An answer to Gardenworm, yes I would love a water feature. My preference would be a small brook running into a bigger pond, however, neither me nor my husband are able to attempt such a project ourselves and as for having it professionally done... well no cash for it :-(. So far I have had to be happy with two water pots.

My garden could be described as a definite cottage style, I am a cmpulsive plant collector and propagator, most of my plants come from other people's gargens. Very often I walk around the garden with a plant in my hand looking for a space for it. I think I had an image of my garden in my head and I just did it, it was like painting without a plan. I will post some pics on the photo forum.

I always think that a garden should reflect something of the inner nature of the person who creates it, just as should a home.
My house and garden both offer the visitor a reflection on the inner workings of my mind. Absolute manic chaos.
Like Meggs I am an avid plant collector, and add to that my iris hybridisation (dwarf and Intermediate beardeds, a few talls, and Pacific Coast iris seedlings all to be found places for - well over 1000 seedlings each year), dabbling in growing bulbs from seed - iris, daffodil, frittilaria, tulip. 300 rose bushes, countless iris of so many different varieties and species, collections of buddleias, viburnums, lilacs, a vegie garden and fruit trees. Did I mention I only have an acre of land, and at least 1/2 of it is still grass, but gradually getting less.
My joy in gardening is just letting it take me where I fancy. I make and remake beds, change paths and layouts. It never ends, and is a constant pleasure to me, even when a hailstorm has just destroyed everything in bloom.
Water feature? The whole garden is a water feature at present. Other than the rain, we have a naked green lady draped over a bird bath type pond, with water coming out her left ear if we turn her on. All tastefully made from fibreglass, and tucked into the fernery.
Cheers, Jan

I have never particularly followed a style either. So I guess my garden is just 'me'. I just have what I like.
Cheers,
Dee.

I've always liked rainforest styles - lush green with a few coloured-foliage plants and flowers poking out, hidden pathways, trickling streams and surprises.

My garden is not a strict rainforest style, if I see a plant I like I'll find somewhere to plant it. The front garden isn't very rainforest like and is usually where I put my odd plants.

Haven't done the trickling stream part yet but one day it'll be done. I do have an old laundry tub with some fish and a couple of waterlilies though and I'm hinting for some sort of natural looking fountain/waterfall type thing for xmas or b'day.

Each place I've been in the styles are decided by the shape of the block. Unfortunately, I've moved so much I've never seen the mature results. We don't plan on moving from here though, at least not for a long time.

Medium to tall shrubs to hide the fence. Small to medium shrubs to stabilise the sloping areas. Replace what doesn't work. Squeeze in what I fall in love with at the nursery. Daydream about getting a bigger block. Daydream about getting a smaller more manageable block. Daydream about moving to a warmer climate, until autumn reminds me how much I love autumn foliage. Fall in love with autumn foliage trees at nursery but can't possibly squeeze any more trees in anywhere. Daydream about getting a bigger block. Maybe we can fit in one more tree. But that means realigning the garden bed. Wanted to reduce the lawn anyway, since it's dead due to the drought. We should get a water tank. Where could we put it. But at last it's raining and doesn't the lawn look wonderful. Hope it stops raining on the weekend, the lawn needs mowing. So maybe we'll still reduce it anyhow. How will the shade from an extra tree affect existing shrubs. Daydream about a smaller more manageable block. Go to an Open Garden and get inspired again. Discuss plans with family again and can't reach any decisions, just a vague list of "not happy with this" and "should do something about that". Daydream about a smaller more manageable block.

Oh MacBirch!...if it wasn't for the bit about a warmer climate, I would have thought I'd written that post myself!! Lol.
Cheers,
Dee.

Isn't it great, not many people seem to follow any trends, they just garden :-). My main dream is to grow more veggies. The biggest problem is we have so much shade, but I have decided to plant more anyway, with our WA sunlight extremely bright in summer I hope many veggies will do resonably well(?). I have lettuce, tomatoes (want to find these Diggers Club varieties), pumpkin, chillies, capsicum and plenty of herbs. My garden is a living organism, not dead designer 'room'.

Well Garden_worm really does need to say something here ........I just can't help myself.
I love it when people talk about gardens, water features and fish etc I thrive on this sort of confabulation

My address is open for anyone to send me a email or a few pic's

I must admit I do have a unfinished waterfall and a few things tike this. My water features are home made and not at all bought from a shop as such . Some people like them others think they are a little ordinary but I know that mine are original and they have a history of just how they got there.

Gardens , I think are to excited the owner and creator, not forgetting individual personalities and afordability

Meggs, you can start off small with a hole of somesort and a 1400 lt. per hour pump maybe, even a large plastic pot for a pond . Anything that can hold water can be a pond or water feature.

Bye from Garden_worm

Excellent! I now have several water features in my garden. There is the black plastic box that collects any water leaking from the tap down the back corner. That has a nice surround of knee high grass for birdies to hide in, and a good covering of algal growth, not to mention water creatures (mosquito larvae I think).
Then there is the decorative, and very cheap array of plastic buckets on the deck, that got 1/2 filled with rain the other night. One of them has "pond plants" - well ....er... a few weeds that got pulled and dumped in the bucket, along with a dead flower arrangement from the house.
Can I count the wheelbarrow? - that has a few inches of water in it, and looks quite creative with it's collection of dead pot plants of various sizes and shapes. some of them might even come back to life! LOL More interesting than pansies, and quite cheap to create.
Yes my garden is full of creative and spontaneous water features :-)

We have 9 or 10 pondy-things- mostly baby baths or big blue barrel things. Most have at least a couple of tadpoles. We give tadpoles away through the WA Museum Frogwatch, so we look after our froggies.
Apart from the ponds most of the rest pf the garden is tough drought tolerant species-herbs and flowers. A few trees -still young- Gleditsia, Chinese elm, Capulin cherry, couple of local Acacia. We rent, so the landlord's family/neighbours don't like to let us let the trees get too tall.
Sometimes I want to fill the garden with Grevilleas and other proteaceous plants. The birds love em.

I have pockets of garden. Cut flower garden. Swimming pool garden which has my potted devonshire tea corner. Side garden I am developing rain forest corner-tropical corner under huge boab tree. Other side is shade garden, clivias orchids ferns, impatiens, gingers. Front garden, traditional, roses climbing on arch, group of standards and perrenial beds.Oh and vegie garden out the back near pool. Then there is the fruit tree garden to hide the neighbours..Avocado, paw paw, mango and lychee. These are about 2 years from fruiting....except paw paw of course.

I have spent a lot of time as a posty (my job off the farm) admiring peoples gardens and occaisionally garnering a cutting of something that has caught my eye.(with permission of course).I have marvelled at (and ridden over) some beautiful lawns and then wondered why people go to such extent the manicure their lawns.
I guess not every one has the time to put into a garden.
I tend to look at my lawn as something to stop the dirt from blowing round and my dripper system as my water feature.I like my eclectic mix of all sorts of plants I guess it is an extension of me.

We had the opportunity to start a garden completely from scratch when we moved here 4 years ago. We planned the basic layout of our garden around a small circular sunken lawn surrounded on the high side by a drystone wall. We dug out the lawn area by hand (bloody hard work!) and built the drystone wall and stone garden bed edging. The next step was 2 square railway sleeper box vegetable gardens, and a small formal geometric herb garden. The latest addition is a decent sized pond with a deep section in the middle and shallow bog garden parts on either end. One half of our garden is shaded by a large european oak tree, the other side gets good sun. When it somes to planting we are obsessive plant collectors (like many people here) so it's a matter of finding the best position for plants as we aquire them. There's no hard and fast rules. We have things from all over the world, herbs, ornamentals, perennials, annuals, all mixed up. We have a good range of positions, sun, shade, semishade, well draining, boggy... Not everything thrives and some things just outright die, but we struggle to find room for new things in the garden now. It's very important to us and the source of endless joy, happiness, elation pain and disappointment. I'm sure every gardener can relate.
Jamus

Meggs,

What a great question. I've moved into our place two years ago which was a 'very' open one acre with lots of lawn and a couple of established trees, oak, elder, californian redwood, liquidamber. I'm slowly taking it over with roses, perennials, vegie bed area, fruit tree area, succulent corner and anything else I can think of. Problem is I have made plans for every area however by the time of planting I generally change my plans. See different light angles, shade areas, notice other plants that accomodate an area better, etc. So I've unfortunately got lots of plans that only tell half the story and I haven't made new ones since I made the plantings. It's all a guessing game that changes every day....I think when I see new plants my ideas change and unfortunately i can't stop looking at books, other gardens, nurseries, etc which is the heart of the problem....

Garry