Plants in Season – Autumn and Early Winter

There can never be an excuse for a dormant garden. Even in the coldest months there will be some plants that venture out to cheer the winter cold. As the summer days cool down and summer flowers fade another wave of colour invades the garden.

1. Autumn colours glow as the leaves of the Japanese maples turn to fiery red, crimson and gold. The scarlet pistacia , the golden liquid amber , the yellow ginko tree , in colder areas the pin oak will turn a brilliant scarlet and the orange leaves of the crepe myrtles make a last splash of colour in defiance of the winter to come.
2. Gordonias litter the ground with their huge white, yellow centred flowers, as they mingle with the pink camellia sasanquas blooms.
3. Early azaleas spot flower and the brilliant blue skybush , ceratostigma , fill the shrubbery with colour.
4. Japanese windflowers fill the shaded spots with colour, while chrysanthemums and Easter daisies dance in the sun.
5. While up North the gardenias are making a last performance, filling the air with their fragrant cream flowers, further south the bottle brush are displaying a wonderful burst of autumn colour.
6. Roses are creating a final display where they have been fed and trimmed over the past few weeks. One last display in time for Mothers day.
7. Nothing can rival the cymbidium orchids that send up spikes of flower in early winter. Make sure that the plants are moved from the shade into stronger light where they will develop their flower spikes.
8. As winter comes on the native gardens come alive with Kangaroo paws , banksias , native fuchsias , croweas , early boronias , bright blue or scarlet leschenaultia , Payne’s thryptomene covered in tiny pink flowers, all demure under the magnificence of the Queensland Firewheel Tree.
9. Poinsettias are starting to create their brilliant terminal bracts of scarlet leaves that will host the tiny yellow clusters of flowers. Make sure to leave the plants alone without trimming to promote the maximum flower heads.
10. Garden beds, pots, tubs and hanging baskets are soon filled with early pansies , violas and polyanthus that can be planted over the top of spring flowering bulbs.
11. Fences, pergolas and trellis are covered with velvety yellow allamanda, salmon pink Antigonon , the tiny scarlet and yellow Manettia , or the wonderful autumn colour of the ornamental grape and Virginian creeper , that will last until the violet, pink or white hardenbergia bursts into flower.
12. Kalanchoes are waiting to fill the rockeries and courtyard gardens with colour as the temperature cools and the days grow shorter. These small succulent plants should be kept away from the artificial light that spills from the house. They will flower for weeks with scarlet, orange, pink, lavender and cream flowers.
13. Hanging baskets of Zygo cactus create a waterfall of colour as their multi coloured buds open. Make sure that you keep the plants out of streetlights and household windows. They will only flower when they have the darkness of night longer than the day. Electric lights keep them awake!
14. Vegetables are always on the go. Picking and planting is the name of the game. As you pick the last of the tomatoes , basil , beans , corn , zucchinis , pumpkins and melons , plant the next crop of cabbage , cauliflower , broccoli , spinach , onions , broad beans and strawberries .