thanks for the info, everyone. I've been giving it lots of drinks. It is less hot today and looking less sickly. hoovb, thanks for posting the photos of your beautiful trees. They are huge, and I wasn't aware they get that big. I'm pretty annoyed that my landscape designer would put it there knowing this gets big. Here's a wider shot of the front. As you can see, the fern tree is right next to the garage, so we have to back our car out right next to it. My car already sort of brushes up against it when I back out. I'm in agreement with you all it needs moved. Any thoughts on what we should replace it with? Something that has some height? The spot gets mostly shade/dappled sun.

I wouldn't have classified this as a succulent, either, but it is definitely a cool looking plant that is not that common. The same species is available thru some wholesale nurseries such as San Marcos Growers out of Santa Barbara, so you can find it outside of botanic garden sales. I've seen it growing in full sun, well drained and low water gardens here in the San Francisco Bay Area, also, but it doesn't tend to be long lived unless it has perfect drainage, and full sun. Tip pinching to renew it and keep it from getting rangy or too woody also helps, as does a pebble mulch to keep the basal stems drier in winter.

Koalas generally live in open dry forest country - not wet rainforest. Cycads,Bowenia,Macrozamia,Lepidozamia,Codiaeum and all Aroids are toxic, very toxic and while the K's may not eat them just chewing on them could be fatal. I am not a Koala expert but know that what is poisonous to one type of animal may not be poisonous to another, ie seeds which a bird can eat may kill a human. K's have a specially adapted digestive system to process the eucalypt leaves. I would SUGGEST YOU GET IN TOUCH WITH AN AUSTRALIAN ZOO SUCH AS AUSTRALIA ZOO IN QUEENSLAND OR LONE PINE KOALA SANCTUARY IN BRISBANE BEFORE PLANTING ANYTHING IN THE ENCLOSURE. I presume the wellbeing of the Koalas is more important than the wellbeing of the plants. Many of the plants listed so far in this post will not grow in a shady area so do your homework thoroughly before you spend any of your $800 budget. It would be a pity to waste it on plants that will never prosper. Callistemon and Lily pilly (Syzigium) are easy to grow from seed but are unlikely to grow in such small planters for very long. Birs nest fern should do well in planters. Koalas are more endangered than any of the plants listed so please be careful.

Certainly a Banksia - but what you actually seem to have is not a seed at all, but a dead flower-head, cut before the seeds have formed. I am sure a bit of searching on the internet would find you a picture of a seedhead, for comparison. Trish