Written and edited by Tammy 23nd November 2023
With less than 5 weeks to go now to Christmas the race is on to have our menus planned, presents wrapped and stacked and have our gardens looking amazing ready for the arrival of family and friends! With so much vibrant colour to choose from at this time of the year it can be a little overwhelming deciding what to plant thats going to be easy care, hardy, low maintanance AND look amazing! So what can we put in??
#1 - Annual Colour
If instant colour is what you want, you can't go wrong with some summer time annuals. You'll find a few different price and size options available from small punnets of seedlings, through to larger potted colour. One of the most popular summer time annuals is the Petunia. Petunias are available in mulitude of varieties, colours, shapes and sizes. From stripes and speckled, to antiques, pastles, brights and bolds.
Along with petunias, you'll find Vincas, Impatiens, Dianthus, Calabrachoe, Cosmos, Chrysanthums, Alyssum, Snapdragons, Begonias, Portulacas, Salvias and more.
Most of them will be happy in a full sun to part shade location in a rich, organic, moist but free draining soil. If you're planting them in pots, be sure to use a premium quality potting mix.
Keep them well fed with a slow release all purpose fertiliser, and regularly pop some Seasol health treatment and Powerfeed, or charlie carp in the watering can to encourage continual blooming, and keep them robust and healthy.
You're only limited by your own imagination how you'd like to group and grow them too. You could go for mass plantings of colour throughout your garden, or pops of colour arranged and cascading out of pots and containers.
#2 - Poinsettias
If you're wanting something else a little more 'traditionally Christmas' originating from Mexico is the Poinsettia Euphorbia pulcherrima.
Poinsettias always put in an appearance at the beginning of the festive season, it just woundn't be christmas without seeing them somewhere. Vibrant reds, dusky pinks, greens and whites. Smaller dwarf varieties grow between 25-50cm tall while others planted out in the ground can potentially reach in excess of 3 meters tall. When pruning and dead heading, be mindful not to get the milky white sap on you, it's toxicity can cause rashes and allergic reactions in some people.
Growing requirements
Poinsettias need a bright light but protection from the hot afternoon sun.
Rich, organic, free draining soil, or quality premium potting mix for pots or containers.
Water regularly to maintain moisture. Too wet will cause root rot, while drying out too much will result in wilt and foliage drop.
Give regular applications of soluble fertiliser alongside a controlled slow release.
#3 - Hydrangeas
Hydrangeas are another stunner coming into their own right now. Deciduous, they begin flowering in November and continue right through to February. Their masssive blooms in cool shades of snowy whites, dreamy pinks, blues and violets scream out femininity and contrast beautifully against their large, lush leafy green foliage. Perfect as show pieces in pots, or in those dappled shaded spots at the back of the garden bed to entice you in further.
Growing requirements
Hydrangeas thrive in cooler climates.
They prefer a rich fertile moist but free draining soil.
An ideal plant for a shaded, sheltered spot such as under a tree where they'll receive dappled shade and protection from the hotter afternoon sun.
They require regular applications of soluable fertiliser alongside a controlled slow release tailored to acid loving plants.
Mulch generously beneath them with composted animal manure and straw to add nutrition, insulation from the heat and aid water retention.
#4 - Bromeliads
Unique, and a tad exotic, Bromeliads bring a touch of flair to Christmas time with their vibrant bold colours and unusual shaped flowers. Grow them in pots, a shaded spot in the garden, or give them as a living gift.
Bromeliads are epiphytic, in their natural habitat they're co-dependent on other plants for support, and they derive their nutrients and water from the air and rain. Think of staghorns, elkhorns, mosses and orchids.
Growing requirements
Suitable for indoors and outdoors, but keep in mind they are frost and cold sensitive so if growing outdoors, plant them in a protected spot or be prepared to move or cover them if need be.
Water requirements, bromeliads have what is known as a 'vase' or 'vessel', where the foliage whorls around the flower in the centre creating like a tunnel. Keep water in the vessel, and keep the soil damp but not wet.
If growing in pots use an orchid mix as it's course and free draining. If growing outdoors in the garden, give them a dappled shaded spot in a rich organic but free draining soil.
#5 - Adenanthos sericeus (woolly bush)
Perhaps you'd like a christmas tree that's there in your yard all year round that you can bring in and decorate when it's time to. If that's the case then a Adenanthos sericeus is the plant for you. Also known as a 'Woolly bush' obvious why, when you see and feel the foliage.
Velvety soft, they're an Australian native with quite a nice uniform upright growth habit-hence they're often used as an alternative Christmas tree. In the ground they can potentially reach upto three meters in height and almost as wide, obviously they won't get that big in a pot. Happy in a full sun to part shade location, they're not fussy about soil quality providing it's free draining. You won't need to frett too much about fertiliser either, they don't require much and when they do, it's crucial to use a fertiliser that's specifically for natives which is low in phosphorus.
Don't be affraid to get a little creative, if you have a Callistemon looking stunning right now, why not weave a set of fairy lights through it and make it the star of your show.
Whatever it is you decide to do in you garden this season for 'Christmas cheer' just be sure you enjoy doing it, after all that's what christmas is all about, and thats what gardening is all about too!
Happy gardening! 😘🎄🍒
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