gosh sparaxis, you need to move over here I think. it feels like we're in spring, warm 27s during the day and just a bit chilly at night, it doesnt feel like we're even close to winter. I do most of my gardening in autumn and winter when the weather is cooler and we have a chance at some rain. spring and summer is usually too hot to be slaving away in the garden it's just so tiring. I have to admit though Im becoming more ruthless with plants because it's so hard when youre working to keep an eye on things at times. you can try so hard to get round to doing everything but if you dont have the time it just gets frustrating after a while.

TG

Yes, I am with TG, I LOVE MAY :-). I have cleaned my aggies and flaxes off dead leaves, prunned my trees and shredded the lot. Today I have planted wallflowers, stocks and pansies, all for my sister's visit from northern France in July.

I am also tempted to buy the new borderline roses. Has anybody tried them yet?

Team,

At the risk of sounding like a zealot, I think we need to reconsider our plant choices. Even if you want to stick with exotics, there must be better choices for Oz than roses and seasonal bulbs. I have even been caught out with my Curcuma now 'dormant' and leaving a gaping hole in my ginger garden ..

I'm not advocating the mythical 'no maintenance' garden, far from it, but surely there are better ways to spend one's time in the garden than battling with a horde of weeds and assorted insect pests. If the reward for all my efforts was a row of spiny bushes, I'd give the game away.

Yes, its only my opinion, but Autumn/Winter isnt the 'wrong' season - its the plant choices which are 'wrong'. I'd far prefer to see gardens filled with:

Rhododendron
Camellia
Gardenia
Ixora
Mussaenda
Allamanda
etc etc

Several of the above reflect my latitude, but you have just as many choices in Victoria, if not more. To be fair, some also have well-known pest issues, but none of these with leave you struggling with bare, thorny branches.

Cheers,

Artie

PS Got through that without mentioning a single native species, but I think most of you know my thoughts by now. If every rose in the country was magically replaced by a Grevillea, no-one would be happier than I, but I could also live with any combination of the exotic flowering plants I have suggested above. Either of these options would give us all more time to enjoy our gardens, instead of being slaves to them.

Everyone has their preferences Artie. I actually have large areas of natives only (areas as big as an average house block in Melbourne, all under mulch)
I am a very active member of the Victorian Iris Society and hold an increasingly large collection of species plants. So they are far from being what you term "seasonal bulbs". They take up a good part of my year in seed collection, preperation, growing from seed and planting out, selecting and culling, labelling, writing articles, etc. While some of these plants do not do well with heavy mulch, and therefore require fairly intensive weeding, my first posting should not be seen as a complaint, rather a piece of irony. I do actually enjoy gardening, including the meditational act of weeding. That is good, as I have several VERY large beds devoted purely to bearded irises. This area is not what most people would call a garden, and it is fenced off from the rest of the garden, as it is visually not very interesting.
Apart from the digging, dividing and weeding, most of my irises require very little water, so I feel no guilt in growing large areas of them. Those that enjoy moist to wet soil, are grown in just that, provided by the water logged soil over our septic tank run off. These are mulched heavily, even if the books all say not too :-)
As to my roses, most are bush roses and they get very little attention. That is, no more than deadheading over summer, and pruning in July. I actually found it a fairly simple chore to prune close on 200 roses, as many of them are species roses, and only require tidying up. I weed them then mulch them heavily after pruning.
The mulch means I don't have to do much to them during the year. May be I am lucky or just not too fussy, but I do not spend ANY time spraying for pests in my garden. Because of our fairly high rainfal and moisture retentive soil, combined with a good mulch, roses do extremely well here. The only time they look like thorny sticks is for a short time after pruning, and during that time, my completely uncared for "seasonal bulbs" (daffodils) take over the picture. As they fade, the daylilies cover the sad looking daffodil leaves with their own fresh leaves.
If every rose in the country was magically replaced by a grevillia, then I for one, would spend years and years, hybridising and selecting grevillias until I got one that produced blooms that looked and smelled like a rose - LOL
Like you, Artie, I used to dislike roses, until I discovered that there were so many that were NOT hybrid T roses, and that there are places on earth where they grow so wonderfully well. I don't imagine you live in one of those places.
If I don't get you started on native plants Artie, will you promise not to get me started on insect phobia, pest control and the unnecessary, and excessive preoccupation with using poisons in the garden?

Hi Sparaxis,

You have made some very good points, but you also acknowledge that your irises are a collection, as opposed to an integral part of your garden. You have built up your knowledge of this particular species, and can now provide them with everything they need : I have no issue with that. The 'problem' is that everyday gardeners like myself see a collection like yours (be it Irises, or roses, or chrysanthemums or ..) and think 'Wow ! Why dont I grow that ?'. The industry has a vested interest in 'giving people what they want', and truckloads of stock make their way to our town.

Whilst I am up on my soapbox, I'd like to make a teeny confession - I like climbing roses, particularly across a rickety arbour at the side of a rustic old farmhouse. I think it appeals to the country kid in all of us, but how realistic is this vision for your average suburbanite north of the Tweed ? As you've said, you are in one of the rare locations which has the right growing conditions for roses : how many of us are quite so lucky.

Another confession : I dont always practice what I preach. For all my bluster, I have small outposts of plants which simply shouldnt be in a Rocky garden (IMO). I tell myself that my microclimate will eventually be such that these few 'poor' choices wont be an issue, but its irresponsible nonetheless. An excess 25 kilolitres of water in a 3 month period cost me $6.75, and got my young plants through a wicked summer, but am I deluding myself to believe that such a precious resource will always be so readily available ?

Ultimately, its personal choice, but there has to be a middle ground between trying to recreate Merry Olde England and having a dry Eucalypt forest. Please feel free to chide me for my sins :)

Cheers,

Artie

Artie, what you do mean by an 'excess' of 25kL? I've just checked my latest rates notice and find that I've used a total of 29kL in the last three months. (Mind you, it cost me $19 rather than $6.75 but, given the scarcity of water, it's probably still horribly underpriced.)

Hi Artie. I agree with virtually all you say. I think shows like berks backyard, and the increasingly corporate monopolised nursery industry are largely to blame for the average joe gardener to be growing the sort of stuff that they do. I DO wish that people would look at gardens like mine and say - yes I want that. Sadly many of the dainty little species plants are dying out for lack of interest, due mainly to lack of publicity but also difficulty of access. Much of what i grow is really so effort, and low water consumption.
I am pleased to see that, in Melb at least, there are many people not trying to reproduce "Olde Englande" but in many cases "Old Italy, Greece, China, whatever". There are some fabulous front gardens around, with olive trees, nut trees, plantings of herbs and vegies, right there out to the pavements, instead of the ubiquitous icebergs and lavenders we see in new estates. At least the water they are using is going to good, and healthy use.
My main problem here for most of the year is too much, rather than too little water. I wish that you could all be in the same situation, however Creswick seems to have particularly poor TV reception, and lousy mobile phone reception, which i think puts off a lot of people - LOL.

Apologies - the 25Kl figure is the total amount used. I dont have the bill with me, but I seem to remember that the 'tiered' charge per Kl was really low (30c, from memory). My work colleagues routinely pay water bills of $50-150 per quarter : scary figures when you stop to think about it.

$50/qtr doesn't sound bad; I reckon that $150/qtr sounds closer to the real cost of providing the 29kL that I used. I mean, that's 29 *thousand* litres of clean drinking water, the vast bulk of which was not used for drinking or cooking. It's only a matter of time before prices rise (look at the cost of petrol) ...

I hate 'native' plants - they are boring, grey and ugly, flower for a week once a year and you need a magnifying glass to see the small, mean flowers on most of them. They love to burst into flames in summer and attract white ants. There should be a law prohibiting the planting of 'natives' within 100m of any dwelling.

Down the front of our block we have planted many hundreds of decidious trees and conifers. These we mulched heavily with straw. Although they are small, we did not need to water them this year despite being in a drought/dry spell. They have been spectacular, particularly the silver birches and poplars. On a fence closer to the house we have ornamental grape vines, which are so drought proof they amaze us. My perennial beds are heavily mulched, and I might pick out one weed a month - if that. Cutting plants back is about all I do, which I would have to do more of if I owned a 'native' garden. 'Native' gardens are only 'native' if you are growing the plants that occur naturally in your specific area. The minute you plant species that have been cross-bred or 'improved' or are from another area, you are creating a garden of exotics just like everyone else. We spent many, many years living in places where the climate would not permit a garden, so we were forced to look at the ugly 'native' plants. I don't plan to be forced to look at them ever again. Suggesting that only 'native' plants are drought tolerant, and relatively effort-free is pure garbage. My garden is not an 'English' garden, it is an international garden.

Hi sisters and brothers in the gardening world,

As we can see from above post we are all different and plant different gardens. Isn't it great!!!!!! I love gardens, all gardens, some I would not plant on my block, but a admire them just as much as I admire my own creation. A garden in my understanding is not only a place for realxation,be it sitting with a nice book, next to a pool or digging in the dirt, nor is it only a place to produce healthy food for the family, most of all it is an artistic creation. I cannot paint, draw or sing and it is quite frustrating. I would have loved to reproduce many a beautiful image I come across everyday. However, I do it all in the garden. I create paintings with plants, from flowers shrubs to lettuces and other veggies.

Gardeners in Australia come froma diverse backgrounds and many create gardens which represent those, however, garders also adopt new plants that work in specific environments. As Robin said hers is an international garden but I am sure that some of the plants that are happy in her garden would be very unhappy in mine due to different growing conditions. Therefore, plant away folks, whatever YOU find pleasing, gardening world would be so much more boring if we all followed one path.

Happy gardening to all.

Robyn, perhaps the problem with the native plantings that you've seen wasnt in their origin, but the overall execution. I accept your right to an alternative viewpoint, but I absolutely reject the assertion that Aussie natives are inherently ugly plants. Your point re local provenance has some validity, and there are many within the native fraternity who would also argue that commercial hybrids arent helping conservation efforts, but *all* gardens are an artifice. I cant grow WA wildflowers here in Central Queensland, but that doesnt mean that I am limited to the species endemic to a 20 km radius of Rocky. I'm not looking to regenerate the bush, but neither am I trying to create something which is completely at odds with a hot, humid (and increasingly dry) climate.

I believe that my initial post to Sparaxis mentioned several exotic species which *I* consider to be preferable to the rose, and I deliberately avoided raising the 'natives or bust' angle. Whether my Camellia/Rhododendron/Gardenia choices are appropriate for your part of Victoria (or my part of Queensland) is another topic.

I urge you to walk through an Oz rainforest (tropical/subtropical/temperate - your choice) and reassess your statement re the 'ugliness' of natives. White Australians spent over 150 years denying the beauty of our environment - lets not make the same mistake in the 21st century.

robyn everyone is different. me, personally, I never used to be fussed about natives either way but in the last few years I have really come to appreciate them and their sometimes subtle beauty. one thing I really love about my garden is the birds that visit every day to feed on the natives. when we moved here there was really nothing that would draw in the birds but now they hop and flit around the garden looking for food in between taking turns at the bird bath to freshen up, it's lovely. I can be sitting having coffee with the window open and have birds less than half a metre away feeding on the grevilleas outside the window which have flowered non stop since I planted them a year ago.

I love really flowery plants too but I disagree that natives are ugly if theyre maintained, and the birds definitely dont think theyre ugly or boring.

TG

I must say that my "Native Garden" consists mainly of the larger flowering types, many of which are selected forms. Some of the newer grevillias, banksias and callistemons. Also some grafted flowering gums that my Husband particularly wanted. Some proteas are creeping into the mix this year, and a few voluntary buddleias. The reason I planted this large area under natives was firstly the poverty of the soil which was under grass. This area is out the front of the house so it was the first thing you saw and generally very dry, under indigenous eucalypts. I was sick of mowing it and couldn't water it, so when the bob cat was here, I had him rip the whole lot up, make paths, lay the soil back where i wanted it, add some more, top the whole lot with eucy mulch.
The next reason was to provide a privacy and dust screen from the dirt road out the front.
The bonus is for the birds of course, but that was a fairly low priority as we get so many birds with the buddleias, viburnums, and many other flowering shrubs here.
The previous owners planted several pittosporums out the front, which I am not fond of but as they were well grown and provided shade and screening, I left them. They also provide shelter for birds and possums and dumped kittens, 3 of which I still have lazing in the house and growing fat. Unfortunately these are bird deterrents, but with collars and bells (maybe cow bells) and an excess of food available from the house, I am hoping they won't bother too much with the wild life.
I must say that Robyns garden is far more attractive than many in her area, where many people with 5 to 10 acre still persist in the row of iceberg standards across the front of their houses.

Now matter how many native plants other gardeners have, no matter how 'improved' they are, or how much coffee anyone drinks while looking at native plants, I still hate them and to me they are still ugly/messy/pest ridden/fire hazards.

In the 5 years we have been here, the number of small birds in our garden have increased. Wrens and robins make full use of the beds of perennials, crimson rosellas are regular vistors and eat the seeds from the silver birch trees. Black cockatoos enjoy the new pine cones, and numerous other native birds all feed and live in the garden. To suggest that native birds only ever eat or come near native plants is bunkum.

"To suggest that native birds only ever eat or come near native plants is bunkum."

robyn if you read my post I never suggested any such thing, in fact I know that there are many exotics that provide food for birds. but when you live on a small suburban block like I do, you dont have the space for a lot of trees, or a lot of anything, and you dont have the large bird populations already in the area, and the most effective way to provide for birds is often natives with the longest flowering periods.

TG

Hi,
I have not posted on this forum before but find this topic very interesting.

The property we now live on had nothing as far as a garden..and I mean nothing 3 years ago. We have 45 acres, 2 of which I have devoted to garden around the house, the rest is paddock for sheep.
I was convinced by some that natives were the way to go. So that is what I planted. Hundreds of them, trees, shrubs, you name it. I had expert advise from a noted native nursery and followed not only their plant selection advice but also cultivation advise.
On the whole, they are growing and I find them interesting. However, I also find them constantly attacked by insects. I do not use insecticides. Flowers are eaten off before they can bloom, leaves disappear faster than the trees can grow new ones. All the plants are scarred with eaten leaves or leaves with worms eating them from inside out. Beetles come and in a single night can take every leaf on the tree. Borders have killed young trees, and other just die from who knows what. Caterpillars are constant on the shrubs. The only tree I have that is not bothered is the lemon scented gum. On the positive side, I hope that in time they will be big enough that they can withstand the insects so I get some surviving flowers, I have planted over 100 bottlebrush, grevillea, banksias and hakea. I also hope they will not need to be watered once well established. They are growing despite the constant insect attack. I hope that they are beneficial to the native birds.

Last year I decided to plant some other plants, plants I have had over the years and enjoy. Roses and lots of them, butterfly bush, daffodils, iris, deciduous trees with spring flower and/or fall colour, wisteria, camellias, rosemary, and this fall I am planting lots of perennials such as salvias, achilles, cat nips, cranesbills and so forth. They are by far less bothered by insects, I can not recall any insect problems other than the locust plague we had. I have really enjoyed being able to cut flowers for the house. I enjoy the scents and colour, and seeing the plants reflect the changing seasons. I expect many to be as drought tolerant as the natives once established. On the negative some plants such as roses do need more care, but I enjoy it and find it very satisfying and relaxing. I think they are blending very nicely with the natives and the over all effect is very nice.
So my conclusion is, build a foundation with natives and add other types of plants as wanted to satisfy your fancy. Nothing wrong with either one, nor is one superior to the other. Both have their place in my garden.

On a side note, one of the most important things I think you can do for the native animals is to have a safe water source. When I first got here I would find all sorts of animals dead in the water troughs, they would fall in and could not get out. I have since put in a large pond. No more dead animals in the troughs and it is a constant gathering place...

Well done Sparaxis, great discussion here.
I am one of those gardeners that leans towards Australian plants. I try not to use the word 'native' anymore because of it's past connotaton of being how Robyn sees them. This is so sad being in a country that has the third listing in the world at losing it's plants and animals to extiction.
If gardeners did spend the same amount of time caring for these australian plants that they spend on roses then Australian plants would be the most wonderful specimens in the world.
I work in the nursery industry and I would never "brow-beat" anyone into buying only Oz plants because like you have stated people here come from all over the world and I would be wasting my time trying to persuade them to purchase plants they didn't want. On the other hand, I do think it is important that we try to maintain a balance if only for the local fauna's sake. I cannot except that honeyeaters will thrive in a conifer,but a Blue Wren might shelter in one??
To completely deny Australian plants within an Australian garden (geographically speaking) is sad and one has to wonder how these plants ever came to have such a bad name. They were never that bad!

Hi Follicle,

Good point - the plants themselves were never 'that bad'. We humans are the problem - assuming that because something can survive in the bush, it must be 'no maintenance' in the garden ...

Natives and exotics alike need some degree of pruning
Natives and exotics alike need some degree of supplementary water/mulch/nutrient, particularly in the first 12 months after planting
Natives and exotics alike need people who know the plant inside out, and know what works in their local area.

Whether its a flatscreen TV or Yucca Elephantipes, I constantly work to filter the sales pitch from the factual content when a saleseperson is speaking to me. If I go into a furniture store and tell the salesperson that I like Asian-style furniture, its natural that she is going to rave about them : why would I expect anything different from a nursery owner ?

Robyn's view isnt unique, and a thousand opposing views wont change it. I accept that she has settled on the plant choices which work for her, and perhaps its as much about gardening in a temperate climate as it is about local vs imported plants. As a would-be 'tropical' gardener, I believe that I am part of a group which is less concerned with the origin of the plant than its ultimate 'fit' in the planting scheme. Oz rainforest purists aside, the trend in tropical gardening is to mix-and-match foliage to achieve the desired effect, and we can blend the best of the Aussie rainforest species with exotic cordylines, crotons, diffenbachia, ctenanthe, calathea etc etc

Tropical gardens may not be everyone's cup of tea, but there is a wonderful informality to the majority of (Oz-based) tropical gardens, and that laidback approach is quintessentially Australian, IMHO. I cant recall a single 'natives vs exotics' argument in the GW 'Tropicals' forum, yet members readily volunteer information on plants from across the spectrum. These wonderful people arent even particularly hung up on what constitutes a 'tropical' plant - perhaps we can all take something from that.

Cheers,

Artie

I have an exotic garden with a pittosporum hedge, a box hedge, a conifer collection, a perennial border, a rose garden, a shrub border, a shady garden (hydrangeas and hellebores), several other mixed borders, (roses, perennials, liliums etc) and quite a few roses and clematis climbing over various structures, with a small area of lawn.

I also have a native garden, consisting of 2 lilly pilly hedges, 2 shrub borders, a little curved hedge of austromyrtus dulcia (foilage now turning bright red in the cold weather), several archways overwhich I grow native clematis and different coloured hardenbergias, (coming into bud now and will flower through to August). A west facing rock garden full of brachyscome, scavola, paper daisies and prostrate banksias, (all in flower now and can be seen from a distance). I also have a dry area with a muture banksia serrata, several grass trees and a carpet of dianella, (all here when we bought the block) and to which I've added silver cushion bush for foliage contrast. There's a shady garden full of native ferns, bluebells, geraniums and moss. And on the sun drenched deck are large terracotta pots full of different coloured native grasses, clipped westringias and a beautiful flowering gum. The birds eat some of the gum blossoms before they open but then move onto something else, leaving me with plenty to enjoy.

Niether of my gardens is low maintenance, but guess which one is the least work, requires less water and hardly any fertiliser, can survive the hot westerly winds, attracts more birds, is never deverstated by pests or disease and, looks so right under the hot Australian sun?
Can you guess which garden I love the most?

No. Go on - tell us. But I have a feeling you are going to tell us it's the first one?

OK, wattleblossom - your garden sounds absolutely spectacular, but there are several points I'd like to make:

1. 'Your mileage may vary' : many of the species you have successfully grown, be they from Oz or wherever, simply wont do well in large parts of Queensland/Northern NSW/NT. Thats commonsense, but its easy for new gardeners to get drawn into the images presented by the (south-dominated) gardening media. Its a tribute to you that you have found the plants that thrive in your area.

2. Both sets of plants will be as 'low maintenance' as you want them to be, and that comes down to your preferred presentation. For example, pruning is a must for many shrubs, but how many need to be topiarised ? We can create hedges with exotic conifers or a species such as Melaleuca, but how can we prevent dieback in the centre of our new hedge ? This is one area where an informal planting scheme wins hands down, at least IMO.

3. From your description, it seems that you have two clearly delineated areas, and plants belong in one or the other by courtesy of their origin. I accept that this works for you, but have to ask if we need to build such arbitrary boundaries. I've made the point several times that I believe many of our rainforest plants are good companion plants for Vireya Rhododendrons, Gardenias and similar glossy-leaved exotics, and mixing dry climate plants from similar latitudes is already a well-worn path.

Proteas are a slightly different story, although my 'high NPK' experiment still hasnt killed my tropical grevilleas :)

4. I also struggle with the insect-attack issue : none of us likes to see their evil handiwork, but I've been very lucky to date. Grasshoppers and caterpillars currently seem to be be enjoying exotics and natives alike in my garden, but its also rewarding to watch a magpie flying off with one of the marauding bugs protruding from its beak. Its currently very dry in CQ, and I suspect that this has pushed the insects into our gardens in larger numbers - they werent a problem in Summer.

None of this makes my opinions any more valid than the next persons, but I do think that tight integration between Australian and imported plants is the key for the future of our native plants in commercial horticulture (as opposed to conservation). It will be a sad day when city kids can only see native plants in a botanical garden or arboretum.

You or I could build an incredible garden using only plants from Madagascar, but would we be willing to limit ourselves to that one (admittedly sensational ..) island ? Who knows - Bunnings might start shipping truckloads of Madagascan plants after our gradens make the glossies :)

The tropical list sounds very nice indeed! Perhaps because it is a type/style of garden list it is more open to ideas?

I was very excited to learn about and use Natives for my garden. At first my plan was to have an all native garden. I joined a couple of native lists, but I found them not very helpful for the beginner. I guess I do not have the foundation expected. So I don't post questions any more. However the Native nurseries I use are both extremely helpful and generous with their knowledge and their local experience is wonderful. I greatly appreciate that.

One problem I have is I know nothing about ntives, looking at a pic of the flower does not tell me much about how to use them in my yard. It is often difficult to find pic of mature plants, or examples of how they can be used in a landscape. I won't buy Burkes Backyard due to his promotion of puppy farms. I have found another magazine Your Garden which I find good, but it is not all native.
I feel a web site devoted to how to use natives in your garden/landscape would be welcomed and help people like me to get more involved.
I am finding some natives that I simply adore. I found Grevillea iaspicula simply has nothing not to like about it. I currently have about 30 in a row making a loose hedge, and have more tucked in here and there. It is always a very fresh green colour, and although the flowers do not stand out, the birds really like them and it looks good either pruned or let to grow in it's natural shape. It is an endangered plant from our area, so if feels good to have it well entrenched in my garden.
Grevillea Rhyolitica is another great plant, blooms constantly with lovely soft green leaves. I have about 15 planted around. Could be used so may ways such as in in cottage garden. I am using a lot of the brachycomes, I must have 30 now of several verities. I am underplanting my roses with them for example.
Certainly native trees and shrubs are forming an excellent foundation for my garden, but I also see no harm in having a butterfly bush or a crab apple mixed in if it makes me happy. It is simply a matter of knowing what to use and where, hopefully ending up with something that pleases you.
Deb

Thanks Artie for saying my garden sounds spectacular. Of course I would never be so complementary as, like most gardeners, I'm better at seeing what's wrong with my garden rather than what's right with it.
My reason for describing both my gardens was because I knew if I said my native garden was less work than my exotic one, some people would assume I have one of those "easy care bush gardens". Heaven forbid!
As I've already said, neither of my gardens is low maintenance so, even though I wouldn't describe either of them as formal, both take a fair bit of care. Its just that no matter which way I look at it, for me my native garden is easier.
The reason I keep the natives separate from the exotics is because I'd already planted my exotic garden in the front before I started to think about what I wanted to do in the back. I also have to admit to a certain need to show the "doubters" that I could have a garden of only Australian plants, suited to my climate, that looked just as good as my exotic garden. I don't for one moment think this is the "right" way to garden, it's just the right way for me at the moment. If I were starting another garden from scratch, I'd probably use a combination of exotics, e.g. deciduous trees and spring bulbs along with the many natives I've come to love.
Naturally my native garden does get attacked by insects, but in contrast to the armies of aphids and caterpillars which regularly eat their way through many of my exotic plants, so far no real harm seems to have been done. Even snails are less of a problem, though this could be due to the eating habits of our resident family of blue tongue lizzards.
Your comment about the "south dominated media" reminds me of when I first started gardening, (about 30 years ago), how hard it was to find a garden book without a clear bias towards the northern hemisphere. Thankfully things have changed in that department, but still need to change a lot more to accommodate our different climatic regions.
Your idea of mixing glossy-leaved exotics with native rain forest plants of similar appearance sounds lovely and, I imagine beautifullly frangrant.
Good luck with your new garden. WB

We, the members of Growing Exotic Trees On Feral Farms, are dismayed, disturbed (I heard that remark!) and distressed to discover Australian gardeners proposing that we actually grow Australian plants!

We had hoped this temporary fascination with local weeds had withered and died on the vine.
(That's a gardening joke, for you slower ones).

However, like your beloved Westringia "Waste of Space", your
Hardenbergia "Horrendous" and Grevillea "Even Sillier", we find some of you are still promoting these detestable heathen weeds. Don't you all realise that we live in an outpost of the great British Empire?

My husband and I do believe that this show of nationalistic bravado can be attributed only to a distateful excess of testosterone (in the men, too).

But I do have good news and hope for the future.

Membership is up for our Aspidistra Group, as well as Privet Hedges As a Rewarding Hobby,(rather a catchy name, that one), while Conifers of the British Isles and Norway is going forward in leaps and bounds. And yes, the ever-popular Growing Lantana for Fun and Profit is causing enormous interest and discussion.

Our latest forum, DIY- How to Repair your Driveway After Planting an Avenue of Poplars is proving to be our most visited site yet!
I do encourage you people to join some of these groups and learn how enjoyable really vigorous discussion between genuine plant lovers can be!

Must go, need to dead-head the jonquils, mulch the nasturtiums and water the blackberry.

Signed,

Gertrude Winterbottom

Acting Assistant Deputy Vice President
Growing Exotic Trees On Feral Farms
(Aka GETOFF)

Hi Gertrude Winterbottom,
Are you of the Swindon Winterbottoms perhaps?

I am very impressed my jq have not broke the ground yet.
Speaking of watering, I would be careful watering black berries. Where I came from a well watered black berry can cover a two bedroom cottage in a season. Of course there is the bennifit of being about to pick the berries indoors when it comes growing out of your power point on the wall, isn't there?
Happy gardening

Aaah, Gerty - you've really set the cat among the pigeons (or should that be 'Robins' ? )this time :)

Love the above

Cheers

An interesting thread,as I'm planting a garden bed on the weekend. Its tine to fence it off from my pet rabbits and remove the half dead lemon tree! I like the look of natives but find myself allergic to many sadly (asthma and severe hayfever).

There's nothing like a shady dry garden for a challenge!

hi cate, I cant grow acacia's because of hayfever all that pollen is just too much for my allergies. some of the bird polinated ones such as grevilleas might be a better choice for you rather than natives that have pollen actively floating around. one of my favourite plants that Ive used in dry shade is dianella, they have very small flowers and they dont flower as much in a lot of shade but they do create a great little underplanting that hardly needs any water and comes out looking lush and green even at the end of a long hot summer. there are quite a few new cultivars now too, dwarf growing ones, variegated ones etc.

TG