Hi Greg Good idea getting rid of some of that lawn, sorry I am no help regards planting anything, I just pop in my ferns most are under my trees, cycads they like the sun I have left them in pots as my soil is bad but my neighbour grows huge ones in front of her salt water pool, and palms well they grow anywhere.

Just be a little carefull with your selection, do try and get the self cleaning ones as the others are a pain, and give the Queen Palm aka Cocos palm a miss Have a look at the link below even though its a USA site there is lots of info on it...Cheers...MM.

Here is a link that might be useful: Palm Info

Well Greg, the first place to start is obviously to kill off the grass. Rather than hours of weeding you can cover it thickly with newspaper at least 6 pages thick, preferably 8 or 10 WELL overlapped. Water it really well and cover with mulch. If you don't get rid of the grass first your gardening experience will become a nightmare, especially with a runner grass. You could alternatively spray with glyphosate (Zero, Roundup etc.). It is a matter of preference.
After you have patiently waited for the lawn to die (you can use this time to plan and research your planting) you can add lots of compost. Then the fun part...plant your palms etc.
Good luck. Ask more questions if you need to.
Cheers,
Dee.

Yes, read, read and some more. I started my first garden 21 years ago, I knew nothing about gardening. I read everything and anything I could lay my hands on, I made plans in my head, layed out the beds and than I planted my garden. As Dee and MM said above, first you need to have a blank, improved canvas and later the fun begins :-). Enjoy.

Thanks for you great information.

Would it be too hot in Sydney now ,to relocate a couple of Kentia Palms.They are about 4mts high and I want to move them into a new garden area.?

Greg,

If you are going to move them I would do it soon. Palms are best moved in late spring/early summer to get them a chance to establish before the following winter weather sets in.

Andrew.

Hi again. I am after some more info. I have moved the palms,sprayed the "lawn" with roundup and its now dead. I was going to fork or turn it over and add some cow manure to improve the soil ,but what should I do with the dead grass thats on top of the garden. Is it OK to leave it and let it rot away or should I get it out and maybe compost it? Thanks again for your help. Greg PS Merry Christmas to all

Make DOUBLE sure it's dead. Kikuyu is a nasty pasty. If there are even tiny pieces left in the ground alive it will be back to bite you on the bum. If it was me I would do the newspaper trick mentioned above, cover it all over, mulch heavily on top of that and when you plant something make a hole through the mulch. Most ferns and palms are rainforest plants, which means they grow in shallow leaf litter mulch on the surface. You shouldn't need to dig the whole thing over. I like to draw a scetch before I plan a garden. Measure up the area and mark it out on graph paper, then just scetch the garden beds and the overall effect you want to achieve, ie. low plants, shrubs, tall trees... then choose plants to suit.

I agree with Jamus. There is no point removing it. Once you have composted well, the worms should do the digging for you. So save your energy for the planting. Heed the warning about the kikuyu!....Cheers, Dee.

You are almost certainly going to get the odd surviving Kikuyu rhizome that will come through. be vigilant and spray when they appear and you will eventually knock it all out. Soil preparation depends on what sort of soil you have already. To get the tropical look you will need to have reasonable water supply. Ferns can be established when you have some shade. You might want to consider some native rainforest trees and shrubs as well. Jamus and deejaus pretty well cover mulching. If you are growing the plants you mentioned, mulching is essential. I often use cardboard in place of newspaper. When planting I mix in lots of cow-poo as well to give them a boost.

Is moving a palm better in the summer or winter I have a xmas palm which is in need of shifting but I thought winter would be better , so as to catch it in a slower growing mode Garden_worm

No it is best to move your Palms in the warmer weather. As Andrew above states Late Spring to early Summer is the best time when their root growth is more active.....Cheers..MM.