Serenity Style

My dad and brother started making cement statues, urns and garden wares in the late 90's for their business Serenity Garden Stone. Today the range has expanded to pavers and landscaping. There are so many classic pieces that still exist, which I love, like the rust wall plaque. Dad painted this old bathtub and his hand made cherubs with Porters rust paint. He has a knack of putting displays like this together really quickly and they look great.

Picture Above is of our showroom display with an interesting mix of wall art and home furnishings.

In Bloom Now

 Ameria 'Bees Ruby' is a low growing perennial ideal for borders, Japanese gardens, pots and rockeries. Amerias are an excellent plant for cut flowers and require very little maintenance.

 Dianthus 'Sugar Plum' has fragrant and frilly flowers with deep cherry markings appearing through Autumn and Spring. This low water use plant will grow to about 40cm and is great in small urns and mixed garden beds.

The range of 'Ruffle' Lavenders are really pretty. This one is Lavender 'Sweetberry' . It is bred in Australia making it ideal for our climate and it is rather compact making it suitable for a pot or low border. Come in and see the range today.

Think Pink

We love our kitsch pink flamingos, perfect for a tropical garden or parties.

They are flying out at our special price of $15ea

First Image: Turquoise and Tulips, Second Image: Serenity Nursery



What to do with excess lemons

 

Tip: Place a lemon cut in half  in the top draw of your dishwaher just befor you set it to wash. Your dishes with come out sparkling clean and the entire machine will smell better.

Lemon curd tartletts with candied lemon rind from Good Taste Magazine. Recipe can be found at Taste.com.au

Another idea is

Lucky Bamboo

Add some Zen to your living area with Lucky Bamboo. Lucky bamboo is not actually a bamboo, it's from the dracaena family( a plant found in the tropics). Lucky bamboo is s easy to care for making in a popular indoor plant. They are available potted in soil or bare rooted in water. Lucky Bamboo will grow in a vase of water too.
The curly ones are created by putting straight bamboo into low light tunnels, rotating them, and letting the in light.

Choose a spot out of direct sunlight. A well lit bathroom or kitchen is ideal.

Find more ideas at our Plant Nursery and Garden Center website:  www.serenitynursery.com.au

Native Beauty

Make a statement in your garden with Isopogon 'Candy Cones'. It's an Australian native featuring spectacular large mauve-pink cone flowers. Like many natives it is drought hardy, easy to grow and a low water use plant. Isopogon 'Candy Cones' can be grown as an informal hedge or in large containers. In the nursery now.

Garden Ideas this weekend

I know we will have a busy weekend in the garden centre, It's the very start of spring, the birds are chirping, the sun is out. It is the perfect time to be outdoors and spending  time in the garden.

Here are some garden ideas to do this week end:

1. Plant some Avalanche Petunias into recycled pots

2. Fertilise your roses with Neutrog Sudden Impact for Roses
 
3. It's warming up give your pot plants and garden a treat with Seagold seaweed tonic.
 
4. Hang some decorative lanterns or wall art in your patio
 
5. Last chance to purchase roses and ornamental trees at great prices ( before we pot them up). Plant a shade tree to enjoy for the years to come.
 
6. Plant some veggies seedlings. Capsicums, Tomatoes, Eggplant, Cucumber and Zucchini are just a few ideas of what can be planted now.
 
Bye for now have a wonderful weekend xx

Boronia Heaven Scent

"What is that beautiful perfume?" is a frequent question floating around the garden centre at the moment. Boronias are in full flower and the perfume is just divine. This one pictured is Brown Boronia megastigma 'Heaven scent'. It is one of the most perfumed boronias around. We also have a hot pink boronia called 'Lip stick", which has the most amazing hot pink flowers. Boronias are ideal grown near doorways to enjoy the fragrance as you are coming and going.



Get Ready to Garden

Here are some snaps from our garden centre today. We have new ladies goat skin leather gardening gloves and a deluxe new gardeners hand care range to inspire you into the garden. Our azaleas are in full bloom and looking fantastic.

Pretty Petunia Time

Petunia Avalanche in white

Petunias

It's that time of year again, time to plant petunias. If your annuals are looking spent and tied it might be a good time to replace them with fresh new seasons petunias.

Petunias Avalanche are a cascading or spreading petunia which produce a mass flowers throughout the warmer months. They are perfect for retaining wall plantings and hanging baskets as the flowers spill over the edges creating drama. Petunia Avalanche are also an excellent bedding and border plant.



Getting Dirty with Milton

Set to air just in time for spring is an exciting new gardening show "Getting Dirty with Milton". It will be hosted by South Australian garden expert Milton Vadoulis. Milton has such a enthusiasm for gardening and has been in the industry for over 30 years. There are lots of gardening tips and he will take you through some of SA's best gardens.

 So don't forget to watch the very first episode Wednesday 31st August at 8pm on Chanel 44. We were lucky enough to watch a preview at the launch night this week and it's a fantastic show,

 with a few laughs too.

Foliage Effects

In now is a great selection of foliage plants including Euphorbia "Silver Swan". It's a great little water wise plant that does not need to be pruned. Creamy flowers are produced late winter through to spring. It looks great mixed with other foliage plants such as red nadinas and variegated dianella  grasses.



Eternal Fragrance Daphne

There is a new daphne out now called daphne 'Eternal Fragrance'. This particular form of daphne is sun and heat tolerant and will not scorch like old fashioned daphnes. It is compact growing to a height of 60cm. It makes an excellent low border and is great in a pot. Best of all it has an incredible fragrance we all know and love. Instore now.

Textural Elements

Sedum 'Purple blog' is a fab purple hued plant that grows as a mounding ground cover. drama can be created when the plant is grown in a pot or over a retainer wall as it will spill over the edges. Texture and colour can be added to rockeries, gravel areas and dry spots in the garden. Sedum 'Purple blob' is a succulent making it an extremely water wise plant.

Buddha Bum Candles

About Buddha Bum



Arrived on our doorstep today is lovely new range of high quality candles by Buddha Bum. Everyone is oohing and aahing over the divine fragrances which include Lemon grass, Rose, Sweet pea, Fig & Melon,

 Sweet vanilla and Guava. 

Each candle has been hand poured in Melbourne and uses the highest quality certified organic soy wax. Soy wax is Eco-friendly and biodegradable and burns up to 50% longer than some other wax types making them better value. Our large size will burn for 70 hours. Come in and experience it for yourself.

Prince of the Garden

Heleborus (Hellebore) 'Ivory Prince' is an elegant plant for the home garden. They are an easy to grow, vigorous perennial and look fabulous planted en mass under trees. Hellebore's flower through winter offering a flowering solution a shady spot in the garden. They are perfect planted under frangapani trees, when the tree has dropped it's leaves the under planting give an excellent effect. They also look great planted as a border and potted.  Available now at our nursery.

Garden Jewels

We have just had an exciting delivery of succulent arrive including the magnificent blue chalk sticks plant (pictured above). Succulents are ideal for hot dry spots in the garden and look fantastic in pots. If you have existing potted plants under a veranda or out in the garden you can plant succulents around the base of the plant to add colour and texture and conceal exposed soil. The succulents will spread and act like a mulch in a way keeping the soil below cool.

The "chalk sticks" look fab planted around the base of frangapanis. Just be sure to team your succulents with plants that require similar water requirements.

Berry Good for You

Well you all may have noticed that every time you see blueberries in the supermarkets they are very expensive, this is because blueberries have extremely delicate skin and can only be hand-picked from the bush, machines would damage them thus making them a labour intensive fruit to grow. Why not grow your own. Blueberries require an acidic soil so if your soil is too alkaline simply grow your blueberries in a container and use an acidic potting mix.

We have a great range of blueberries and acidic potting mix in store now.

image via bathwater

..3..2..1 Blast Off

With Spring just around the corner it is the perfect time to give your garden a 'blast'.

Neutrogs Rocket fuel is a certified organic pelletised fertiliser ideal for your entire garden. Rocket fuel has been specially formulated to help you grow healthy organic fruit

and veggies. Skip in today and grab some, your garden will thank you for it.

Image via neutrog.com

The Modern Garden Shed

This suburban garage has been modified to fit a potting area/ garden shed. Everything a gardener needs is in arms reach. Tin buckets conceal fertilisers & potting mixes. The generous sized ceramic sink and potting area makes an ideal spot for flower arranging.

image via country living.com

Dreamy Garden Wedding

The September issue of Vogue showcases the wedding of Super model Kate Moss. Her beautiful 1920's inspired garden wedding is so dreamy. It reminds me of sunny Spring days, Spring flowers and making the most of spending time in the garden.

image via pretty stuff

Purple Craze

What a talking point at the dinner table..purple carrots! but did you know that purple carrots have been in existence long before orange carrots and have been used for various purposes dating back to 2000bc. Purple carrots actually have more beta carotene than orange carrots so you can enjoy the health benefits along with it being a bit of a novelty.

Serenity Nursery have the seeds available now. See you in the nursery soon.

In the Nursery Today

The staff at Serenity Nursery have been busy beatifying the show room. We love our natural green and white display highlighting our unique woven patio furniture.

Image via Serenity Nursery

Out Living

Natural recycled timber tables, stools and woven chairs teamed with stylish garden wares set the scene for living outdoors this spring.

Image Via Serenity Nursery