Party on with proteas

FALL FOR THESE The eyecatching, long-lasting flowers of the protea and its cousins make winters so sweet

It’s time for a sweet treat, so feast on the glory of sugar bushes as proteas and their kissing cousins put on their annual winter show. Choose from the vibrant pink or red bracts of proteas, the flamboyant stamens of pincushion bushes, exciting red pagoda plants or the brilliantly coloured, flower-like bracts of leucadendrons. Or, choose them all for a sizzling family shindig. You’ll have long-lasting flowers popping out from winter through to summer – so many you can even cut them for longer-lasting displays indoors. 2 plant this head-turner Start small but aim high with this yellow wagon tree (Protea nitida). It’s one of the few proteas that grows into a tree, 5m tall. Leaves add colour by emerging red, then turning a bluish sea-green just as flowers appear in late winter. 3 hot august days Turn your winter garden into a tropical paradise with these brilliantly sunny pincushion bushes. Just when you think winter will never end, they explode in various shades of gold, orange and red. They’ll warm up indoors as well.

5 be dazzled with Neon This is how you rock a rock garden. The prey blue felicia daisies are quite at home in the well-drained soil and hold their own against the brilliant proteas and pincushions. Then throw in a woolly bush – another cousin – and white cape daisies. 6 fabulous foliage

It’s the leaves that make the leucadendron a standout in any garden. New growth means a colour collusion where vibrant burgundies, reds, oranges and yellows nestle into so… greens. Don’t choose just one colour. Choose many! 7 centre of attention A point of distinction with the leucadendron is the top tulip-like leaves. In fact they’re modified leaves called bracts that open out in late winter or spring to reveal the amazing cone-like, petal-less flower. Cut a few for indoors!

SOIL PREPARATION

If you have heavy clay soil, put these plants in raised beds with quality, well-draining soil. Or, grow in a container filled with poing mix especially prepared for Australian plants that is low in phosphorus.

Cut proteas can last for up to three weeks, but you’ll get even better value if you cut them just as the bracts begin to open

9 play on the light For a striking feature among the flowers, plant Leucadendron ‘Burgundy Sunset’. The deep plum-coloured foliage can look almost black in some lights, giving your traditional garden a dose of modern-day drama. 10 get royal assent Here’s your boss of the garden. The king protea (P. cynaroides) produces the largest flowers of this family – up to 30cm wide. Making such magnificent works of art is exhausting, so expect it to flower only every second year, mostly in late spring. 11 ephemeral magic You’ll love the sweet liŒle blushing bride (Serruria sp) for its tight clusters of up to 20 beautiful cream and pink flowers per stem, coming out in winter and spring. It’s best suited to pots, but lasts only for a couple of years. Then just buy a new one.

KEEP THEM HEALTHY

Where summers are humid, select a sunny, open spot that offers good air circulation. This helps avoid fungal problems such as leaf spoŒing. Remove affected leaves or you may lose the shrub because of dieback.

1 get a winter glow The red pagoda bush (Mimetes cucullatus) is o en the forgo en member of this family, but it should be a star. Unusually beautiful, colourful all year and easy to grow, you should find a place for it in your garden.

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FAMILY PRIDE AS BANKSIAS JOIN PROTEAS, PINCUSHIONS AND LEUCADENDRONS IN A VASE. 3

8 You can drink to this! The proteas must produce the pre iest goblets around – and inside their pink or red bracts are flowers filled with nectar that is the secret stash of hardy, over-wintering birds and bugs.

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12 put pink in your world Colour co-ordinate your wide border garden for a late winter celebration. Start with the big pink king proteas, then deep blue irises and purple alliums. They’ll take over as the magnolia puts on its leaves just before its flowers fade.