Growing Gardens

with Anita Morton

Dangerous beauty

It always amazes me to see the variety of autumn colour that liquidambars produce. It ranges from butter-yellow through all the shades of amber, bronze, orange and red to the deepest purple. If you are thinking of planting one of these splendid trees, now is a great time to visit the nursery to check out the range of shades available in seedling trees.

Liquidambar styraciflua or sweet gum is native to both North and Central America. It colours up in autumn in response to the shortening length of the day, rather than the temperature. This makes it an ideal foliage tree for our area, as it will reliably produce autumn colour every year.

In other ways, though, this tree is less than ideal. If you plan to plant one, be aware that it will eventually grow into a very large tree - up to 40 metres tall. They love moisture, and will thrive in a boggy spot, but if you plant them in a drier area their roots will travel far and wide in search of water. They can destroy paths and paving, and will get into old pipes, so be sure to plant them well away from the house. They are not a tree for small gardens!

Interestingly, these trees are a source of an aromatic resin, which is used in perfumery. Storax is produced by the inner layers of bark when the outer layers are bruised or damaged. If you have a large tree you might like to try extracting some storax - give the tree trunk a good belting with a heavy stick on one side only and then leave it until spring. Peel off the outer bark and check for sticky patches below. Scrape these off and boil them in water until the resin dissolves. Voila! Instant perfume!

Lismore Garden Club News

The Lismore Garden Club social outing for May is a lovely morning tea next Tuesday, May 10, at 9.30am at the home of Alan and Ivy Gray, 39 Pound Street, Lismore. Please bring a plate. There will also be a walk around the Gray's prize-winning garden. Visitors most welcome. For further information please phone Ron on 6624 7422 or 0421 021 451.

An autumn flowering shrub that is okay in the shade is the Brazilian Plume Flower or Justica. Pink is the most popular colour, however, white and yellow are procurable. Justica is an exotic, easy to grow and most rewarding shrub to plant in the home garden.

If you decide to plant a few tulip bulbs for spring flowers, be sure to put them in the crisper of the fridge for a couple of weeks before planting. This will chill them ready for planting later this month. Plant them in a sunny spot with a little bulb fertiliser, or they can be planted in pots or tubs and brought inside when in flower.

Broad beans can be planted this month. They will grow in most garden soil in full sun. As they grow they will need some support. When they come into flower, pinch out the growing tips and they will set fruit better. Broad beans are a legume, so when the crop has been picked the plants can be dug into the garden as a green manure for the next crop.

Finally: "He who plants a garden plants happiness: If you want to be happy for a lifetime plant a garden." (Chinese proverb).

Happy gardening
Ron Burns