• A burst of flowering can sometimes be induced in bottlebrush by giving them a feed of native plant fertilizer and a deep watering if natural rainfall has been absent.
•Spring and summer flowering climbers such as Pandorea and Hardenbergia can be tidied up with a light trim now.
•Collect seed of everlasting daisies such as Xerochrysum and Rhodanthe species now for sowing in autumn for a brilliant spring display.
•Join your local branch of the Australian Plant Society. Local members are a wealth of information, inspiration and propagation material!
•Tidy up red flowering gums (Corymbia ficifolia and its hybrids), most of which will have finished flowering by now. Unless you want to keep the gumnuts forming on the tree cut 20-30cm behind them. Leaving them on the tree provides a different year round ornamental look but does tend to inhibit next year’s flowering.
•Encourage a bushy growth habit in trees and shrubs by tip pruning them – pinch out the soft terminal shoots with your finger and thumb.
•Root and collar rot is common in a wide range of natives in humid climates at this time of year. Treat with a registered fungicide if well-watered plants start to show signs of wilting and going off-color.
