Real Aussie Christmas Nuts - Dec 18, 2014

Dear Gardening Friends,

I have just realized that this is our last newsletter for the year. Thank you for your support this year and I hope you have a great Christmas with your family. If you don’t have a family, make friends with a neighbour who came from another country. You will get more exotic food for Christmas.

Somebody I know just turns up at his neighbours place with half a glass of wine in his hand and then never goes home.

I have been in trouble with my 82 year old mother for not telling you that she got a “hole in one” a couple of weeks ago at Muirfields Golf Club. She plays with a group of elderly ladies who all take painkillers, before, during and after the game.

My mums hit a “driver” on a par 3 and saw the ball land on the green and then disappear. They all assumed it had gone over the green and spent 20 minutes looking for the ball. At this age they are flat out finding each other. The ball was eventually discovered in the hole and a celebration began.

My mother won 5 dozen golf balls and a bottle of champagne which I think she and her friends had consumed before ringing me. What a nice pre Christmas gift for my mother.

If you are having friends over for Christmas then you really need to fill all those bare patches in your garden with a bit of colour. We have heaps of plants down here that will make your garden look loved again.

Ryan has been busy sourcing potted colour from all over Sydney because when ever we get rain like this it is hard to find. If you have petunias in your garden then some of them may need replacing.

The humid weather can rot the root system and they just drop dead.

I have been noticing Grafted W.A Gums flowering every where. There is a beautiful orange flowering variety in the motel next door to our nursery. We sold it to them about 5 years ago and it is covered in bright orange flowers just in time for Christmas.

These grafted gums only grow about 3 to 5 metres high so they are perfect for smaller gardens. We have them in pink, red, orange and purple. They do need lots of water when you first plant them. They make great Christmas Gifts because they are around the $60 mark so they are a bit special.

The tree next door was also covered in gum nuts that hung down from the tree like Christmas Bells.

These are produced after flowering and they have been hanging from the tree for 12 months. This is another feature of this native plant. The grafted trees can flower the first season and the colour is guaranteed.

The old fashioned seedling grown variety took up to 10 years to flower and the colour was always a lottery.

Agapanthus has come into flower for Christmas. They might grow like weeds but I still love the flowers and so do the bees.

If you plant Agapanthus in your garden then you will also attract green tree frogs. These small frogs love the moisture and protection in amongst the lush green leaves.

Monica has pre gift wrapped some colourful indoor plants “ready to go” at the front counter. If one of your friends gives you an unexpected gift then one of these ready to go gifts might save you.

We do have a free gift wrapping service which can be a big time saver for you. Peace Lily’s are selling well this week due to the terrible event in Sydney.

We still have NSW Christmas bush covered in flowers for $29.99. These always sell out before Christmas Day so don’t leave your purchase to the last minute. We got new stock this week of an older variety called “Albery’s Red”.

These plants are nice and bushy and covered in flowers. Put one under your Christmas tree and it will look sensational.

We have been so busy this week some of our staff are falling asleep on the job. Simon sat down in the Fler SC55 chair for a couple of minutes at the end of the day and fell asleep.

Only one week to go and then we can have a couple of days off to recover. We are closed on Christmas day and Boxing Day. We don’t have a sale after Christmas but you could buy yourself one of our Tim’s Christmas Gift Cards.

We are selling $50 cards for just $40.00. You can redeem them after Christmas and save yourself 20%. There is no limit on how many you buy.

Pig has been Santa’s little helper this week and seems to have recovered from being Pig Knapped. He did make page 7 of The Macarthur Chronicle this week so if you get a chance make sure you read it. A great, good news story and thanks to Mandy Perrin and her team.

Best wishes to you and your family from all of your gardening friends here at Tim’s Garden Centre.

Happy Gardening
Tim