Garden Ideas: What to Plant for Summer

Late spring and early summer are the perfect times to plant flowers, herbs and vegetables, so your garden is full of colour and life come Christmas Day.

When temperatures increase, the days get longer and the soil starts to warm up, it’s the ideal time to get to work in the garden. Plant flowers, herbs and vegetables in late spring and early summer and your garden will look glorious come Christmas Day… and you may even have some tasty produce to add extra flavour to your favourite festive dishes. 

If you’ve recently moved into your new home and need some landscaping ideas, don’t miss our useful step-by-step guide to landscaping your home, or this practical guide to jazzing up your front yard. Loved the garden you saw at our display home? Chances are it was designed by our brilliant landscape designer Mark Browning – see his latest award-winning garden here.

If you’re ready to get stuck into your green space now, here’s what to plant in late October and November in Melbourne gardens: 

Heat-tolerant plants

Planning on heading away for the summer holidays? It’s wise to plant tough, drought-tolerant species that will still look good when you return. Some of the best heat-loving varieties include:  

• Marigolds
• Catmint
• Bottlebrush
• Lavender
• Rock rose
• Petunias 

Summer perennials

If the danger of frost has passed in your area, consider planting some pineapple lilies, calla lilies and dahlias. These summer perennials are a great way to add a burst of colour to your garden this spring – better yet, they’ll bloom again next year and save you some work! 

Flowers that attract bees

Plant annuals such as alyssum, aster, Californian poppy, cornflowers, dianthus, sunflowers and zinnia to attract nature’s best pollinator – bees – to your garden. 

Pot some herbs

Having a fresh source of herbs at your disposal this summer will give your dishes a serious flavour boost. Now is the time to plant dill, sage, basil, parsley, coriander, thyme, mint and rosemary. 

Sow sunflowers

Get the kids involved and plant some sunflower seeds together – sunflowers are great for little ones because they grow fast and are easy to care for. They grow best when planted in well-drained soil and a sunny spot.

Fruit and vegetables

Melbourne’s temperate climate is ideal for growing these tasty varieties:

• Cabbage
• Capsicum
• Carrots
• Spring onion
• Bananas (so long as they’re in a warm, protected spot)
• Lemon trees
• Mandarin trees
• Endive
• Leek
• Lettuce
• Tomatoes
• Rocket

Top tips:

Remember to mulch: Top up the mulch on your veggie patches, herb gardens and ornamental flower beds with a sustainable, low environmental impact mulch that will nourish your soil as it breaks down.

Lawn care: Once the warm weather hits, it’s important to give your lawn some lawn food and water it thoroughly on a regular basis to ensure it stays healthy. The pre-summer period is also a good time to fix any bare patches in your lawn by planting some new seeds.

What is the interior like?

“We chose our beautiful Nordic decorating theme for the Illawarra Grand Deluxe 45, which is an eye-catching mix of soft pastels, black, white and grey artworks and curvy, sculptural furniture. We installed engineered timber flooring to emphasise the warm, natural feel, which we extended into the study to make the lower level feel more expansive,” says Hodges.

“Texture is key to this look, so we’ve included gorgeous boucle armchairs and dining chairs, ribbed tiles around the fireplace, and a stunning textured feature wall behind the bed in Surround by Laminex, finished off with statement wall lights over the bedside tables,” she says.

“All-white kitchens are making way for a more dynamic, layered look these days, so we’ve used a palette of black, white and oak in the kitchen, with a statement island benchtop in Caesarstone Primordia – a light concrete look with touches of oxidised rust. It’s a classic kitchen look that’s here to stay,” she says.