What a fantastic time of the year to be out in the garden! Our tomato harvest is just getting started and will be sure to pick up steam over the month. Many other plants are also showing off their very best flowers!

Acorn Nursery is open from 9am to 5pm until the 5th of January but closed on New Years Day. From Friday the 5th, we'll be back to our regular hours of 8am to 5pm. The Oaks Cafe will also reopen on the 5th!

Happy New Year from everyone at Acorn Nursery and The Oaks Cafe. We hope to see you soon!

Tony's Tips 

January 2024

January is the middle month of summer, the middle of the growing season, and a great time for so many of our favourite plants. A bit of warmth means many of our plants are at their best right now.

Crepe Myrtles are starting to flower and this is the ideal time to plant them. We have the best of both the tree and dwarf varieties. Natchez, Sioux and Tuscarora are the best-performing varieties in the tree type. For the dwarf varieties, all four colours are equally good! Crepe Myrtles love a sunny, well-drained position in improved soil and are remarkably drought-tolerant once established.

Bougainvilleas also love the summer and love to be planted at this time. We will have the dwarf, more compact growing Bambino Bougainvilleas as well as the taller, climbing varieties this month.

Things to Do:

• Prune your traditional Hydrangea macrophylla back by half before Australia Day for a better and earlier flower set next spring and summer. We do not prune normal Hydrangeas in winter!
• Lightly prune long-flowering perennials such as Salvia, Gaura, Geraniums, Heliotrope and Fuchsias to rejuvenate them for autumn flowering.
• Prune English Lavender and French Lavender now after flowering. Prune them as hard as you can while still leaving some viable green foliage. Never go to bare wood! Follow up with a good feed to encourage new growth and flowers.
• If your Gardenia needs shaping up, wait until most of the flowering is done. This is the time for the annual light prune. Don't forget to feed them after!
• Dose your garden and pots with Rapid Soak wetting agent to ensure maximum water penetration and storage. Lock in that moisture with some mulch over the top.
• Plant Vincas and Impatiens for summer and autumn colour.