Winter is here, Garden Gang 🌿

Time to rug up, head outside and give your garden a little cold‑season love!

June is a fantastic month to set your garden up for a lush, healthy spring! This is especially the case here in Eltham and across Nillumbik, where cool nights, damp soil and occasional frosts all play a role. Here’s what you can be doing in your garden now:

Mulching & Composting for Winter

Mulch is your garden’s winter blanket.

In our area’s clay and loam soils, winter mulch helps to:

• Protect roots from cold and frost
• Reduce weed growth
• Improve soil structure as it breaks down
• Keep soil biology active over the cooler months

What to use:

• Fine pine bark or mixed bark mulches work great around ornamentals, natives and trees.
• Pea straw or sugar cane are perfect for vegie beds and fruit trees.
• Leaf litter and homemade compost is ideal under established shrubs and garden beds.
  

Aim for a layer around 5–7 cm thick, keeping mulch a few centimetres away from plant stems and trunks to prevent rot!

Ask our team in-store about the best mulch for your garden type. We stock a wide range suitable for local conditions so we are sure to have one that will work for you!

Winter composting tips:

• Keep your compost heap covered to stop it getting waterlogged.
• Alternate layers of “green” material (kitchen scraps, fresh prunings) with “brown” material (dry leaves, shredded paper, straw).
• Turn it every few weeks to keep it aerated. Cooler temperatures mean it might break down more slowly in winter, but it’s still working away generating heat in the centre of the pile.

Winter Planting & Revegetation

Winter is prime time for planting in Eltham and Nillumbik, especially for:

• Natives and revegetation species
• Trees and shrubs
• Hedging and screening plants
• Winter vegies and hardy herbs
  

Cooler temperatures and more rainfall helps new plants settle in with less stress, meaning roots can quietly establish now and really take off in spring.

Revegetation season

Help support local wildlife and biodiversity by choosing plants native to our region, such as:

• Groundcovers: Dichondra, Native Violet, Running Postman
• Shrubs: Grevillea, Correa, Westringia, Melaleuca
• Trees and larger shrubs: Acacia (Wattles), Eucalyptus, Banksia, Hakea

Revegetation planting is generally left to its own devices after an initial watering or two, hence why it is a good idea to get the plants in ahead of Spring to allow sufficient root development to help them survive the harsh Summer conditions.

We can guide you to plants that suit Nillumbik’s bush block, suburban or riverside conditions, and help you choose species that attract birds, bees and butterflies. Just pop in-store and ask one of the team!

Don't forget to give your plants the best chance of establishment success by protecting them with plant guards. Multiple options are available, depending on your budget and situation. Check out our range of revegetation and erosion control products here!

In the vegie patch:

June is a great time to plant:

• Broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale
• Spinach & silverbeet
• Onions & garlic
• Broad beans & peas

Improve beds with compost and well‑rotted manure before planting, and mulch lightly to keep soil friable but not soggy.

Dealing with Winter Weeds

Winter is weed season in our region because the cool, damp conditions are perfect for growth.

Common winter weeds you might spot include:

• Onion grass
• Oxalis
• Cape weed
• Winter grass in lawns
  

Control tips:

• Hand weeding: After rain, when the soil is soft, is the easiest time to pull weeds by hand or with a weeding tool.
• Mulch bare soil: A good mulch layer dramatically cuts down new weed seedlings.
• Lawns: For winter grass and other lawn weeds, choose lawn-safe treatments and follow the label carefully.
• Persistent weeds (like oxalis): Often need repeated removal; avoid cutting bulbs into small pieces, which can spread them.
  

Bring a sample (sealed in a bag) or clear photo into ID Garden Centre and our team can help you identify the weed and recommend the most suitable control method – including organic options. Check out our range of weeding options here!

Preparing Now for a Big Spring

A little planning in June means a lot less rushing around when the weather warms up.

1. Pruning & tidying

• Remove dead, diseased or crossing branches from deciduous trees and shrubs.
• Lightly shape shrubs that have finished autumn flowering.
• Hold off major pruning of spring‑flowering plants (like some camellias and ornamental blossom trees) until after they’ve finished flowering later on.
  

2. Feed your soil

Think “feed the soil now, feed the plants later”:

• Add compost, manure and soil conditioners to tired beds.
• Top up worm farms and spread castings lightly around fruit trees and vegie beds.
• Use slow‑release fertilisers suited to your plant types (natives, roses, citrus, lawn, etc.), so nutrients are available when growth kicks back in.
  

3. Plan your spring colour

Use winter to sketch or visualise your spring display:

• Decide where you’d like bulbs, flowering annuals or new shrubs.
• Consider pollinator‑friendly plants to support bees and beneficial insects.
• Make a list of gaps in your garden so you can pick the best plant for the right spot to give you the impact you desire.

Our team can help you plan your garden beds, come in and have a chat.

What's new in-store?

INTRODUCING OUR NEW GARDEN CENTRE MANAGER

Please give a warm welcome to our new store manager, Andrew.

You'll find him here five days a week, keeping everything in order and the wheels turning. He is thorough and believes if something is worth doing, then it should be done properly (hear, hear!).

In his sparetime, he enjoys fishing, boating and cricket - at least two of which can be done at the same time, or all three if you are tuned in to the radio broadcast while out on the water! Now that's a good way to stack hobbies!

Drop in and say g'day!

 

 

 

 

CURATED SELECTION OF PLANTS 

From strappy infill to showy feature trees, we've stocked a range of some of our favourite, tried and true Aussie natives! Whether you are hoping to attracting more wildlife, screen out your neighbours, or simply add a splash of colour then we will have a plant suitable for you!

The range features some show-stopping Southwest WA natives, grafted to suitable rootstock to ensure they can thrive over here in the southeast, as well as fine cultivars of locally native plants. Check out the range online or visit us in-store!

 

DRY SPLIT FIREWOOD & KINDLING

Keep the fire cranking or get that pizza oven cooking with our dry split firewood and kindling products. Available for delivery today!