You know how as a kid you thought your mum was the vegie monster because she made you eat food like Brussel sprouts but as you get older the idea of Brussel sprouts for dinner grows on you till somehow you find yourself not only buying them and cooking them but also enjoying them.
Kangaroo Paw, an Australian Native Plant www.trevallan.com
Kangaroo Paws are kind of like my Brussel sprout in the garden! For years I would almost double over in pain at the idea of growing one of these hideous plants. Why? I couldn’t come to terms with a plant that had gangly disease ridden leaves and long boring flowers.
I guess I just had never seen it used well in landscaping because now I am totally in love. Why? Strangely enough it was Ipswich City Council and the Riverheart parklands that caused me to start to fall in love with them because a few years ago they were planted en masse in the gardens and they looked fantastic most of the year. Plus over the years newer (and prettier) more disease resistant varieties have been released that handle Ipswich’s humid summer better.
Kangaroo paws belong to the genus Anigozanthos, which are native to south western Western Australia. This area of Australia is dryer, slightly warmer and the soil is sandy...very sandy. A little different to Ipswich's climate and soil.
One of the main reasons I disliked Kangaroo Paws was because of the dreaded ink spot – black spots on the leaves. It is mostly caused by fungal diseases (humidity), but it can also be caused by snails and frost damages - anything which kills the leaf tissue will blacken it. Parts of Ipswich can have very high humidity and can also suffer from black frosts, not ideal conditions for a Kangaroo paw.
Most sprays or fertilisation will not prevent Ink spot. Thanks to Angus Stewart, the main cultivator of Kangaroo Paws, I now know the best and easiest way to deal with ink spot! Mow over them when the leaves start to become infected and fertilise with a complete organic slow release fertiliser like Organic Link! Secateurs would work just as well as a mower but nowhere near as fun!
By cutting all that leaf off, you get get rid of Ink spot and encourage beautiful, fresh new leaf which gives the plant a really vigorous green appearance and promotes the flowers and the flowers are the best part.
Kangaroo Paw flowers have been described as one of Australia’s most striking and unusual flowers and with modern cultivation I think there is one available in in all the colours of the rainbow, hot pink, red and green and the black are my favourite.
These fabulous bird-attracting, drought tolerant plants grow to all different sizes too. From small boarder plants to large striking feature plants there is one suit all gardens. All they need is a dry well drained spot in full sun and easily accessible by mower (or Secateurs)!
I love using a mixture of flowering heights in pots too. They make an awesome feature in a hot area of your patio or garden. Just remember to remove the spent flowers and yucky leaves and this plant should reward you with vibrant colour most of the year.
This weekend eat some Brussel sprouts and plant an icon of the Australian garden at your house.