Have You Made French Potato Soup? - Apr 02, 2026

Dear gardening friends
We are open all Easter Weekend including Good Friday and Easter Monday from 9am to 4pm.
You really must find the time to come and see us.
Autumn is the best time to garden and we have so many fabulous plants waiting here for you.

Some of our customers got a nice surprise to see Costa and The Gardening Australia crew, filming here this week. Costa went out of his way to listen to everyone's story's and getting his photo taken.

Crystal, here in the photo, is the producer, and she gives Costa a script, and two minutes later he's reciting it, like he wrote it. It really was incredible to watch.

You'll see our nursery pop up in future shows, but it's not about us. Costa was filming crosses, to other hosts on the show, from around Australia.

Costa is a great promoter of The Gardening Industry, and the benefits it provides, for our mental health. A big part of his life is spent talking to people who just love telling him about their gardens and life stories. He's very interested to meet you.

We are not sure when you'll see our nursery on telly, so you'll just have to watch it to see. Costa and I walked through Mawson Park on the way to get a Manoosh. It was great to see Giulian Perrotta working so hard in the gardens and he told Costa about his future plans. His passion impressed Costa.

I did a delivery to Harrington Park yesterday and the lady had such a beautiful garden. I asked her if she'd mind me taking a photo of her Salvia. "Everyone thinks it's Lavender" she confesses.

Salvia leucantha is one of the hardiest plants on the planet. They grow so quickly and they get covered in flowers like this every spring and autumn.

Cut them back by 50% when ever they finish flowering, and the plant will bounce back with more new growth and more flowers.

This shrub has grey foliage like Lavender but it's longer lived and much easier to grow. It will grow in country gardens where they survive on rain water only.

Salvias come in an assortment of colours, they are a gardeners friend. They flower at different times to add colour to your garden.

But pruning is the secret, it keeps them alive and kicking. Mulch with Tim's Cow manure after pruning. Plant some now for autumn colour.

They grow much better in the ground.
Come see our selection.
Zoom zoom.

Gardeners are always looking for plants to grow in pots and they often don't know if the plant will get full sun or morning sun. This is the reason why so many people kill their plants.

But there is a plant that will grow in sun or shade and it flowers non stop throughout the year!!! It's called Euphorbia "Somona". It's covered in these bright red flowers, and it only grows 40cms high.

It's perfect for pots and you will have this plant forever. You can grow it in the sun or semi shade. It loves growing in pots or in your garden.

It's a plant that just makes you feel happy. This plant will try so hard to keep you smiling. Pot it into a bigger pot using Tim's Best Potting mix. It will grow bigger and get even more flowers.

This plant is almost death proof in Sydney and Macarthur. It won't grow in cooler places like Goulburn.

This is the perfect plant for new homeowners who have no idea how to garden. Yes it has thorns but so do roses. They won't worry you, because they are covered by foliage.

"Somona" costs $24.99. This is one of my favourite plants and it makes a great floral gift.

I'm making French Potato soup tonight. I was reading a book that was set in France during the war and the lady made Potato soup from Potatoes she grew in her garden.

It didn't tell you the ingredients in the book apart from potatoes so I've imagined these ingredients. I've cooked it for the Italian cousins who came to visit and they loved it.

So you slice Potatoes until the baking dish is almost full. You lay these flat. Then I cut up 2x Onions and 1x Leek. Put these in the dish then drizzle with Olive oil.

I've added Capers and Anchovies for saltiness. Add lots of Rosemary from the garden and add pink salt and cracked pepper. Add crushed Garlic now too.

Cook this on grill setting in the oven at 250 degrees until the Potatoes go brown and crispy.
Now put all the ingredients into a pot and stir in a tub of Sour Cream and a litre of milk. I don't really measure anything so use your imagination.

Keep stirring the milk and the cream from the bottom with a wooden spoon. Chuck in a handful of grated cheese and a dash of Worcestershire sauce.

The Potatoes, Leeks and Onions break down in the soup. I like it chunky, but I know some of you like it blended like baby food. When the soup thickens you can serve it chunky or blend it. Serve with crusty bread. This is amazing, and it's so cheap to make.

You could make this with Pumpkin or Sweet Potato, you could use Greek Yogurt instead of Sour Cream. I'll be having this for lunch tomorrow.

It's time to plant Broccoli and other winter vegetables. The nights have turned cooler now, so that means it time to plant Cabbage, Chinese Cabbage, Broccoli, Broccolini, Brussel sprouts, Peas, Sugar Snap peas, Celery, Carrots, Chives, Leeks, Spring Onions, Lettuce, Kale, Garlic, Strawberries, Silverbeet, Spinach etc.

You need to improve your soil with Tim's Cow manure. Dig one bag for every 2m2. Cover soil with Sugar cane and water well. Plant your seedlings through the mulch. Don't forget the snail pellets or they will get eaten over night.

To stop Caterpillars eating your leaves dust with Yates Tomato and Vegetable dust every 4-6 weeks. This product is amazing.

We have lots of new plants for autumn planting, come and see us this weekend. There's lots of rain around to help your plants grow.

Happy gardening
Tim