When I first moved to my new garden in Castlemaine, some 15 years ago, I realised I would not have a lot of time for gardening, and although I had gardeneed from early childhood, I had just got the bug big time. I had come from a garden with excellent water retention, to one that was sitting on the top of a very porous hillside, with scant topsoil. I definitely wanted flowers - not so much big and blowsy, as plentiful - cottage style. I decided to make myself a long list of what I liked that WOULD grow there. I used Kevin Walsh's "Water-Saving Gardening" published in 1993 by Reed Books, as a resource, and spent several evenings going through forst the "High drought tolerance" plants, then the 'Medium drought tolerant" plants and simply made a long list of those I really liked. The lists are extensive, and include all types of plants, giving brief descriptions, and some cultural info. Only a few photos in the book, but a big plus for me was that the author was a local. My garden was lovely (in my eyes at least) and I was sad to leave it. The new owners pretty much ripped it up after they found a snake the first week. The got rid of anything that provided ground cover - LOL. Didn't really upset me - they didn't deserve my garden, and I had taken lots of it with me. Rather than lists - how about some good resourses - either in book form or online? My need for drought tolerent plants has been greatly reduced with my move here, as the soil is more water retaining, and the rainfall a little more reliable. Here is a link that might be useful: Tips from Kevin Walsh

Hi there, I have some Native Frangipani seeds that I have collected from my own tree here. Could you tell me the best time to plant them and in what type of medium? Hoping you can help. Can they be planted in the Autumn months, or do I have to wait till Spring time. kindest regards, Paul Martin.

Thanks for the welcome Marion. I am looking forward to moving to Yeppoon. We will be starting our garden from scratch, hope to bring my plants from NSW, though I'm not sure how they will do. So we'll be Central Qld, sorry I didn't know what section we were. We hope to have a vegie garden, and also grow nuts (if possible) and tropical fruits. We hope to get the kids involved and be as self sufficient as possible. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I am going into a totally different climate to where I am now and would appreciate any help. I am reasonably new to gardening...but love it. And I want my 3 kids to feel the same. Lesley

Artie What about Native Plumbago (Plumbago zeylanica). It's native here as well as in Africa, Asia and the Pacific. I've come across references to "white or blue flowers" but have only seen the white. I'd be interested to know whether there are blue versions in anyone's gardens. The plant is variable, but is more ground-cover-ish than the introduced plant. There's also: Cinnamomum oliveri - our answer to the Camphor laurel, Cinnamomum camphora. Celtis australis - surely better than Celtis sinensis. Aphananthe philippensis, Native Elm -different Generic name, but definitely in the Ulmaceae, and a truly lovely little tree. There's a native poppy, too -forget its name, but it's a little annual and an interesting shade of orange - Papaver something. Native Daffodils (Calostemma luteum and C. purpurea) are very good value, being bulbs which flower at Christmastime. They're closely related to the introduced plant (and just as poisonous. Don't let the kiddies eat them). There are plenty of native Hibiscus, including the lovely "Barambah Creek" if you can't be bothered with prickles. Native Capers - Capparis species - have lovely perfumed flowers and always come with a horde of dancing butterflies. Slow growing and prickly, though. (Good for birds, of course, especially blue-wrens, which, amazingly considering their size, love to eat the "Caper White" butterflies.) There are some very good minature versions of Callitris, the native cypress, some of which must like your area? Native orchids? There are a lot of these. Best of luck with the project. Trish