SERIES 34 | Episode 38
Christmas Special

Jane returns to the colourful garden of florist Petrina Burrill to see how it looks when full of spring bulbs.

Every year Petrina plants thousands of bulbs and now she’s reaping the benefits. In the front garden are brightly coloured tulips, which she buys fresh every year, preparing the bed for the season with loads of compost for healthy soil.

In the back, Petrina plants ranunculi en masse, many with 3-4 flowers per plant, so the overall effect is stunning. The double blooms almost resemble roses, especially the pink forms, but there are also white, yellow, red and all the shades in between.

Petrina fell in love with colourful flowers as a child exploring her great-grandmother’s garden, and her grandfather continued the plant-growing tradition as a professional gardener. Petrina’s mother was always giving away bunches of flowers to people, and now Petrina’s children also love picking flowers from the garden.

There are several flowering cherries – they may only flower for a few short weeks but for Petrina the delicate display is worth it. Many are in large pots on the deck to create a canopy of blossom.

The area by the house is dominated by a huge wisteria, which Petrina trains so that the flowering branches envelop the pergola.

And bunches of blooms are still regularly given away to continue giving the gift of flowers and colour.

Filmed on Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country | Ivanhoe, Vic

Source: abc.net.au