Anyone looking for a well-behaved shade lover, then gardening columnist JACKIE WARBURTON may have the right plant for the right spot. 

THE silver foliage of Brunnera macrophylla brightens a dark, shady area in the garden and can be planted under shrubs, around ponds or an edged border in the shade. 

It likes a rich compost soil and has big, heart-shaped leaves with pretty, dainty blue flowers in early spring that resemble forget-me-not flowers. They grow to about 20 centimetres tall and as wide. Over time they will grow into a clump and can be divided in autumn with a sharp spade. 

There is a relatively new variety that can tolerate more sun than its counterparts and it is Brunnera “Jack Frost”. It has beautiful venation on the leaf and is a very decorative feature as well. 

It is slower to grow than the more evergreen members of the Brunnera family but is frost tolerant and retains its foliage in the winter and is a great shady ground cover when established. 

ANOTHER favourite of mine, now flowering in the garden, is nasturtiums. They are a classic cottage plant that come in many bold colours and are easy to grow from seed directly into the garden to fill a sunny space. 

They are cheerful and fast growing, and a good starting plant for introducing children into growing plants and gardening. In the vegetable patch they’re also known as watercress. 

Coming from the brassica family, they like the same growing conditions as cabbages and broccoli – that is good moist drainage and weed-free soil. 

The whole plant is edible and high in minerals, vitamin C and oils. They can be eaten raw in salads or made into a pesto if there is an abundance. 

The flowers are slightly fragrant and can be used as a cut flower as well. I planted my nasturtiums last year under my citrus trees to attract predatory insects and bees and it worked well. Some seeds were left behind and are self-seeding to do the same job the plants did last year. 

They like a good draining soil and the more sunshine the plant gets, the better it will flower. From time to time there has been an issue with cabbage white butterflies. Diapel, an organic spray, can be used on them to get rid of caterpillars (or pick them off the plant and feed to the chooks). Cabbage white caterpillars are attractive to any plant in the brassica family and also can be used as a decoy and a sacrificial plant to keep cabbage white caterpillars away from other brassicas in the vegetable garden. 

IT’S the last chance to get summer crops such as tomatoes, capsicums and eggplants into the ground in a sunny spot. 

Garlic should be harvested by now and lifted as soon as it can, so the bulbs don’t rot with all the extra rain we’ve had. 

Timing is essential for harvesting. When about 50 per cent of the leaves are going brown from the ground up then it’s time to pull and store the garlic. 

I grew Monaro purple this year, a hard-neck variety. The flower stems (scapes) were removed about a month ago as the bulbs matured. 

Lift bulbs with foliage intact with a fork and shake as much soil from the bulbs and roots as you can to get them to dry as quickly as possible. 

Don’t trim the roots or leaves and place in the sun to dry for a few days before storing in an airy spot for about three to five weeks. 

THE flower garden will be in a burst of colour for the festive season from all the rain and some natives to choose from that also could be used in a floral wreath or a centrepiece for the festive table are sprigs of bottlebrushes, NSW Christmas bush and kangaroo paws.

jackwar@home.netspeed.com.au