Plants Grow Here - Horticulture, Landscape Gardening & Ecology

Have you ever done everything right when planting a tree, only to have it struggle or fail in the end? It might not have been your fault! You could have been installing sub-standard trees that were never going to do well because of the way they were grown in the pot. Jason Summers is an expert arboritst and horticulturist from Melbourne in Victoria. Formerly a city parks manager, he now runs Remar...

Are native and endemic plants better than exotic plants for biodiversity in urban landscapes? The answer is, it depends. By now, you expect a nuanced exploration into complex ideas like this when you tune into the Plants Grow Here podcast. As a qualified horticulturist with well over a decade in landscape maintenance and horticulture, it bothers me when I see overly simplistic statements like, &qu...

Yeah, yeah yeah - right plant, right place. But what does this old cliche mean in the real world? In this episode, I break down the old concept into site parameters (restrictions) and plant functions (desirable traits). Site Parameter Examples Available space Temperature Frost Wind Altitude Humidity Topography Substrate Mulch Average rainfall Drought Irrigation Sunlight Salt Micro climate Aspect S...

Welcome to part 3 of our horticulture trial series. In the last two episodes, Dr Ian Smith helped us understand how to plan a scientific horticulture trial, and how to collect our data. In this episode, we're going to learn how to make sense of that data and put it to use. If you haven't listened to the previous two episodes yet, perhaps go and start at episode 205 before beginning this...

In last week's episode, friend of the show Dr Ian Smith taught us how to set up a horticulture trial. In this episode, he's going to teach us how to run a trial as well as how to collect and record data. The scientific approach is a disciplined way of finding the truth of the matter. Instead of going by our beliefs, we strip ourselves of preconceptions and endeavour to find the fact of t...

How are you trialling new approaches in the landscape? If you're like me, you're writing notes in an app (at best), or you're just keeping all of your ideas in your head (at worst). Did you know there's a better way? It's called the scientific approach, and it'd been pretty beneficial for society as a whole. Instead of approaching horticulture in a haphazard way, you...

How can we protect trees during development? In this episode, consulting arborist Gary Moran and I explore his usual recommendations for clients wishing to protect their trees during development, whether that's for a private, commercial, or public project. Trees might take a long time to show stress, so just because it looks great when construction finishes, that doesn't mean the tree ha...

A sound understanding of hardscape elements is a good feather in the cap for any horticulturist, maintenance operator, or garden enthusiast. Sadly, most of us never get a chance to learn about this part of the garden because we only get to play in the dirt. In this episode, Joel Barnett (In Style Gardens, The Landscaping Podcast) guides us through some of the most common mistakes that people const...

I don't talk about myself much on this podcast - we tend to stick to the art and science of horticulture and interrelated disciplines. But I was recently interviewed by Joel Barnett about my recent move from Melbourne to Brisbane and the reasons behind it, my career journey, and the fact that my wife Kirstie and I are expecting a baby later this year. It was a great chat and I'm looking...

Everybody wants a silver bullet for plant pests and diseases, but they usually end up causing more issues than they solve in the long run. Integrated Pest Management, or IPM, is an approach to managing pests in accordance with nature's rhythms. Instead of reaching straight for a chemical control, we can influence a number of factors that put pests on the back foot without harming the local ec...

Most people wouldn't consider a permaculture mindset for a public park or an ornamental garden. But that's a missed opportunity, because it could help individuals, organisations and councils reduce their maintenance budgets while increasing plant health and positive biodiversity outcomes. The 12 principles of permaculture can be applied whether or not you're growing food. They'...

This week, we're celebrating 200 episodes! My mentor, Karen Smith, editor of Hort Journal Australia, interviews me about my picks for the "best" 10 episodes. To pick only 10 episodes was an impossible task, but I've narrowed it down to a few essential chats that I believe all my listeners should listen to at least once. From Integrated Weed Management (IWM) to magical musical p...

Did you get a chance to see Peter Donegan's phenomenal garden design A Moment In Time at the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show (MIFGS) this year? We spoke about it in Ep.181 A Daydream Supported By A Series of Equations, but I wanted to touch in after the event finished to get his perspective on how everything went, and if he actually managed to pull off installing a real fighter...

The Melbourne International Flower & Garden Show has wrapped for another year! In this episode, I interview  the designers behind three show garden highlights from this year's Show. We'll get to hear the inspiration behind the story and message behind each of their gardens, and we'll chat about their creative choices with materials and plant palettes.   EPISODE LINKS Daniel Alth...

The Melbourne International Flower & Garden Show has wrapped for another year! Each year, we like to interview some of the garden designers to get an insight into what ideas, philosophies, trends, and plants are floating in the cultural zeitgeist. Friend of the show, Dr Ian Smith interviews some of the Boutique, Achievable and Border garden designers. He also shares his impressions of some of...

A garden is never finished. It's going to change throughout the year, and the seasons. It should be getting better over time instead of worse. And it should also provide you with multiple yields, whether that's a food crop, supporting biodiversity, reducing soil salinity, providing shade, making the space appear larger, or simply bringing you joy. It's easy to roll your eyes when yo...

Sydney. Or, click the AIH events link below. Diptera (flys) The Good Hoverfly Robber flies The bad Leaf miners Fruit flies (not vinegar flies) The inbetween Blowflies, bottle flies and house flies Fungus gnats Coleoptera (Beetles) Beneficials Ladybird (Coccinellidae) Ground beetles (Carabidae) Rove beetle (Staphylinidae) The neutrals Plague Soldier Beetle The Bads Leaf and flea beetles Scarabaeida...

Have you ever wondered whether plants can communicate? And if they can, how do they do so? Katia Hougaard is back, and this time we explore the science behind plant communication. We discuss VOCs, plant blood tests, visual signs, sounds, Venus fly traps, predators, pests, and much more. We even ponder what science has yet to prove or disprove regarding plant communication using the Music of the Pl...

In this episode, we go over more than a dozen topics quickly, based around the Hort Journal's editor's best article picks for 2023. Karen Smith is my mentor and also the editor for our Australian horticulture industry's best magazine, and she has her finger on the pulse when it comes to amenity hort in this country. You'll hear about emerging pest problems, weed potentiality in...

In this episode, I interview Paul Plant about what we're getting wrong as a whole industry when working with wholesale nurseries in particular, and how we can tighten up our game. I wanted to know stuff like, how are miscommunications and poor choices costing landscapers, arborists and horticulturists time, money, and project efficiency? Are horticultural qualifications necessary for a career...

Have you ever worked for a company that took horticultural excellence seriously within the landscape design, construction and maintenance sectors? This episode is a case study on a company called Yards, which was started by a connection of mine from the AIH, Ben French. In this episode, I interview him and two of his staff, Amanda and Dale, about what they're doing differently to other compan...

Do you know how to assess a tree's health and safety? And do you know how to do so in a systematic way to ensure you don't miss any major clues? This episode is designed to teach non-arborists within the landscape and horticulture sector what to look for when inspecting trees. What signs tell us that a tree is doing well? And what signs tell us we need to contact an AQF Level 5 consultin...

Have you ever tendered for a property development project, only to be rejected for some unknown reason? Why is it that some people are able to win work from property developers, while others seem to struggle with this type of client? It may have something to do with your ability to meet them on their own wavelength. Sometimes, as horticulturists, ecologists, landscape architects and landscapers, w...

Do you know the secret to controlling rabbits within the landscape? Whether you're responsible for a public park, a farm, or a private property that's home to these garden-destroying pests, you'll want to control them in the most ethical way possible. The secret is a decisive, multi-pronged operation designed to wipe them all out in a single season. There are a number of methods to...

Would you like to make a little extra money on the side working in horticulture media? Maybe you're looking for a new career pathway to dive into? Freelancing in horticulture media means that you're working under your own ABN with multiple businesses. In this episode, you'll learn technical info related to writing, creating and editing videos, and running your own show. You'll...