Tag: front line coastal

  • A tough and useful Bushfood: Lomandra longifolia

    A tough and useful Bushfood: Lomandra longifolia

    Lomandra longifolia, or Common Mat Rush, is abundant along the NSW coast growing and in SA, Victoria and Tasmania in a range of environments from coastal dunes to dry Sclerophyll forest. It can also be seen growing in median strips and petrol station garden beds 😉 Little do most people know it is also a tasty…

  • Trialling Banksia ‘Sentinel’

    Trialling Banksia ‘Sentinel’

    This is a favourite coastal hedging plant of mine which I have been including in my planting designs for the past 7 years or so….sorry, I’m finding it difficult to keep track of time 😉 I say it is on trial or has been on trial for a while as it does have a couple…

  • Camera Trap Basics for Bird-Spotters

    Camera Trap Basics for Bird-Spotters

    Recently, we’ve been using camera traps to capture videos of birds using our birdbaths. One of my favourites is the video of these wonderful silvereyes flocking around a dish in some coastal habitat below! Silvereyes migrate in large groups, feed and drink together and that’s why you can see so many together. In this post…

  • A Favourite Coastal Heathland Plant: Leucopogon parviflorus

    A Favourite Coastal Heathland Plant: Leucopogon parviflorus

    This is a tough medium sized shrub which grows all along the NSW coastline and interstate to Victoria and South Australia. I love this plant for its dense habit, tasty fruit and grey green leaves. I occasionally use it in Designs where the soil is very sandy and the wind howling and have just spent…

  • There’s nothing quite like Maireana oppositifolia

    There’s nothing quite like Maireana oppositifolia

    There truly is nothing quite like Maireana oppositifolia, the strange and intriguing habit of this silver foliaged beauty is unique. It has a strong upright habit with its branchlets compact and forming points giving it a sculptural affect. In the image above you can see standing strong behind the Eremophila ‘Kalbarri Carpet’. Because of its unusual …

  • I went walking in Bouddi National Park

    I went walking in Bouddi National Park

    I went walking last week along the stunning coastal track in Bouddi National Park, and was blown away by the winter flowers in the bush. The track winds along the sandstone cliffs, dipping into moist forest and creeks providing a varied glimpse of the different plant communities in the Bouddi National Park. This blog post is…

  • My Favourite Native Hibiscus

    My Favourite Native Hibiscus

    Many people are not aware of the range of native hibiscus species that grow here in Australia, they are often not seen in cultivation or mistaken for exotics. I have a few favourites that I like to incorporate in my gardens and at the moment these are my top three, however everything is subject to…

  • Enjoying Pig Face: Carpobrotus glaucescens

    Enjoying Pig Face: Carpobrotus glaucescens

    Carpobrotus or ‘Pig Face’ is one of my favourite bush foods to eat, it tastes like an over-ripe Kiwi fruit with a salty edge,  delicious! This morning as we were rambling through our local sand dune and beach my son found a pig face fruit and what do you know I had my camera handy…

  • Portfolio: Coledale Consults

    Portfolio: Coledale Consults

    I have been consulting on this coastal garden for about 3 years now maybe a bit more, and it has really begun to settle in, some of the growth especially in the rear garden is amazing. The client has installed a beautiful mosaic letterbox made by his sister, it is large and bright and a…

  • Trialling Casuarina ‘Green Wave’

    Trialling Casuarina ‘Green Wave’

    I love Casuarinas, all of them, from ground covers through to trees, their rusty red hue when they are in flower or lush green shaggy habit. They are tough, versatile and very varied in their shapes and forms.  I discovered Casuarina glauca ‘Green Wave’ a couple of years ago, there wasn’t much information out about…

  • Prostrate Woolly Bush

    Prostrate Woolly Bush

    This is the Albany Woolly Bush or Adenanthos x cunninghamii, it is a most apt name for it as everyone is drawn to the soft feathery looking foliage to feel it and see if it feels as fluffy as it looks.

  • Favourite grass

    Favourite grass

    Ficinia nodosa or as previously known Isolepsis is one of my favourite grasses, it grows anywhere from sand dunes to swamps.