are, because we've
24:22sort of almost got to let them speak to you.
24:24You've got to be able to see either side, work out which way it's going to work for us,
24:29because each spot has a rock designated for it.
24:33Oh, it's like matchmaking.
24:35Matchmaking.
24:36We need the spot to love the rock and the rock to love the spot.
24:39That's right.
24:40So begins the careful concrete placement, making sure each piece sits parallel.
24:48Often people refer to this concrete as urbanite, because these are rocks made by people in the
24:55city, and just like geological eras, they say we're living in the Anthropocene.
25:01So these are the rocks of our time, really.
25:04They used a lot of carbon and energy to create them.
25:07Most people would have thrown these away.
25:10Why not use them?
25:11And they're free.
25:13You know, you could use it endlessly, really, and it's so available.
25:17Starting to look good, Bill?
25:18Yeah, it is.
25:19I'm just sort of nestling these in, and how we're doing it is we're doing them
25:23in these little pockets of rocks, like you'd see maybe in nature.
25:27And then there'd be a little gap where we might have a planting void around here somewhere.
25:34And then we might start having some rocks, again, book leafing down here,
25:39just tying this strata across here.
25:44Alright, so positioning the rocks, sometimes you go a bit counterintuitive.
25:49And if you angle the rocks up off square, you get a more natural look rather than the square
25:56look of a man-made concrete.
25:58And that'll give you a little planting pocket almost like an overhang here.
26:01That's right.
26:01So that's even another little microclimate.
26:06Unlike soil that contains organic matter, this crushed granite is inert, meaning it won't
26:11decompose or compact.
26:14So it's a great material to secure and stabilise our concrete pieces.
26:18We're trying to bed this in, and you have to get, not quite like an iceberg, but you want
26:23like a third to two thirds in the ground to give stability to big stones.
26:28Some of the little stones, it doesn't matter so much because they are sort of more or less
26:32decorative.
26:33And you do get solidity after a while.
26:35With water, it firms up.
26:37They become very stable, especially when the plants grow in between them.
26:41Because we're only creating a small mound on already flat ground, this method will do
26:46the trick.
26:47But if you're trying to retain a large volume of soil or working on a steep slope, you should
26:53always seek professional advice.
26:55And then now we're on the home stretch, aren't we?
26:59Are you thinking we leave this whole area as a void?
27:02Yeah, I think that works well.
27:04It balances with the crevices over there.
27:06And we can just pack that with plants and it'll retain it.
27:09Yeah.
27:10There we go.
27:11So I'll put this one to kind of match what's happening here somehow.
27:14Yeah, I think matching those other ones that are there.
27:17Yep, at the top.
27:18Yep.
27:18What about a little bit of native grass?
27:22Yep.
27:23Put the three in there.
27:24Yes.
27:25Beautiful, isn't it?
27:26Ah, they're such a good plant.
27:28Yep.
27:29So with this old cement, people often think, oh, I can't grow acid loving plants.
27:34But alkalinity is usually only a problem when you're using new concrete and pouring wet cement into the soil.
27:42I reckon this flower colour will tie in beautifully with that sedum.
27:46Whereabouts would you want these?
27:47I think because they're a little mounding plant, they'd fill in this little space in here.
27:52Yeah, right.
27:52A little clump.
27:52So maybe one kind of up in the...
27:55Yep.
27:55And then...
27:56Yeah.
27:57Excellent.
27:57Perfect.
27:59We're planting directly into the crushed granite.
28:02This low nutrient environment means plants won't explode with growth and are more likely to be quite compact, as they
28:09would on an exposed cliff or rocky mountain top.
28:13For that little overhang of concrete, we're going to use this.
28:16It's chloranthus and it's quite widespread on the southeast coast of Australia.
28:21It's a beautiful little mounding plant and I think it's going to look perfect in this crevice.
28:28Bill, I'm so taken with this as an idea because it just reminds me of so many Australian landscapes as
28:34well.
28:35Yeah, that's right.
28:35I think what's good about this is it starts making you look at the places you're visiting and you're seeing
28:41them really close up because you think, oh, how are the rock formations?
28:45What are the plants growing in that area?
28:47So it's actually really educational and you can incorporate in your bushwalk.
28:53It's true.
28:53And they're absolutely everywhere, these sorts of landscapes, from the top of, you know, Mount Kosciuszko right through to the
28:58beach.
28:59Yeah.
28:59I think one of my favourite ones is I lived down in Cape Shank and the rock face there, the
29:06plants that are just clinging on almost like bonsai in amongst the strata of rocks is just amazing.
29:15Now all the plants are in, Bill is covering the whole bed with gravel mulch.
29:19And Bill says the plants shouldn't get used to being watered like they are today.
29:24After this, they're on their own.
29:27What sort of care will this need over the next little period to settle the plants in?
29:32Basically, the best care for these plants is no care.
29:37Right from the start?
29:38Right from the start.
29:39Wow.
29:39Like be really tough.
29:41That's what we did with the rest of it.
29:42And also by not watering, you're not going to get the weeds at all growing because we've used that very
29:48nutrient reduced medium.
29:51So basically is quite low maintenance.
29:54You've got to be happy with that.
29:56It looks like it's always been here.
29:58Yeah, it's incredible.
29:59You can't see where we began and where we've ended and literally made from the material of the site.
30:04And one of the really good features of this is it allows if you've got a very flat new garden,
30:12you can create the vertical.
30:14So we've got a raised area, a mound, just creates a dynamism that you wouldn't normally have in a flat
30:20space.
30:21It's definitely worth giving a go at home.
30:23If you've got some materials in a spot, you've got to give it a crack.
30:28Crevice, crack.
30:34Still to come on Gardening Australia, Sophie is keeping it cool.
30:39I've planted this ornamental crimson glory vine because I know in a couple of years it will have grown up
30:45and over this structure and created amazing shade for summer.
30:49Josh prepares for an everlasting showstopper and we meet an artist connecting to the garden within.
31:05Plants are powerful.
31:07They shape the world around us.
31:09And when you combine them with some dedicated experts and community volunteers, you better stand back because something beautiful is
31:20brewing.
31:22Clarence is up in Newcastle checking out a project that's a real game changer.
31:3740 years ago, this pond was a rugby field, a landscape of dairy farming and a dumping ground for local
31:44industry.
31:46Then in stepped environmentalist Max Maddock with a vision to get as much people power as possible to create the
31:53Hunter Wetlands Centre here in Newcastle, New South Wales.
31:58Sadly, Max passed away in 2016.
32:01However, his daughter Michelle was with him every step of the way when Max established the site in the 1980s.
32:08So you've had a family connection here for quite some time?
32:10Yes.
32:11Yes.
32:11My dad was working at the university.
32:13We had our horses here.
32:19And he was watching egrets come into the Malaloopa Swamp.
32:22He recognised that it was a really important landscape and environment for the egrets and joined with other friends to
32:31save the Wetlands Centre.
32:32So re-establishing what is a really important ecosystem.
32:38Dad didn't do it on his own.
32:40Over the 40 years, I can't imagine the number of volunteers that have come.
32:45400,000 trees have been planted on the site.
32:48The Wetlands have been revegetated because they were just grassed on the edges so there were no reeds.
32:55Wetlands are doing so much for nature.
32:57They're filtering water.
32:58They're providing habitat.
32:59It's amazing how they're so undervalued.
33:02They certainly are.
33:0340% of the world's biodiversity is in wetlands and they are more endangered than our forests.
33:08They are critical to our environment.
33:12And being part of the estuary, we have a lot of local estuary wetlands and this is what we are
33:17here.
33:18Ours are really important because they're freshwater.
33:22Here we've got giant eels.
33:24We've got fish.
33:25We've got micro invertebrates.
33:26We've got the plant species that keep our water clean.
33:29It's just amazing the biodiversity that we have here.
33:43To get a closer look at the biodiversity of the wetlands, I'm going for a paddle on one of the
33:48estuary waterways guided by Jeff Nichols, a volley with over 30 years experience.
33:53This is a nice little creek system.
33:55Where are we?
33:55Well, we're on Ironbark Creek, which is the main western creek for Newcastle.
34:00And it flows into the Hunter River at Sandgate, which then goes into Newcastle Harbour and the ocean.
34:07We're actually adjacent to Hexham Swamp at the moment and there's 2,000 hectares of managed wetlands in there.
34:15It has been rescued to a far extent, enabling more tidal water to come in by opening the floodgates.
34:22And that's established mangroves to a far greater extent than they've been there for a good 40 to 50 years.
34:28And a lot of this has come back naturally with the tidal movement and the movement of the mangrove fruits
34:34in particular.
34:35Yes, well, we're actually paddling through a cluster of mangrove fruits at the moment.
34:39Very interesting fruits in themselves that they actually germinate on the mother plants.
34:43So they already have roots and a shoot before they fall off, which enables them then to be secure in
34:50the mud in a high tide and already probably start their establishment.
34:54So that's how come they can get established so quickly in a tidal zone.
34:58So there's distinct layers in the mangroves, but also you can see the distinct species here.
35:02That's right. And there are only two species and you can see that with those distinct features.
35:08You have the rounder shaped leafed mangrove at the front there is the river mangrove.
35:12And then towards the back, the taller one is the grey mangrove.
35:15I mean, it's the one that has the pneumatophores, the breathing roots that rise up above the high tide mark.
35:21Yeah. And they also work well together in the sense that they both don't fruit at the same time.
35:26So they don't compete, you know, for the mud banks in getting established.
35:31In the Newcastle region, there was quite well known that the Hunter River prawns were quite a delicacy.
35:37But over time they disappeared.
35:39And the reason was because they didn't have these backwaters in which to breed and get established.
35:44So with the opening of the floodgates here in the Ironbark Creek system, it's allowed all these mangroves to get
35:49established.
35:50And they're a really great safe habitat for those prawns and other aqua fauna that need sheltered waters and lots
35:57of detritus to feed on as well.
36:00So the healthy mangroves all mean also a healthy prawning and fishing industry in the Hunter River as well.
36:07Local mob here, the Awabagal and the Waramai, they would have loved this area, I'm sure.
36:12Well, yes, there's no doubt that this was a great foundation for living and culture over thousands of years.
36:20I mean, you've got rainforest and wetlands combined.
36:23You've got so much vegetation, as well as all the animals that live here, all the reptiles and the fish
36:29and the birds.
36:30It would have been such an abundant supply of food.
36:32There is talk that there were cultural gatherings here, corroborees that lasted over many nights.
36:38We have a midden on site where there's evidence of stone tools that come from the Bar Beach area on
36:44the coast.
36:45So this would have been a gathering place as well as a place that supported life for a very long
36:50time.
36:55Wetlands and the different types of wetlands provide a whole heap of services for nature, Geoff.
37:00They do indeed. I mean, they're known as being a habitat for migratory shorebirds, for example.
37:06Also within our wetlands, they provide safe nesting areas above water for annual nesting of egrets and ibis.
37:14There's also a great supply of food for the birds in fruits and nectars that you find in the plants
37:20that grow around the wetlands.
37:22The wetlands support over 200 species of birds.
37:27Magpie geese will locally extinct to the area, but after their reintroduction, they are now thriving.
37:35Take a walk in the wetlands and you'll see ibis or swans, along with herons, cranes and the rare freckled
37:43duck.
37:44The very start of Max's vision for the wetlands was plants man Paddy Lightfoot, who didn't seem to have a
37:51lot of choice about being recruited.
37:53So I was in the Australian Plant Society in 1983 and Max said,
37:59Right. He said, you're on the landscape committee.
38:03He did not say, have you got time? I was working full time in those days.
38:07Would you like to? No, just you're on the landscape committee.
38:11Here I am 40 years later.
38:15And you're able to germinate and propagate a lot of the species that you have on site here?
38:19We do. We've got two nurseries.
38:21One, which is the wetlands nursery.
38:23And we have another nursery, which is the Australian Plant Society nursery,
38:28where we grow anything from anywhere in Australia to show people what they can put in their gardens.
38:35Thinking about regeneration or revegetation, endemic species are crucial, aren't they?
38:40Absolutely. We've planted different areas.
38:43We have a Melaleuca swamp with Melaleucas around it.
38:47Melaleuca quinquenervia, paper bark.
38:50We also have Casuarina forest.
38:53Beautiful to walk through the tracks through the Casuarina forest, particularly in the August westerlies.
39:00And you have the wind through the branchlets of the Casuarinas.
39:04And education really is key, isn't it? Just showing particularly those different zones.
39:09Water-loving plants through the riparian, all the way into scrubland, bushland, forest, yeah?
39:15This is very important.
39:16And of course, this was Max Matic.
39:18He was an associate professor of education.
39:22And this was his whole scheme, was to educate the children.
39:27And that's the only way we're going to survive, is to have the young people educated.
39:33And part of that education is valuing these spaces that for so long were just backfilled
39:39and soared as having no value at all, but they are just so crucial.
39:42They are absolutely crucial.
39:44And the more population we get in dense populated areas,
39:49the more important these areas are for medical health.
39:53I'm a retired GP and I realise just how vital green spaces are for our future.
40:06One interesting bit I remember was a fellow called Richardson Barb Baker,
40:12who was a forester from England.
40:14And he said if aliens came to Earth, they would say what they liked best
40:20was the green people, the trees and the plants.
40:23I like that.
40:30Wetlands are an essential component of ecology and biodiversity.
40:34They are a sponge to help mitigate against floods, to filter water
40:38and a haven for plants and animals.
40:40They are an invaluable natural resource to help us connect to the living landscape
40:45to which we all belong.
40:58Creating a home in this arid environment has meant carefully designing our garden
41:03so that we can have shade on the house in summer,
41:05but also take advantage of the precious winter sunshine.
41:12Around the house I'm planting an ornamental garden,
41:15with lots of my favourite exotic plants, including several deciduous trees and vines.
41:23For creating shade I'm a big fan of grapevines,
41:27both the fruiting and the ornamental varieties.
41:29Both need a sunny position and a strong climbing structure.
41:40I've planted this ornamental crimson glory vine because I know in a couple of years
41:45it will have grown up and over this structure and created amazing shade for summer.
41:50It also produces spectacular autumn colour.
41:53Now the reason that I didn't go for fruiting vines here is because
41:57A, this is so high that I wouldn't be able to reach the bunches of grapes,
42:01but also with the wildlife pressure here I would have to net every bunch of grapes individually
42:07if I wanted to get the fruit.
42:19So many tasks in the garden are seasonal by nature,
42:23but I reckon some deserve the mantle of tradition,
42:27like sowing everlastings in autumn in anticipation of a sea of blooms come spring.
42:36Preparation for growing these native annuals is pretty straightforward.
42:41I want to create drifts of colour on my verge where they will get plenty of sunlight,
42:45so I'm starting with a bit of a tidy up of plants that need a prune to make some room,
42:50including cutting back these vicinia and kangaroo paws.
42:55I'm raking back the leaf litter and mulch to uncover the soil underneath.
43:01The species of everlasting that I'm planting is Rhodanth chlorocephala subspecies rosea,
43:08and you can see just how light and fluffy the seed is,
43:11and there's vermiculite mixed in with this seed to help with sowing.
43:15And when it comes to sowing it's just a matter of scattering it evenly on the ground,
43:21nice and close to the surface so it doesn't blow away.
43:26One gram of seed will cover around one square metre.
43:30If you want to prolong the flowering season, sow seed in different spots every few weeks through to mid-winter.
43:37Apply a light dressing of fertiliser,
43:41and a gentle water in to help the seed settle and prevent it from blowing away.
43:47Ideally, winter rains will be adequate to support healthy plant growth.
43:52But if there's a dry spell, give the plants a top-up water.
43:57Given the right conditions, growing everlasting is pretty trouble-free.
44:01The main thing to keep an eye out for is snails, especially when the plants are young.
44:06So, a little bit of investment now will result in an absolute riot of vivid colour come spring.
44:14It's a sight that brings joy to my heart.
44:27Just like plants, art connects us to so many things.
44:31Our environment, our history, to how we see the world.
44:35Our next story is with an artist weaving plants through all these elements to promote personal peace.
45:00The mind can go in a thousand directions, but on this beautiful path, I walk in peace.
45:09With each step, the wind blows.
45:14With each step, a flower bloom.
45:18By Thich Nang Han.
45:22This poem brings me to centre and home.
45:32Practice of yoga is very important to me.
45:37It's part of gardening to me.
45:43I am Hiromi Tango, and I am an interdisciplinary artist, and I call myself a gardener.
45:58I grew up in a traditional Japanese household.
46:04My grandmothers, both grandmothers are kimono makers and gardeners.
46:11So, I grew up with gardeners, and I'm so grateful for it.
46:18I do all sorts of gardening.
46:21I do love growing plants, growing flowers.
46:28This is my Monet garden, and the colour palette expand from this garden.
46:36And also, this is the garden I grow healing produce for my family.
46:43Easiest and common plants I propagate is tomatoes and capsicums.
46:51Because without choosing seasons, you eat capsicum, and you just have the centre of capsicum seeds.
47:02And with a little spoon, a tablespoon, shove into the soil and keep watering a few weeks.
47:09And we have seedlings.
47:11Other thing is the tomatoes, any seasons we could grow here in our environment.
47:20I tried strawberries and other things.
47:23A little bit more season sensitive, but we can grow that too.
47:28And spring onions are often, it's easy to, just after you use, you just keep some roots area into the
47:38ground,
47:39and it grows, and it flowers, and you keep the seeds, and you can grow more.
47:45Lavender, rosemary, Australian native too.
47:49We have pig face, we have ginger, and we just put that in the ground, and they just grow.
47:59Where I grew up in Chikoku Island, my family was growing everything by themselves, and we upcycling and recycling.
48:11So, for me, it is part of a strong identity of our culture.
48:20I also enjoy growing art gardens.
48:26Art garden is the garden of hope and garden of humanity.
48:34It is the garden to grow kindness.
48:40I usually ask community members to donate the clothes, which carries memories and feelings.
48:52Some of the fabric can be your grandmother's fabric, or your child's fabric.
49:01And we color categorize rainbow colors.
49:05And then we cut them in the different sizes, and utilize them as part of the flowers, seed, seedlings.
49:18Colors are very important, because it is light, and it is representation of nature.
49:30This project is called Garden Healing Together for Tweed Valley Hospital.
49:39I didn't want hospital to be a scary place.
49:42I wanted hospital to be a healing space, nurturing place, space for care.
49:49So, that's probably the background and hope of the project.
49:55Roots for Mount Couther Botanic Garden in Brisbane.
50:01It is the sculptural work made by bronze and fraud, the flowers of the palm tree in the botanic garden.
50:12So, each artwork has been made as a mold of bronze.
50:17And then I have connected them to make the healing seed to position the center of the artwork, circular artwork.
50:29The peony is the dream flower made for Brisbane Festival a couple of years ago.
50:37So, I wanted to create the flowers with many layers of petals, with all different sizes, different colors.
50:47So, I created this artwork with aluminium artwork.
50:52And when they are combined, it looks diverse rainbows.
51:01When I was a university student in Tokyo, when I was 21, I met my husband, Craig Walsh.
51:11And he was doing the artist residency in Tokyo.
51:16And I fell in love with him and his art.
51:20And I proposed to him, I want to marry you.
51:25For me, really important start to marry and commit to each other and grow.
51:33I came to Australia in 1998.
51:39Now, I'm nearly 50 years old.
51:43And I have teenager children.
51:46And nearly 30 years residing in Australia.
51:51And I found my voice, which is just right volume.
51:57Today, we are planting eucalyptus trees for creating koala corridor.
52:07And also planting other trees to protect eucalyptus trees.
52:13We are doing this because of the bushfire and flood.
52:18We used to see koalas, but through the bushfire and the flood, we stopped seeing them a few years ago.
52:28Koala's habitat has been endangered.
52:31A bit of rock here.
52:33And we love koalas, and we love to create the safe home for koalas.
52:38But we planted the tree a couple of years ago, and we saw beautiful two koalas this year,
52:45which really, really warms our heart.
52:50Nature is the most beautiful, most important thing for us.
52:56It's our heart space.
52:57Sorry, little worm.
53:00To me, gardening means nurturing, nourishment, care, deep listening, deep observations.
53:14Gardening is, to me, it is the most important element of life.
53:32Now's not the time to rest on your laurels.
53:35Your jobs for the weekend are ready and waiting.
53:43Cool temperate gardeners, have some fun with your food and sow some Romanesco broccoli seedlings.
53:49The freaky shape and loud lime colour of the florets are sure to be a winter winner.
53:55If sawfly larvae are clustering and attacking the foliage of your native plants,
54:00carefully cut off the small branchlets that harbour colonies and dispose of them.
54:05As indoor plants go, you can't beat a cyclamen for awesome autumn colour.
54:10Best in a cool, well-lit spot.
54:12They should be watered from the base, and they respond well to being popped outside overnight.
54:18In warm temperate gardens, autumn crocus are bursting out of their summer dormancy,
54:24with dazzling displays of dainty flowers.
54:27These cute corms are fantastic in rockeries.
54:31Persimmon fruits are starting to turn bright orange, so it's time to harvest.
54:35Non-astringent varieties can be eaten straight away,
54:38but let astringent fruits go soft and squishy before tucking in.
54:43I'm an astringent kind of guy.
54:46Show your climbing indoor plants some love this weekend,
54:49and pop together a totem using timber, coconut fibre and wire.
54:54Simple, effective, and your plants will be in totem control in no time.
55:00Subtropical gardeners, if you haven't planted onions yet, don't cry.
55:04You can still get them in.
55:05Go for early varieties that thrive in warmer climates,
55:09like gladiline brown or barletta for pickling.
55:12Chickweed can look like it's taking over, but don't despair.
55:15It's easy to pull out when it's young, and what's more, it's edible.
55:19Eat it raw or cooked, or give it to the chooks.
55:22As your beautiful banksias finish flowering, pinch and prune off the spent flowers.
55:27This will promote a fuller flush of flowers next season,
55:31and the spent flowers are great for craft projects.
55:35In the tropics, sow seed of hearting lettuce varieties,
55:39including butterhead or batavian,
55:41or loose oak leaf varieties like Australia's own Darwin,
55:44to make sure your salad days continue.
55:48Chinese lanterns are in flower now.
55:51These fast-growing, attractive evergreens grow well in the tropics
55:54and bear masses of hibiscus-like flowers for most of the year.
55:59There's a bit of wind about in the tropics,
56:02so whack in a windbreak for your most sensitive plants.
56:05A temporary but secure moveable structure's great,
56:09or plant a living windbreak.
56:11In arid zones, there's still warmth in the soil,
56:15so why not rock some roots like carrot and parsnip?
56:18Sow seed direct in a sunny spot and don't overfeed.
56:22You want to develop roots and shoots.
56:26Lech and Olsha are blooming now,
56:28and come in a range of full-on colours.
56:30These tough natives are ideal in containers and hanging baskets,
56:34and will reward you with masses of flowers for months.
56:38If you've got a spot for a fab fruit tree,
56:41why not try a Jujube?
56:43Self-pollinating, compact, upright trees that love arid climates.
56:48Their fruit is sweet, nutritious and delicious.
56:52Get out into the garden this weekend and make the most of it.
56:56For more inspiration, head to the Gardening Australia website
56:59full of tips, tricks and fact sheets.
57:09It's a wrap for another week,
57:11but the wheels are already turning for next time.
57:14Take a look.
57:17We all know how amazing Australian plants are,
57:20but of course they have evolved with amazing animals.
57:24And today I'm learning a little more about the emu
57:27and its role in Australia's ecology.
57:30I'm meeting a cactus grower
57:32whose retirement project has rapidly expanded
57:36into hundreds of thousands of these spiky delights.
57:40And whether your garden is wild, formal or themed,
57:44there's an Australian native to fit any garden brief.
57:48I'm visiting a nursery
57:49so you can see some mature plantings for inspiration.
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