• Happy Wattle Day! 2026

    It has come around again, hello Spring, its lovely to see you again as usual. There is nothing better than the smell of Acacia blooms wafting through the sunshine. The feeling at the moment is it is going to be a long hot dry Summer, and the gentle Spring weather will likely not last that…

  • Australian Native Street trees 7-20mts

    What started off as a ‘Lets identify this Casuarina’ turned into a full blown mission that blew our minds, of course we could have used AI, but where is the fun in that. What we found was the City of Melbourne Urban Forest website where you can find the tree you are looking at and…

  • Olearia microphylla more than just a filler

    Every time I see this dense medium sized native shrub in flower it is covered in insects, perhaps because the shrub itself is covered in tiny flowers. This is Olearia microphylla and I am also very taken with its thick rambling habit and ability to fill a difficult spot. Olearia is a wonderful genus, the…

  • Canberra’s banksia garden

    I do love a Winter visit to our nation’s capital, it reminds me of my childhood growing up with real seasons. On my quick visit to the The Australian National Botanic Gardens earlier this Winter I stumbled upon their new collection which to my delight is a Bankisa Garden built to Celebrate their 50th Anniversary.…

  • Tough Daisy Bush:Olearia tomentosa

    One of my favorite Olearia’s, so hard to pick just one. Olearia tomentosa is possibly the neatest of the Olearia’s naturally creating a rounded form and very tough. It would be lovely to be seen more often, it is a hardy shrub for well drained, moist soils in full sun or semi shade. The leaves…

  • the charming Phebalium nottii

    I’ve always been a fan of Phebalium’s and Phebalium nottii is no exception. Possibly the trickiest of the Phebalium’s to grow but also the most spectacular. Phebalium nottii is a small rounded shrub growing up to 1mt in height. It’s branchlets are covered with silvery to rust-coloured scales. The leaves are long and thin, with…

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  1. Eastern Rosella really loved the seeds. My first tree leaned & arched touching the ground. I just bought 4 new…

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providing resources for native plant gardeners and designers.


Mallee Design was created by Kath Gadd in 2012 to document and share her love for native Australian garden design. Her original motivation was to inspire those interested in learning more about native Australian plants. The Mallee Design blog has since grown into a rich resource, used by gardeners, horticulturalists, landscape designers and others.

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