Growing Kangaroo paw flowers at home

Kangaroo paws are one of the most recognisable Australian native plants.    Kangaroo paw plants make fantastic colourful and architectural plants in the home garden.    Kangaroo paw plants produce masses of flowers in late winter ,spring and through to summer and come in a range of numerous colours and sizes.    Flower colours range from blacks, to greens, yellows, reds, pinks and combinations of these colours.    There are dwarf varieties which grow from sizes only 30cm tall (with flower) and large varieties which grow to 2m in height.     There is sure to be a variety and flower colour to suit your temperate climate garden.

     The original varieties of Kangaroo Paws come from Western Australia,   however, there are newer varieties have been developed over the years.    These new varieties, which are available in nurseries, have been developed for wetter more humid climates and can be grow in most temperate climates.    Australian native birds love Kangaroo paw flowers and growing them in Australian gardens helps feed small birds, like honey eaters, bring life into the garden.     Have a look through some our photos of Kangaroo Paws and some tips on growing them.     If you do not have room in your garden to grow some Roo Paws you can grow them in pots.     Kangaroo Paws also make excellent cut flowers, so you can bring the colour of Australia into your home. 

Where to grow Kangaroo Paws in the garden

Kangaroo paws grow best in full sun positions,   however, they can take some shade during the day, for example part day shade from a tree.     Find a spot with well drained soil, as Kangaroo paws do not like having a wet root system.   If you find that your Kangaroo paw plant is looking sparse and does not flower very well, you may like to investigate the possibility that the soil is not draining well or is too heavy.     It may also be an indication that your plant is not getting enough sun.    You can transplant Kangaroo paws at certain times of year, we will go into this more later in the article.

Styles of gardens suited to Kangaroo Paws -

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Styles of gardens suited to Kangaroo paws

Kangaroo Paws look fantastic when planted with other Australian native plants, but they can be planted in other garden styles.     They look great with other strappy leaf plants like flaxes and plants like Agapanthus.    They can also look great in low water use gardens using succulents (although Kangaroo paws still require water now and then during hot summers) .     One of the best ways to use Kangaroo Paws in the garden is to mass plant them, using groups of different sizes and colours.     Kangaroo paws flowers last for many months and various varieties will flower for most of the warm part of the year making them and excellent plant for climates with mild winters (no heavy frosts) and hot summers.  

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How to care & grow Kangaroo Paws

Kangaroo paws grow best in full sun positions, in well drained soil, they like some organic matter, mainly composted leaf litter, mixed through the soil.   Sandy soils, enriched with organic matter is best.    However, there are varieties that will grow in heavier soils, many of the "Bush gem" types are developed to grow better in heavier soils.     If you have a heavy soil or clays you may like to take the following process to get the most out of you Kangaroo Paws:

-           Dig a large hole (the larger the better)

-           Purchase a bag of Australian Native potting mix

-           Plant Kangaroo paw, backfilling around your plant with Native potting mix.

-           Use a small amount of native slow release fertiliser around the plant.

-           Use some seaweed based soil tonic, like Seasol now and then when watering, till the plant is established.         

Kangaroo paws grow quickly and will need watering to get established, once they are established you should only need to water during very hot dry periods.     Generally plants are easy care, and newer varieties do not get diseases.     Some plants will last for a few years, others, particularly the larger varieties will live for 7 years or more.      Once plants have finished flowering, normally in later summer or autumn, cut off old flowers.     Cut flower stems at the base.   You may also need to cut back your plant hard when leaves become damaged by age (some plants will be a number of years old before you need to do this).     It is best to cut leaves down close to the base and remove all the leaves, this is usually done in autumn when summer heat has subsided.

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