#grevillea hedge

[spilladabalia]

Grevillea Hedge - Radicalism

[michellepaulson]

A Guide to Landscaping in Rose Bay: Enhancing Your Outdoor Space

Landscaping in Rose Bay offers a unique opportunity to blend natural beauty with urban living, creating inviting outdoor spaces that complement the area's coastal charm. Located in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney, Rose Bay's landscape is characterised by its proximity to the harbour, lush greenery, and a blend of residential and commercial areas. Whether you're looking to enhance your home's curb appeal or create a tranquil retreat, here's a comprehensive guide to landscaping in Rose Bay:

Embrace Coastal Elements

Rose Bay's coastal location influences its landscaping style. Incorporate coastal plants like banksias, grevilleas, and native grasses that thrive in sandy soils and salty air. These plants not only add aesthetic appeal but also require minimal maintenance, making them ideal for the local climate.

Sustainable Design Practices

Opt for sustainable landscaping practices that conserve water and reduce environmental impact. Consider installing rainwater tanks to capture runoff for irrigation, using permeable paving materials to minimise stormwater runoff, and choosing native plants that are drought-tolerant and attract local wildlife.

Create Outdoor Living Spaces

Maximise your outdoor space by creating functional areas for relaxation and entertainment. Designate cosy seating areas under shade trees or pergolas, install outdoor kitchens or BBQ areas for alfresco dining, and incorporate pathways that guide visitors through the garden while enhancing the flow of your landscape design.

Incorporate Indigenous Art and Culture

Celebrate Rose Bay's Aboriginal heritage by incorporating Indigenous art and cultural elements into your landscape design. Consider integrating traditional storytelling through art installations, using native bush foods in your garden, or incorporating natural materials like sandstone and timber in pathways or sculptures.

Enhance Privacy and Security

Incorporate landscaping elements that enhance privacy and security while maintaining aesthetic appeal. Utilise hedging plants, trellises with climbing plants, or decorative fencing to create boundaries and screening from neighbouring properties or busy streets.

Lighting for Ambiance and Safety

Enhance the beauty of your landscape design with strategic lighting that accentuates key features like trees, sculptures, or architectural elements. Additionally, prioritise safety by illuminating pathways, stairs, and entrances to ensure visibility during evening hours.

Seasonal Maintenance Plan

Develop a seasonal maintenance plan to ensure your landscape remains vibrant year-round. Schedule regular pruning, mulching, and fertilising to promote plant health and growth. Consider hiring local landscapers familiar with Rose Bay's climate and soil conditions for expert maintenance assistance.

Complement Architectural Style

Harmonise your landscaping with the architectural style of your home and surrounding buildings in Rose Bay. Choose materials, colours, and plantings that complement the existing structures while enhancing the overall aesthetic appeal of your property.

Water Features and Wildlife Habitats

Integrate water features such as ponds, fountains, or bird baths to attract local wildlife and create a serene atmosphere in your garden. Incorporate aquatic plants and rocks to mimic natural habitats while providing a source of relaxation and contemplation.

By following these tips and incorporating local elements, you can create a stunning landscape in Rose Bay that not only enhances your property's value and appeal but also harmonises with its natural surroundings. Whether you're aiming for a serene retreat or an inviting entertainment space, thoughtful landscaping can transform your outdoor area into a true haven by the harbour.

[malleedesign]

New Post has been published on http://malleedesign.com.au/portfolio-woolooware-rejuvenation/

Portfolio: Woolooware Rejuvenation

This native garden in Woolooware has a new owner, someone who is keen to be the new caretaker of the space and is looking forward to maintaining the native plants and learning more about them along the way. Someone who also recognised it was in dire need of renewal to bring it back to its original intent. Many of the ground covers had become leggy and sparse and much of the signature silver foliage had succumbed to humid weather. The screening on all sides was over grown and shading out much of the planting.

In the image above and below you can see how overgrown the Waterhousia screening hedge was and this was after they had already been given a harsh haircut.

Much of the silver layers had been lost due to being shaded out by the hedge or dying from a humid Summer.

The canopy of the Waterhousia was lifted to let light and air in underneath, this will allow for the new understory planting to flourish. The grasses of course needed a haircut and the Myoporum ‘Yareena’ had become leggy and woody having never been cut back.

I added Westringia ‘Wynyabbie Gem’ and Grevillea arenaria to cover the black concrete retaining wall with a soft light grey foliage.

The Leucophyta brownii had died and been replaced with Rhagodia ‘Silver Border’ as a low border shrub. This is a much hardier species for our sometimes sub-tropical weather in Sydney 😉

The bank of Chrysocephalum apiculatum continues to flourish and spread.

To add some more punchy silver I used Maireana oppositifolia ‘Smokey’ to the back of the Yellow Buttons. There were several sampling trees which were removed from along the rear and side boundary which were either planted in the wrong position or seed grown from the gorgeous Corymbia citriodora in the neighbours rear yard.

By giving the whole garden a clear out it enabled some of the other species to shine, like these two Xanthorrhoea glauca in the back corner.

All the shrubs received a prune, especially the ones on the northern boundary which had been let go. To fill in the gaps created by the sapling tree removal I planted Acacia iteaphylla and Grevillea arenaria, more greys and silvers to lighten up the under-story.

The overall structure of the garden created by the large sandstone boulders is now more visible and easier to access for the new little people who have moved in and are happily claiming the garden for their nature play.

The contrasting layers of shrubs in the rear are really fulfilling their role in creating a tapestry garden planting palette. In the image above you can see Correa alba, Acacia ‘Limelight’, with Westringia fruticosa and Maireana oppositifolia ‘Smokey’ in the back.

The Banksia ‘Coastal Cushions’ are extremely happy!

Next on the agenda is to place a swimming pool into the garden, designed to be sympathetic with the landscape whilst also making the most of the already established design.

[santandreas]

FOTD-14- Nov.

FOTD challenge for November 14th. Flower and buds and the spent blooms are there,too,but almost invisible,on the middle stem. A square of Green,manipulated. The hedge belongs to Maroubra Green Retirement Village. That same square,loli filter Notice the new buds Pink Grevillea I had to run to the shops, about 3.00pm this afternoon and took these, hurriedly on my way…

[huonperrenials]

Macdonnell Ranges-Serpentine Gorge

Hi there!

Heading west out of Alice Springs on Namatjira drive you are soon in the heart of the Macdonnell Ranges.  We went past places like, Standley Chasm, Simpsons Gap, Ellery Creek Water Hole and then we pulled up at Serpentine Gorge.  All these places by the way are easily accessible from Alice Springs as Day trips, quite handy if you don’t want to camp out in the wilds!  The Macdonnell Ranges run for about 640 odd km’s east and west of Alice Springs.  Parallel ridges on either side of the valley are quite visible and in these ridges there are gaps which provide spectacular scenery and beautiful waterholes to cool of in the middle of summer.  The Ranges were green from recent rain which really made them standout amongst the surrounding landscape of red and ochre desert colours.  If you want to learn more about the Macdonnell ranges click HERE.

Serpentine Gorge was created by a south flowing creek which has cut through two ridges of Heavitree Quartzite leaving a spectacular gorge.  The road in is not too bad for a dirt road and once you get to the parking area it’s about a 1.5km walk in to the gorge across dry creek beds and scrubland.  If you’re lucky and are here after rain there are lots of wildflowers to see.  I was the one lagging behind taking photos of plants and flowers as the rest of the family steamed ahead to the heady heights of the gorge lookout.  Now if you want to see pictures of Serpentine Gorge in all its glory, I’m not going to show them right now!  You will need to scroll through this post to find them, cruel I know but well worth it!

Here is one of the dry creek beds, very rocky as you can see.

This is what a lot of the surrounding plant scape looks like, uninspiring you may say but you just need to look closely to find its beauty.

Larapinta trail marker, this walking trail is 223km in length across the Macdonnell ranges, click on this link, maybe one day!

If you’re walking too fast you will miss this little plant.  Brachyscome ciliaris also known as Variable Daisy is found in all states of Australia and usually in sand and gibber plains(extended plain with loose rocks).  Grows to about 45cm.  Brachyscome quite often seen in nurseries and gardens around the country even more exciting to find it out here!

Remember!  Don’t just look ahead, cast your eye’s down and to the sides of where you’re walking, you’ll never know what you will find or see next.

Above is a couple of more photos of this little gem.  Now, what about some Nightshade!  Solanum quadriloculatum.  That’s a mouthful, Wild Tomato sound better? Be very wary, this plants fruit are poisonous, another reason why common names are misleading.  This plant grows to 50 x 50cm near flooded watercourses and or low sand dunes.  It’s quite prickly and flowers in winter and spring.  

Below is Senna artemisoides subsp. artemisoides, another mouthful but a very beautiful shrub which grows to about 1-2 metres with beautiful yellow buttercup flowers in winter and spring.

Maybe you can just call it the Silver Cassia.  Now for an Emu Bush.  Eremophila latrobei , commonly known as the Crimson Turkeybush, click HERE if you want to read more about this plant.  Quite beautiful!

Another stunning Emu bush is Eremophila longifolia , also known as Berrigan, tall shrub to small tree weeping in form, click HERE if you want to know more about the Berrigan.

Sorry, I got distracted with the plants in the Serpentine Gorge, lets move onto the scenery.  This is the first sort of glimpse of the gorge and it looks like its sort of straight up to the top, hmm!

Lets go for it!  Now we are starting the climb up and here you can clearly see the parallel ridge lines that run through the Macdonnell Ranges.

Another couple of views of those ridge lines

Yes, as you can see above we are getting higher, quite spectacular!  It is quite a rocky landscape and on these hillsides there is a lot of Porcupine grass, Trioda irritans.  The last past of its botanic name sums it up very well indeed, very irritating because it’s quite prickly.

Below are more views across the valley.

Another plant of interest for me to see in the wild was Dodonaea viscosa , the Broad leaf Hop Bush or just plain Hop Bush, very common in gardens around the country and useful for many things from hedging to specimen plantings.  It’s a very variable plant in the wild and widespread across the country.

Now I know photos are great but there’s just no comparison to actually being there and seeing this landscape.  I have a great digital SLR camera but it doesn’t capture the WOW! The size, scope and detail of what your eyes are looking at or what your feeling right then and there as you look at this amazing country.  Below is the Serpentine Gorge.

    Where does one go now from these heights?  Down one would expect and lo and behold something I missed on the way up nearly hit me fair and square in the head on the way down.

Leaning over the rocky pathway was this intriguing large shrub with what looked like  stems twining around themselves like a climbing plant.  This is Pandorea doratoxylon also known as the Spearwood Vine.  The Aboriginal people use this plant for spears hence its common name. The long twining stems are light weight and are straightened and hardened over a fire.  The flowers are quite pretty when one comes upon them in such a tough landscape.

If they look familiar to you, you may be thinking of Pandorea jasminoides the Wonga Wonga vine or also known as the Bower Vine or one of the many hybrids available today.  You would be correct because they are in the same family Bignoniaceae.  Check out this closeup below!

This next photo doesn’t show too much, I just liked the detail of the bark.  To me it tells a story of the harsh landscape in which it resides.

These next photos show an interesting Grevillea, the Holly Leaf Grevillea, Grevillea wickhamii.  There are a few sub species but I’m not sure which one this is.  I have pictures of this flowering at a different location which will be revealed at a later date!

You can see above that the new growth gives the plant a tinge of yellow which from a distance look like flowers.Some more plants of interest here included another beautiful Emu Bush, Eremophila freelingii. The Rock Fuchsia Bush.

A characteristic of this plant is that it sheds its lower leaves during drought to conserve moisture, you can see that quite clearly in the above photo, the plant looks half dead but it’s not!  Grows to about 1.5 metres.  The lilac flowers are stunning and are produced after it rains.  Just a few more views below of this beautiful plant on the sides of Serpentine Gorge.

Funnily enough another surprise was what looked to be some type of Fern here as well and yes it was.  Not sure of its identity but quite possibly Cheilanthes brownie , The Northern Rock Fern, either way still remarkable to me to see a fern out here.  Nature is amazing.

Another interesting plant we saw was a parasite.  Lysiana exocarpi , the Harlequin Mistletoe.  This parasite is found mostly in inland locations and is very colourful.

Now we have made it back down and headed into the cool of the gorge, being winter it wasn’t hot out in the open so one could imagine how nice and cool it would be in the heat of summer.

In the above photo in the distance you can see some cycads, Macrozamia macdonnellii , the Macdonnell Ranges Cycad.  Here they are below as well.

Ah well!  That’s about it for the Serpentine Gorge, here’s a few last photos of plants and foliage.

Lets have some lunch, its been a great morning in the Macdonnell Ranges.  Serpentine Gorge has been a truly magical experience.

Finally a last look into the gorge.

Cheers!

A trip to the Northern Territory. Part 7. Macdonnell Ranges-Serpentine Gorge Hi there! Heading west out of Alice Springs on Namatjira drive you are soon in the heart of the Macdonnell Ranges. 

[landscapesethnowi756-blog]

What Does Garden Maintenance Mean?

Good prep work is essential for your garden to survive the wilting impacts of the Aussie summer season. For all of us, summertime brings typical obstacles, such as splitting time and initiative between keeping our Browse around this site gardens in good form, and enjoying them throughout the summer holidays. Take care of fledgling plants Does your camellia decline its buds and blossoms? As camellias (visualized) initiate budding in summertime, unexpected loss of buds and flowers is commonly a repercussion of the plants drying out, particularly when they are expanding in containers. Mulch and water deeply once or twice once a week during hot, dry climate to limit this annoying and usual GoodFellers trouble. Help pots to stay trendy Potted plants, especially those in terracotta pots, are at risk to overheating. Bear in mind that standing potted plants in dishes of water motivates origin rot and mosquito breeding. If potted plants completely dry out to the point where re-wetting is hard, soak them in a bucket of water for half an hour, after that drainpipe. 3. Water early to prevent mildew Water in the cool of the day. The very best time is morning yet, if you water in the afternoon, permit sufficient time for foliage to dry out prior to sundown. This decreases the danger of mold Browse this site and various other fungi striking fallen leaves, and there's less opportunity you'll obtain captured by the evening shift of sandflies or insects. Mold frequently attacks roses, pumpkin, melon, zucchini and cucumber. Spray plants regular with http://goodfellers.ie/tree-pruning a solution made from one part cow's milk to 10 parts water Repeat after hefty rain or irrigation. This solution will not reverse mold damage, but it's an effective preventative. Include nutrients to the water. If you can only water sometimes, attempt to water plants deeply and use that possibility to concurrently feed and correct mineral deficiencies. Water in potash around the base of fruit trees, particularly lychee, banana and citrus, to enhance fruit flavour and juiciness. 5. Maintain the grass long and lavish Brown, bare, weed-infested grass are symptoms of scalping, which suggests reducing grass as well low. It's a misunderstanding that reducing yards low minimizes the reducing regularity. Instead, mow lawns as high as your mower allows. Longer lawn uses far better, but essential of all, a thick sward reduces pernicious weeds such as oxalis and bindii. Fresh yard cuttings are great for activating compost heaps and mulching busheses, however just when used in a thin layer, as much as 5cm deep, as thicker layers could shed fallen leaves and urge collar rot on trees and hedges. Keep grass rich by foliar feeding with seaweed restorative as soon as monthly and using one handful of fowl manure per square metre each season, before rain or watering. Allow 2 weeks for this to green your yard-- and for the odour to go away before having a garden party! Maintain the water streaming Clear debris from seamless gutters so that every shower channels additional water into your rain container. Use mosquito mesh to stop insects and frogs from getting in tanks and pipes. When it's awesome, do tough work It's more secure, and you're more probable to do a far better task, if you total energised work such as mowing in the cool of the day-- either before 10am or after 4pm. An excellent drink of water and a smear of sunscreen are requirements, because that five-minute job frequently results in one more, and another. Sunblock takes 15 mins to develop its protective layer, so use that time to plan your day in the garden. Always remember your hat (or umbrella) and sunnies too, and if you do get melted, nothing beats the air conditioning, recovery result of fresh, home-grown juice of aloe vera. In my Dublin garden, a tea tree oil-based mosquito repellent is also necessary. Save some light tasks, such as weeding or propagating, to complete in the comfort of a shady place. Protect new plantings Newly planted veggie and flower plants are most likely to need a little sunlight hardening. Shield them with 50 per cent shadecloth, old net curtains, dead hand leaves, or leafy branches for a week or 2. This helps them establish without injury. Plan shade tactically Northern borders may benefit from some additional color, however will this make a photovoltaic panel or warm water system ineffective? Purposefully putting a deciduous tree, vine or some clumping bamboo to protect your home and garden from burning western sunshine is frequently a far better option. For more information on using plants to color revealed locations of your house, visit Your Home Design Guide and select 'Shading' in the technological guidebook. Increase trace elements Magnesium urges robust development and the manufacturing of power in plants. Gardenias and roses in particular gain from supplementary magnesium in summer season. Use it to cymbidium orchids to assist initiate blossom buds. Add 1 heaped tsp of Epsom salts to 4.5 L of water. Either spray the foliage, or water it in at the origins. If the leaves of citrus, banksia, camellia, azalea or grevillea come to be stunted and bespeckled yellow, now is likewise the time to boost the iron web content of soil by using iron chelates. This acidifies dirt and adds iron needed for healthy and balanced development. It takes a month approximately to see a result. Keep an eye out for parasites A lot of varieties are discouraged to strike household and garden timber. Be on guard for bug species and keep garden tools with wood handles, hardwood risks and other hardwood lures off the ground. Protect without treatment wood, such as benches and garden bed edging, from decay. Use your time sensibly

If you're short of time yet like your garden to look cared for, some fresh mulch, a couple of strategically put flowering plants and a freshly edged yard will offer your garden a lift. Apart from keeping soil cool and conserving water, compost quits stormwater cleaning fertiliser away. Just how much water is enough?

In my Dublin garden, I don't have sufficient water Click for more info to endure long, droughts, so I water by top priority. Parched citrus and banana top the listing as, without enough water, they will not fruit. Exactly how else can you inform if a plant is parched? Moisture-loving plants, such as pumpkin or impatiens, might shrivel at noontime, merely since they can't absorb dirt dampness as fast as it evaporates. Gingers are much better indications of dry dirt, due to the fact that they roll their fallen leaves when worried. Constantly check your soil to see if even more water is truly needed. Bear in mind that standing potted plants in saucers of water urges root rot and mosquito reproduction. If potted plants dry out to the factor where re-wetting is hard, saturate them in a container of water for half an hour, then drainpipe. The finest time is morning however, if you water in the afternoon, enable adequate time for vegetation to dry out before sunset. If you could just water occasionally, attempt to water plants deeply and make use of that chance to simultaneously feed and fix mineral shortages. In my Dublin garden, I don't have adequate water to endure long, dry spells, so I water by top priority.

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New Post has been published on http://malleedesign.com.au/portfolio-st-ives-landscape-design/

Portfolio: St Ives Landscape Design

This garden in the leafy north shore suburb of St Ives was designed last year and built only 7 months ago. Part of the brief for this garden was to have plenty of year round flowers for bees and birds and given these photos have been taken in Winter, one of the most difficult seasons for capturing flowering plants I was happy to see many species out in bloom already.

Chrysocephalum apiculatum

The front garden was originally a large expanse of lawn with a deciduous Maple and some low buxom hedge. The clients wanted the complete opposite!

In the image above you can see the before garden and in the image below the after…

The lawn was removed and the gently sloping garden divided up to create 3 more manageable and useable levels.

As you step in the front gate there in a low hedge of Acacia fimbriata Dwarf ‘Crimson Blush’ which will screen the fence from the house.

The first level is an open space created to allow for an extra parking space and turning circle when parking in the car pot. This is decomposed crushed granite Deco Gold which has been planted into to blur the lines between the garden beds and hard space.

The middle level is mulch and planted out with native ground covers, shrubs and two feature trees, and houses a sandstone plinth birdbath.

The middle level will also house some bee hives in the sunny north facing spot on the boundary surrounded by tea trees.

The lowest level which leads to the house entrance is paved in sandstone flagging with two curved cortex steel edged curved garden beds framing the pathway.

Grated Grevilleas have been used as feature plants close to the house with two grated standards providing a formal element to the garden which harks back to many gardens in the area.

Grafted Standard Grevilleas

The grafted standard Grevilleas tie in well with the clipped Camellia hedge behind 😉

I am so happy with the way the grasses and ground covers have already begun to spill over the sandstone boulders.

The rear garden was designed at the same time as the front but wasn’t completed until earlier this year. This is a very shady garden which is over shadowed by neighbouring trees.

The original garden was mainly lawn with a very large Fraxinus. The clients wanted to introduce as many native species as possible to encourage wildlife into the garden.

A small fire pit area was created in the rear flat corner and the large tree removed.

The Plectranthus argentatus ‘Silver Shield’ is doing a wonderful job of quickly filling in the space and flowering its head off in the shade.

And last but not least the garden street frontage is lined with a low hedge of Grevillea ‘Winter Delight’. This can be hedged in a typical north shore fashion or left to spill over the footpath, either way it attracts attention to the modern native garden which lies behind the white picket fence!

[malleedesign]

New Post has been published on https://malleedesign.com.au/what-to-plant-for-poorly-drained-soils/

What to Plant for Poorly Drained Soils

Wet Weather Gardening

By Kath Gadd and Hannah Preston

After yet more rain on the east coast many plants in many gardens are suffering water-logging. Even in reasonably well drained soils the inundation has been too much for some plants. Physically, the force of rain, streams and puddles of water have caused their own damage and with the increased humidity comes increased pathogen risk, it really hasn’t put many gardeners in the best mood, myself included!

Callistemon ‘In June’

The biggest issue with waterlogging is often the deprivation of oxygen from the soil. If the soil can’t breathe then anaerobic bacteria take over and start producing the yucky smells we associate with long-wet locations. Most plant roots actually need oxygen to survive as well as air space to continue growing, so when soils sit wet for too long they literally start to suffocate.

Leptospermum ‘Starry Night’

From aboveground there’s not always much we can do to immediately alleviate water-logging, but noticing and designing your garden based on how water travels is a good first step. You can also add clay breaker or organic materials like mulches to help improve the structure of the soil and its ability to drain and hold air pockets.

Melalueca viridiflora ‘Burgundy Weeper’

Be mindful that after rain soils are vulnerable to compaction, and if compacted their ability to aerate again will be compromised. Try not walk excessively on or run heavy objects over still wet areas – unless of course you’ve turning the local hillside into a mudslide for the kids 😛 

Melaleuca armillaris ‘Pink’

Create some space around the base of your plants, especially young ones. After heavy rain debris and other materials sometimes accumulate around the stems of plants, which leads to increased humidity and a greater chance of pathogens taking hold. Plants can become completely covered in mulch after the rain so make sure you clear the base to allow for airflow.

Leptospermum ‘Ballerina’

Some native plants are more tolerant than others when it comes to having wet feet, sometimes this is called being hardy to ‘temporary inundation’, which just means their root system will tolerate sitting in water for a short period of time without harming the plant.

Melastoma affine

I have a heavy clay soil so am no stranger to trying to find native plants which will survive in poorly drained soil and have been trialling and testing some of the pictured natives species. As a general rule of thumb I have listed some species and genus below which don’t mind having wet feet, some of them even thrive.

Baloskion tetraphyllum

Reeds, rushes and sedges are great in boggy damp areas, they will soak up excess moisture in difficult positions and can make great borders and features.

Poa ‘Suggan Buggan’

Banksia robur or the Swamp Banks ifs a wonderful large shrub or small tree which can handle very poorly drained soils and also periods of drought.

Banksia robur

The WA peppermint will also cope with temporary inundation to its root system, this species can be found as a low shrub, large shrub and small to medium tree, so is very useful in clay soils, however it dislikes humidity so beware when growing it north of Sydney.

Agonis ‘Burgundy’

Agonis flexuosa

If you are looking for large Eucalyptus species which can handle a heavier soil and lots of rain, look no further than our beautiful Ironbarks!

Eucalyptus paniculata

Smaller hedging plants will be species which naturally grow in a wetter environment like the sub tropical rainforest, this encompasses plants like Lilly Pillys, Myrtles and Baeckea.

Syzygium wilsonii

Other moisture loving small trees which don’t mind a bit of extra rain but cant sit for very long with wet feet are Grevillea baileyana, Buckinghamia celsissima, Tristaniopsis laurina and Xanthostemon chrysanthus.

Grevillea baileyana

Please see the list below and help me add to it!

Leptospermum (not all species)

Melaleuca (not all species)

Callistemons (not all species)

Casaurina species and cultivars

Banksia robur

Sedges – Carex apressa, Ficinia nodosa, Gahnia species

Eucalyptus ampifolia, sideroxylon, paniculata

Acmena and Syzygium species

Baeckea virgata and linifolia

Backhousia anisata, citriodora, myrtifolia

Calothamnus quadrifidus

Callicoma serratifolia

Randia fitzlanni

Lomatia myricoides

Kunzea (not all species)

Melastoma affine

Native Grasses – Themeda triandra, Dianella caeurulea, Poa labillardieri, Pycnosorus globosus

Viminaria juncea

Tristaniopsis laurina

Agonis flexuosa

[malleedesign]

New Post has been published on https://malleedesign.com.au/portfolio-haberfield-landscape-design/

Portfolio: Haberfield Landscape Design

The brief for this front garden in Sydney’s inner west was to create a modern native garden which is sympathetic to the era of the house and show cases an Art Deco water feature passed down through the family.

The front garden now addresses and interacts with the street and also provides a sense of arrival for the residents when coming home either on foot or by parking in the existing onsite car space.

The front of the house is partly overshadowed by an enormous street fig tree, this tree also sucks a lot of available moisture from the soil.

Haberfield is an area of Sydney with strong Italian heritage and many of the houses and gardens reflect the culture with a Mediterranean style. The front lawn was removed and replaced with crushed decomposed granite ‘Deco Gold’ with a pathway of Porphyry stone to tie in as closely with the granite tiles of the exisitng car parking space.

Porphyry Stone Step

The stone stepper pathway leads through the front garden around the water fountain and to the existing terracotta tile entrance pathway. Low border planting gives the garden structure and a slightly formal style which ties in with Acacia ‘Limelight’ Standards.

Acacia ‘Limelight’ Grafted Standard

I used Melaleuca ‘Mini Quini’ as a low hedge against the street facing wall and Banksia ‘Coastal Cushions’ against the house and around the Acacia Standards.

Acacia ‘Limelight’ Grafted Standard

Along the entrance pathway screening and height are provided by more Acacia standards, Grevillea candelabra Grafted and Xanthorrhoea johnsonii with border plantings of Banksia ‘Coastal Cushions’, Lomandra ‘Mist’ and Melaleuca ‘Mini Quini’. Next year I really must get to this garden to take photos whilst the Banksias are in flower as there are some 30 odd in this front garden!

Grevillea ‘Cherry Cluster’

A raised garden bed built into the house is home to Grevillea ‘Cherry Cluster’ which provides plenty of year round flowers for the birds, this can also be clipped to create a more formal border later down the track.

Hakea francisiana Grafted has been placed on the lower level of the garden with the blank house wall as a back drop. This showy shrub will create a contrasting feature opposite the fountain and also has the grey leaves of many front garden olive trees in the area.

Hakea francisiana Grafted and Lomandra ‘Mist’

The Hakea is surrounded by Lomandra ‘Mist’ as is the Water feature, this Lomandra grows to around hard a metre wide with a very soft weeping habit and will soften the garden palette with the granite.

The garden was built by Ash from ‘Living on the Hedge’, the rear garden was designed at the same time but is quite different. Work will commence on the back in the coming months, COVID permitting 🤞

[malleedesign]

New Post has been published on http://malleedesign.com.au/portfolio-bexley-garden-design/

Portfolio: Bexley Garden Design

This is a sweet little garden I designed about 4 years ago and it has been lovingly slowly built by the owner’s friend. It is a small rear garden behind a modest brick house in the south western suburbs of Sydney where the mac mansions are taking over. On my visit today the first thing I noticed was not how wonderful the front garden was looking but how the next-door neighbours monstrosity of a new 3 storey house is completely blocking my clients solar panels on the northern side. Honestly, I do not understand Sydney councils…

Planting for privacy for this new build was very important and we are both very glad we kept the exisitng Callistemons on the northern side. The garden is divided up into several small outdoor spaces for contemplation and visitors.

A dry creek bed separates the entertaining paved area from two small sitting nooks.

The seating areas are placed on opposite sides of the garden to provide shade and capture sun during the different seasons.

There is a dense bus food area to the rear boundary and mixed screening trees and shrubs. We used Grevillea ‘Ornage Marmalade’ and Backhousia citriodroa as the main privacy backdrop hedges, and then placed Acacia fimbriata Dwarf, Eucalyptus ‘Summer Red’ and Leptospermum brachyandrum ‘Silver’ as foreground and feature specimens.

The planting palette is quite simple and due to the gardens aspect and location in a built up suburb of Sydney I used plenty of luscious green foliage and layered planting to create a cool relaxed hideaway space.

My favourite plant in this garden is easily this Casuarina ‘Freefall’, it is drooping happily all over the place and is about 70cm high. I’m very happy with the soft weeping combination in this planting bed, in the background you can see Baeckea virgata Dwarf, then Acacia ‘Mini Cog’ with Casuarina ‘Cousin It’ rambling amongst the rocks.

Planting on the other side f the dry creek bed includes Acacia baileyana Prostrate (simulating water under the bridge), Poa ‘Kingsdale and Lomandra ‘Lime Tuff’.

The garden still requires some more shade, ironic considering the new shadows cast on the solar panels 😉 so a small Eucalyptus will be planted to the north west as added shelter for humans and animals alike.

The garden is wonderful habitat for blue tongues and skinks, they love the warm rocks and strappy leaves,  the birds and bees are also abundant in this garden as there is always something in bloom. I look forward to me next visit.

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New Post has been published on http://malleedesign.com.au/just-because-its-beautiful-grevillea-insignis/

Just because it's beautiful....Grevillea insignis

Sometimes I feel the urge to promote plants based on their aesthetic appeal and not much more really… and this is one of them Grevillea insignis, this is a little bit indulgent but I saw this Grevillea growing in Cranbourne Botanic Gardens earlier this year and was instantly drawn to it.

I do love a holly shaped leaf like the leaf on Grevillea flexuosa, only this Grevillea has that lovely shape but it is also chunky and glaucous! The leaves are spikey and dense on the arching branches, making it a perfect habitat plant for small birds.

Grevillea insignis grows naturally in Western Australia on poor and rocky soils, however I do remember seeing it growing at the Bulli Grevillea Park, not sure whether it was grafted or not, so look out for it.

It grows to between 2-4 metres high by the same wide and enjoys full sun to part shade.

The red, cream or pink spider flowers are born from August to December and sometimes into January like when I saw them. Grevillea insignis would make an excellent screen or hedging plant or a stand alone feature shrub adding interest even when not in flower. The new growth is a bright bronze red making the Grevillea appear to glow when the sun is behind it.

This Grevillea is definitely one to look out for and to snap up and find a place for in your garden after the fact, sorry I know thats not what a good gardener designer is supposed to do however sometimes the plant collector in me takes over 😉

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New Post has been published on http://malleedesign.com.au/portfolio-garden-design-bulli/

Portfolio: Garden Design Bulli

Yesterday I spent a sunny winter morning pruning and shaping in this coastal garden in Bulli, I love returning to one of my designs to do a little maintenance and tweaking, and this is one of my favourites 😉 This garden is roughly 4 years old you can see how it has filled out by checking out this older post : http://malleedesign.com.au/portfolio-bulli-garden-design/

                                                  Usually I do a basic tip prune on the Westringia, Eremophila and Grevilleas, to keep them nice and dense but to also help them withstand the strong coastal winds in this garden.

I also dead head and cut back the Anigozanthos, this time I also pruned the Eucalyptus ‘Wildfire’ by taking off all the gum nuts and cleaned out underneath the Acacia ‘Mini Cog’ some of which were suffering from scale. I have never seen such a happy Acacia ‘Mini Cog’ as the one in the image above, it is almost 2 metres wide and creeps beautiful along the ground.

  The other shrubs I am very happy with are the Eremophila nivea Grafted, there are 3 of them in this front garden and they all are extremely happy and full. I am pleased that they cope with the strong winds even though they are grafted, I’m sure that the regular pruning helps.

One of the most important plants in this front garden is a Eucalyptus ‘Euky Dwarf’, it has been planted in a prime position to partially shield the two storey house from the corner aspect. But also to help protect the building from the hot Western Summer Sun and it is beginning to do its job, you can see it in the image below behind the fence.

Eucalyptus ‘Euky Dwarf’ covers itself in small pinky-red flowers in spring through Summer, these blooms are great for small birds and bees.

Eucalyptus ‘Euky Dwarf’ also has an attractive mottled bark on the trunk and grey green weeping leaves, it will grow to approximately 7 metres high and around 3 metres wide, its a wonderful medium sized feature tree.

Another star performer in this garden is the Grevillea ‘Peaches and Cream’ hedge, which hasn’t missed a beat, it has flowered continuously even though in part shade and high wind.

  One of the things I love about this garden is how open it is to the street, there are no fences to the most of the garden and it appears welcoming to the passerby.

The rear garden is mainly hedges and lawn which it all going well, another favourite area of mine is the outdoor shower garden around the side.

This garden gets very little direct sun and has a simple planting with an under-storey of Rhagodia spinescens and Ficinia nodosa and one Banksia ‘Sentinel’ to provide a little privacy to shower behind.

  So keep growing garden and I look forward to seeing you again next year!

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New Post has been published on http://malleedesign.com.au/the-new-formal-native-garden/

The 'New' formal Native Garden

When most people think of a formal garden the first images that spring to mind are rows of neatly clipped Buxus borders with some Robinia topiary and maybe a screening Camellia hedge. These are some of the easiest plants to use if you are copying the European template for creating a formal style garden, they are a throw back from our European heritage but they by no means should set the standard for a more structured garden style.

In the image above you can see how well Acmena ‘Allyn Magic’ and other lilly pilly species prune to shape, Callistemon ‘Little John’ is seen on the right and also responds well to shaping. @ Garden at Zanthorrea Nursery, WA

It is possible to choose any style or popular trend in gardening, and substitute suitable Australian species as an integral part of the design. In this article I will discuss how to integrate some of the formal garden design elements into a native garden.

To be honest I don’t like the term ‘formal garden’ its connotations are of something prim and proper, reserved and even perhaps conservative, basically the opposite of relaxed. However, it is a class of garden that has been around for centuries and relates well to some of Australia’s older architecture and heritage. The simple, structural nature of the formal style beautifully complements both traditional and contemporary houses. Christina Kennedy Garden, Horse Island, NSW

In the image above the garden beds are mirrored on either side of the entrance steps, creating a harmonious balance. Two grafted standard ‘Grevillea Royal Mantle’ are the statement plants with other low mounding natives like Banksia spinulosa Dwarf, Baeckea virgata Dwarf. The verandah is framed with the beautiful weeping habit of Baeckea linifolia.

There are elements of a formal garden style that can be incorporated into a native garden and they will give the garden a contemporary edge. For example the practice of topiary pruning on selected native species will give your garden overall shape and structure. Try pruning some low to medium sized hedges into balls or spheres.

Geilston Bay, Tasmania

In the garden above Myoporum parvifolium creates a lovely dense spill over and the Baeckea imbricata have been pruned into feature balls. “ Many native species can withstand more rigorous horticultural techniques, such as topiary shapes, pleached or hedged structures, espaliers, patterned displays and copse configurations. They offer refreshing experessions of formal design principles, as seen increasingly in contemporary landscape gardens and public spaces.” Kate Herd and Jela Ivankovic-waters ‘Native: Art and Design with Australian Plants’

Mt Annan Botanic Gardens, NSW

The layered hedges in the image above are made up of Hibiscus insularis in the rear with Westringia clipped tightly in the front.

Another way to achieve formality in the landscape rather than by intensive pruning is by using mass planting of single species and creating layered heights in garden beds.

In the image below, Rhagodia spinescens has been mass planted to create a clean open space, simulating a body of water.

Walcott garden, ACT

A formal garden is also restrained in its choice of plants and flower colour is a secondary element in the design. This suits native plants well, as they possess a vast range of foliage colour, shape and texture.

Christina Kennedy garden, Horse Island, NSW

Above picture- Callistemon ‘Great Balls of Fire’ combined with Acacia baileyana prostrate shows how striking foliage contrast can be.

One of the biggest attractions of formal gardens is that they are designed to look good all year round, this is another reason native plants are perfect as they are mainly evergreen. Formal gardens are often planned around “features” which are strategically placed to bring a feeling of symmetry and balance, incorporating sculpture or art into the garden can both enhance the plants and add extra visual interest.

Christina Kennedy garden, Horse Island

In the image above you can see the strong forms of a Grafted Grevillea Standard combined with Banksia spinulosa Dwarf species and Grevillea groundcovers.

Water is often used as a feature in formal style gardens, this could be in the form of a water bowl, birdbath or pond. The beauty of water is that it adds an extra element to the design, and helps to soften an area of sharp lines with its peaceful appearance and tranquil sounds. In formal gardens, water is best contained in a structure such as a pond with clean edges, pot or even pool staying central to the design with symmetrical edging.