To help hibiscus shrubs produce a great display of flowers in Spring and Summer, it is important to give them a hard pruning in September.

As a rough guide fertilise  your hibiscus about one month before pruning them. When you are ready to prune your plants, make sure the blades of your secateurs or loppers are clean and cut your plants back by about one third.

 Although your hibiscus will look a little bare immediately after being pruned, new growth will shoot back very quickly and within a couple of months new flowers will start to appear. Good luck.

It is important to keep common area doors at body corporate properties secure, and I often call in the services of a ‘mechanic in a can’ to keep door closers, hinges and latches functioning properly.

Sometimes a few simple adjustments to a door closer and spraying the hinges with some WD-40 (or RP-7) can avoid the costs associated with calling out a locksmith or a handyman.

We always keep a ‘mechanic in a can’ in our van.

The leading causes of mould on ceilings, doors and walls are the presence of excessive moisture and poor air circulation. So before any mould treatment can be effective, it is imperative to indentify and address the source of the mould!

Once the underlying cause/s of the mould has been taken care of, it’s time to call in our fragrant problem solver – oil of clove.

Shannon Lush, the Aussie cleaning guru, recommends a three stage process which Common Ground Maintenance has used countless times over the past 2 years.

1. Add half a teaspoon of oil of clove to 1 litre of water, and apply to the affected using a spray bottle. Leave for 20 minutes.
2. Wipe the surface clean.
3. Re-spray and leave on.

I’ve never had a call back after using this process.