Homes

It doesn’t take much to make a difference to your family’s recycling habits. Chances are, you already put your old papers in the allocated bin and rinse out your used tins and put them in the recycling, but there are more ways to help the environment. What can you recycle? The usual recycling items include […]

“Grow herbs,” said the girl at the nursery helpfully to the customer standing next to me. “Herbs don’t need watering. They just look after themselves.” Like heck, they do! Okay, most of the herbs we use in cooking survive nicely on Mediterranean hillsides with no water other than what falls from the sky. But they […]

What a great feeling after a long winter to be able to throw open the windows, discard a few layers of clothing and catch a few rays of warm spring sunshine. Spring is a time that inspires most of us to wash the windows, clean the car, repaint the fence and give every room in […]

A few hundred years ago, you needed a fortune to fill your larder with spices. They were brought by sailing ship from the “spice islands”, and tasted of adventure and luxury. These days cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, etc, can be bought for a few dollars at the supermarket: tired, elderly spices months or, more likely, years […]

**”Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer do. I’m half-crazy, all for the love of you” — ‘Daisy Bell’ by Harry Dacre.** If I were to choose one bush that would give flowers for most of the year, or even all year round in frost-free climates, tolerate drought and grow from a cutting stuck into the […]

For many years, the first thing I did when I came home was eat a passionfruit. When I was small, a passionfruit vine grew over our outdoor toilet, in the days before the last of the Brisbane suburbs were connected to the sewerage system. By the time I was in high school, our passionfruit vine […]

By the time your children reach Year 12, they will have spent nearly 14,500 hours at school (12 years of 40 weeks a year, five days a week, six hours a day), so it’s best to make sure their schoolyard is a stimulating environment, with flowers, grass, leaves and trees. Not only is gardening fun […]

Once upon a time gardeners believed that flowers and herbs had more power if gathered by moonlight – especially if you planted them for spells and potions. Maybe this was because some plants are more fragrant at night, as they try to attract night flying moths and other insects. Cool moist air also seems to […]

Time for tea Real hot chocolate Spiced tea punch Mint tea Chai tea Peach iced tea Kisses Little chocolate tarts Slice and bake biscuits Tangy lemon squares Gluten-free chocolate cake Sponge ricotta slice Homemade monte carlo biscuits Breakfast in bed Brunch, lunch or simple supper Recipes the kids can cook Scrumptious salads Family feasts Just […]

Brunch, lunch or simple supper Tropical fruit salad with lime syrup Creamed rice Bacon and egg fillo pies Easy cheese soufflès Skewered lemon prawns Breakfast in bed Time for tea Recipes the kids can cook Scrumptious salads Family feasts Just desserts

Recipes the kids can cook Macaroni cheese Baked bean jaffles Cheese twists Chicken salsa wraps Egg and bacon muffins Tomato, olive and rocket pasta Chicken pitta pockets White chocolate oat biscuits Rocky road slice Choc-chip blueberry muffins Breakfast in bed Time for tea Brunch, lunch or simple supper Scrumptious salads Family feasts Just desserts Still […]

Scrumptious salads Prosciutto, pear and blue cheese salad Light Caesar salad Roasted tomato salad Spicy eggplant salad Creamy potato salad Rocket, avocado and macadamia salad Mediterranean chicken salad Tomato, olive and herb salad Warm tuna salad with lemon dill dressing Salad nicoise Breakfast in bed Time for tea Brunch, lunch or simple supper Recipes the […]

Family feasts Veal cordon bleu Slow-roasted lamb with lemon and potatoes Garlic mustard rack of lamb Lamb with garlic aioli and potato fondant Rosemary and garlic lamb Pork Pork with pear chutney and pumpkin mash Oven-baked risotto with Italian sausages Rack of pork with apple sauce Chicken Chicken with mustard and rosemary Roast chicken with […]

Just desserts Mum’s caramel pavlova Easy passionfruit coconut tart Old-fashioned rustic apple pie Mixed berry & museli cheesecake Lusciously light chocolate mousse Strawberries with lemon sorbet Caramel self-saucing pudding Black forest cake Rhubarb and blackberry crumble Moist lemon cake Coffee fudge self-saucing pudding French fruit flan Dark chocolate truffles Breakfast in bed Time for tea […]

Instead of chocolates or flowers for your Mum this Mother’s Day, make your gift a gift for breast cancer research… Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer-related death in women in Australia. Around one in 10 women will be diagnosed with this disease. Although it can affect all adult women, it is very […]

Sometimes you come across a plant that you’ve ignored for years, and realise it’s so absolutely perfect that you don’t know why you haven’t planted hundreds of them years ago. I had one of those moments two years ago, when I looked at a friend’s nerines. I’d never even thought of growing any before – […]

You see them in every gardening magazine – page after page of autumn glories, trees in every shade of red, orange, purple, gold and yellow. But sadly in Australia you need ‘two jumpers and a pair of long Johns’ winters to really get great autumn foliage – and even then, the chances are that your […]

I hated cabbage till the day I discovered they didn’t have to be boiled. Boiled cabbage looks like wet washing — and smells a lot worse. But stir—fried cabbage, with garlic and olive oil and a touch of soya sauce, is wonderful or, better still, broccoli or brocollini with olive oil and lemon juice, steamed […]

This is not a reason to pull out your paving, or not all of it. (I have paving around the house too – it’s also a great way to see the snakes before they see us.) Instead, try cooling your paving down so you gain all the great advantages of paving, minus the heat. Plant […]

Did you know that you’re a whopping five times more likely to be injured at home than in work – and car – related accidents combined? Here are 10 commonsense tips to reducing your risk over the holidays. 1 Don’t trip Secure carpet edges and put non-slip mats under rugs. Tie electrical cords together and […]

What do you get the person who has everything? A gift from the garden of course! Jackie French shares her favourite homemade Christmas presents. Christmas used to be a midwinter feast – a time to brighten up the darkest winter with all the good things from the harvest. And somehow – among all the other […]

Lighting a stick of incense might fill your home with fragrance, but research indicates that it could also harm your health. According to a study published in the medical journal Cancer, being frequently exposed to burning incense over long periods of time increases the risk of being diagnosed with upper respiratory tract cancers. In the […]

The question of whether plastics can harm human health has been debated for years. Pamela Allardice has the latest. According to chemical manufacturers, plastics industry associations and bodies like the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), plastics are safe when used correctly. However, some experts are concerned by research which shows that certain compounds in […]

When your life is hectic it’s time to just sit and enjoy your garden — a place of serenity where the bustle of the outside world is stilled. Or at least that’s what a garden can be like. Too often, though, the thought of ‘time in the garden’ means weeding, watering, mowing — the very […]

According to new information released by The World Health Organisation, the air we breathe in our own homes could be more harmful to our health than the pollution we’re exposed to outdoors. The World Health Organisation believes indoor air pollution is one of the top 10 risks for global disease, with recent Australian studies continuing […]

Ever looked up at a block of flats, all bare and boring…and seen one that looked like a small piece of paradise among the concrete? Anyone can have a glorious balcony or patio. It just needs a bit of planning- and five minutes work a week. Choose the right plants. Balconies get hotter, colder, and […]

In old gardens- ones planted at least thirty years ago- you’ll often find a strange tall tree, with big leathery leaves and clumps of round orange fruit each spring, much loved by birds and flying foxes. Often new owners will cut the tree down and plant a nice gaudy azalea in its place, or at […]

One dreary winter’s day… One dreary office desk… Add one pot of bright pink cyclamen… Okay, you won’t get a miracle, but I bet you’ll get at least a smile every time you look at those ridiculously pink pink PINK blooms peering up over the leaves. Winter flowering cyclamens brighten up any office desk, kitchen […]

Camellias are perhaps our best loved winter bloomer, cheering up many a grey winter day. But often gardeners wonder why next door’s camellia is covered with blooms, while their’s rarely has a flower, or looks brown leafed and dingy. The answer? Many gardeners don’t know what sort of camellia they’re growing. But a camellia is […]

A gorgeous garden costs money – or does it? All our garden plants once grew wild – and managed to create new plants all by themselves. Some of today’s plants are hybrids – if you collect their seed they won’t grow like their parents. But a surprising number of common garden plants are veryeasy to […]

Images courtesy of Kerrie Hess.

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Want a gorgeous big flower that blooms in sun or light shade, doesn’t need watering, pruning, weeding or feeding, and will refuse to die even if a semi-trailer backs over it? Then you need some agapanthus. Agapanthus are among the most generous bloomers about but… (there are always ‘buts’ in the gardening world!): ‘But’ number […]

Palms are tough. I once saw a photo of part of Hawaii after a tsunami had passed over it. Only the palms were still standing! Most palms grow fast, too. Some accept any amount of tropical heat; others adore the cold. Some need water, and some accept years of drought. In other words, there’s a […]

When to plant your roses Now — spring to early summer. Because most roses bloom most magnificently in spring, so you can see them in bloom to choose which one you want to buy. Winter is the time to buy bare root roses, ones that have been dug out of the ground when they are […]

Shade Roses won’t bloom in dense shade. Check they haven’t been overgrown by a tree or shrub. Roses grown against the house wall may be shaded by the eaves as they grow taller. Prune them lower or cut away vegetation around them. Starvation If the flowers are small or lose their petals after a day […]

Frost-free climates Plants for beauty: Seeds or seedlings of ageratum, alyssum, amaranthus, carnations, celosia, coleus, cosmos, dichondra, echinops, erigeron, gaillardia, gazania, gloxinia, gourds, hymenosporum, impatiens, nasturtiums, phlox, salvia. Very hot and dry gardens: move a shade cloth to cover veggie and flower gardens now to shelter them from the worst of the heat, pull out […]

Hanging baskets are a cheat’s way to get early flowers. Baskets heat up faster than soil in the ground and you can hang them over nice hot paving, beside brick walls or on warm patios too. In fact you can REALLY cheat and buy your flowers already blooming – just bung them in the basket […]

Chokoes are a no-fail veg. Starve them, forget them, and they’ll still give you an autumn filled with so much fruit you’ll be pestering the neighbors to take some and looking up recipes for choko chutney, choko pie, choko and ginger jam (which isn’t bad, actually). My favourite way of eating chokoes depends on growing […]

Mooch around your garden before breakfast and see where it’s coldest, where frost has gathered, or where there seems to be a sunny, sheltered patch. Most gardens have these “microclimates” – cold spots where bulbs may thrive, warm spots where heat-lovers will thrive. Warm yourself up with some heavy work in the garden – dig […]

Frost-free climates Plants for beauty: any ornamental shrub in the nursery; seeds or seedlings of alyssum, Californian poppy, calendula, cleome, coleus, gerbera, helichrysum, honesty, impatiens, kangaroo paw, marigold, pansy, petunias, phlox, salvia, sunflower, Swan River daisy, torenia, zinnia. Temperate Plants for beauty: Bare-rooted or potted roses and other deciduous shrubs; seeds of alyssum, calendula, heartsease, […]

Which variety? Grow at least two varieties, or three, for better pollination, and choose Hass as one of those, as it ripens much later than the others so you’ll get fruit for longer. Avocadoes are VERY easy to grow from seed – but you MAY need two varieties to cross-pollinate each other or you won’t […]

Wondering how to grow kiwi fruit in Australia? Look no further.

Mulberries can be delicious, if they’re perfectly ripe and from a good tree. They will also stain clothes, fingers and paving, but that’s no excuse for not growing them – just bung them down the backyard where the kids can climb the tree and eat the fruit – just make sure they’re wearing old clothes […]

Which variety? Eureka lemons give year round fruit – a thick skinned, tough cold and heat resistant lemon. Most other lemons give most of their fruit in winter. Lisbon has the most beautiful flavour and aroma. How to grow Lemons need sun, frost protection and dislike wind, relatively rich soils and a reasonably constant supply […]

Which variety Usually only Nelly Kelly is a available – a good, vigorous passionfruit. Avoid seedlings, as they don’t grow as strongly as grafted ones. Banana passionfruit are best for cooler areas, with long yellow fruit, not as sweet as the black ones. In tropical areas try Granadillas too. How to grow My favourite passionfruit […]

Frost-free climates Plants for beauty: alyssum, Californian poppy, calendula, cleome, coleus, gerbera, helichrysum, honesty, marigold, pansy, petunias, phlox, salvia, sunflower, sweet peas, torenia, zinnia. Temperate Plants for beauty: seeds of alyssum, calendula, English daisy (pictured), heartsease, lunaria; seedlings of evening primrose, gazanias, Iceland poppy, love-lies-bleeding, pansies, polyanthus, primulas, sweet peas, viola. Cold Plants for beauty: […]

Turn those horrible stretches of concrete out the back or front of the house into flowers and greenery with these six tricks to make your balcony flourish.

The big question's been popped, but now what? We found the best online sources to make planning almost as fun as the big day.

In a real family home with real kids, no room is sacred. It’s a myth that you can contain them and their gear and continue life as carefree grown-ups. It simply will not happen. The trade-off, however, is that a home without them would be less vibrant. It would lack the spontaneity and excitement that […]