Specialty plants here at Peards Nursery Albury include the incredibly popular and highly sought-after Australian native Grass Tree (Xanthorrea), as well as Bromeliads and air plants (Tillandsia), bulbs, advanced cacti, carnivorous plants, conifers, cycads, ferns, orchids, palms and bamboo, succulents, topiary plants and standards.

Grass trees available at Peards Nursery Albury come in a range of sizes, from seedlings to mature plants with trunks up to and over one metre, and tend to include two eastern Australian varieties – Xanthorrea johnsonii and Xanthorrea glauca. These quintessential Australian natives are a spectacular and unique plant that typically grow a single trunk formed from the spent leaf bases, but they can also be multi-trunked. Grass Trees are slow growing plants, can live up to 600 years, grow only one to two and a half centimetres each year, prefer good drainage, and are drought and fire tolerant. If you want a spectacular feature in your garden or landscape, we have National Parks collected, certified stock as well as expert advice on how to pot, plant and care for your precious specialty plant.

Bulbs are seasonal perennials that are sold in bags while the plant is dormant.

Spring flowering bulbs are currently available and include but are not limited to Liliums, Gladioli, Calla lilies, Lily of the Valley and Hippeastrums. Edible spring bulbs such as shallots, potatoes and garlic are usually available but are now all sold out.

Autumn flowering bulbs include the classic daffodil, belladonna lilies, crocus, jonquils and leucojums to name a few.

Other specialty plants including Bromeliads and air plants, bulbs, advanced cacti, carnivorous plants and orchids are located in the indoor plant section of the nursery. Peards Nursery Albury are stockists of quality Bromeliads, air plants and carnivorous plants predominantly supplied by the wholesale nursery Triffid Park and Paradisia Nurseries.

Bromeliads are colourful, structural plants that provide long lasting flowers indoors or in protected locations outdoors. They are excellent habitat plants for frogs. Sundews (Drocera), the ever-popular Venus fly traps (Dionaea), Nepenthes (pitcher plants) and Sarracenia are some of the carnivorous plants commonly found at Peards Nursery. Advanced cacti are sourced and carefully transported from Melbourne. A range of species of different shapes, colour and size are available with types selected to suit all cacti enthusiasts. Children and adults alike love the interesting characteristics of carnivorous plants and cacti, so come in and be amazed by these unusual plants.

Conifers are striking, hardy plants that have cones. They grow in a range of different shapes and sizes and look great in pots, grown as hedges or as feature plants such as in Japanese or conifer gardens. Popular conifers often in stock at Peards Nursery Albury include Cupressus species such as Cupressus sempervirens ‘Glauca’, ‘Swanes Gold’ and Lemon Scent, Juniperus species such as the Spartan, Shore juniper groundcover, or tall and slender Skyrocket or Blue Arrow, Cupressocyparis including Castlewellan Gold and Leightons Green and Naylors Blue, as well as Thuja, Picea, and Chamaecyparis or book leaf conifers. Other specialty conifers can be sourced and ordered for conifer enthusiasts but are subject to availability.

Cymbidium, Phalaenopsis and Dendrobian orchids are beautiful terrestrial or epiphytic plants that make great gifts or feature plants for dappled sun positions. Orchids are easy to care for and reward growers with spectacular flowers.

Tree ferns are specialty native plants which form a striking, textured trunk over time. Dicksonia Antarctica ferns prefer some protection from sun and are sold at Peards Nursery Albury as more mature plants with a trunk size of one, two, three or four feet. Cyathea Cooperi is a more sun tolerant fern species that is usually located in the shady shrubs section of the nursery. It is most commonly sold in six inch (14cm) pots.

Cycads are ancient cone-bearing plants that are well suited to hot, dry conditions. These specialty plants develop a thick, woody trunk and crown of dark green foliage that looks similar to a palm. They can be grown in pots, for example on either side of a doorway or path, or as feature plants on their own in a garden bed. Cycads also look great mass planted in feature gardens or along driveways. At Peards Nursery Albury, we stock cycads in a range of pot sizes so come in and check out this unusual plant.

Palms and bamboo are specialty plants that can be used to create a tropical look. They can be grown as feature plants or as a privacy screen. Palms and bamboo are not frequently available but are usually more commonly in stock over the warmer months of the year.

Succulents are increasingly popular as they make great gifts, are easy to care for, and bring colour and form to any pot, garden or landscape. We have a huge selection of common and unusual succulents in tubes and $9 specials (5 inch pots or 10 cm).

Species in stock year-round include Aloe, Euphorbia, Haworthia, Carpobrotus, Pig Face (Hot pink, dwarf pink, purple, yellow, white), Senecio, Crassula, Sempervivum and Echeveria.

Our range of Senecio include dwarf blue chalk sticks, chain of beads, string of dolphins, string of pearls and string of bananas.

Crassulas commonly in stock include Surprise party, Springtime, gollum and ovata, to name a few.

Other succulents include but are not limited to Echeveria, Sempervivum, such as spider, green, tectorum, obesum, Autumn Joy, Jellybeans and Sieboldii, as well as Graproveria, Kalanchoe and Sedum.

Specialty plants is a term that can also be extended to include any ornamental feature plants used in theme gardens, such as grafted Japanese maples, weeping cherries and weeping mulberries. Species commonly used as topiary and standards include buxus, lilly pilly, ivy, ficus species, gardenias, azaleas, conifers, abutilons, acacias and grevilleas.