Bird attracting – Page 2 – Mallee Design

White or Pink? How do you like your Blueberry Ash?

Elaeocarpus reticulatus is one of the Spring flowering native tree species which really knocks itself out during its flowering season. It consistently covers itself in the little white fairy skirt like flowers to the point that it gives the whole… Read more ›

16/12/2021 4 Comments

Bird attracting, Hedge, Medium Tree, Screening plants, Shade tolerant

bee attracting, bird-attracting, clay soils, Elaeocarpus reticulatus, Indigenous to the Illawarra, moist soil, part shade, pink flowers, protected position, rainforest species, Satin Bowerbird, spring flowering, white flower

Wildflowers of the Illawarra

This wildflower season I have stayed local due to travel restrictions, which has meant I have walked the Illawarra escarpment a lot more than I normally would. Usually in the winter wildflower season we would travel to the Blue mountains… Read more ›

Bird attracting, Illawarra natives, Shade tolerant, Winter flowering

Actinotus helianthi, Bauera rubioides, bee attracting, Boronia pinnata, Epacris microphylla, fragrant, Hakea sericea, Phebalium squamulosum, pink flowers, Ricinocarpos pinifolius, Sydney Sandstone, Thelymitra ixioides, understory planting, well drained soil

Portfolio: Gardening in Wind

This is my sisters garden on ‘Windy Hill’ as we like to call it, it gets so windy here the rubbish bins get blown down the street, gates are blown off their hinges and plants find it tough! Her front… Read more ›

27/08/2021 2 Comments

Bird attracting, Coastal, Drought hardy, Feature shrub, Groundcover, Hedge, Ornamental grass, Portfolio, Screening plants, Small tree

Acacia baileyana prostrate, Acacia binervia Stirling Silver, Acacia cardiophylla, Baeckea linifolia, Banksia 'Sentinel', Banksia integrifolia 'Roller Coaster', Calothamnus quadrifidus grey form, Casuarina 'Green Wave', clay soils, Eucalyptus 'Euky Dwarf', Eucalyptus pulverulenta 'Baby Blue', foliage contrast, Grevillea 'Amber Blaze', Grevillea 'Red Hooks', Grevillea banksii prostrate White, grey green leaves, Poa 'Kingsdale', weeping habit, wind tolerant

Instagram #INeedABirdbathHere Winner and Entries!

We’ve been simply blown away by the beautiful garden entries we received in our most recent birdbath competition #INeedABirdbathHere. We asked our followers to send us photos of their gardens for the chance to win a Freshly Spun Medium Copper… Read more ›

Bird attracting, Coastal, Feature shrub, Groundcover, Naturalistic garden, Ornamental grass, Small tree

bird-attracting, birdbaths, birdsinbackyards, habitat garden, nativegarden

Portfolio: Haberfield Landscape Design

The brief for this front garden in Sydney’s inner west was to create a modern native garden which is sympathetic to the era of the house and show cases an Art Deco water feature passed down through the family. The… Read more ›

AILDM, Bird attracting, Feature shrub, Formal gardens, Landscape Design, Ornamental grass, Portfolio, Shade tolerant, Small tree, Uncategorized, Water plants, Winter flowering

Acacia 'Limelight' grafted Standard, Banksia 'Coastal Cushions', Border planting, clay soils, Decomposed Crushed Granite, foliage contrast, Grevillea rhyolitica 'Cherry Cluster', Hakea francisiana Grafted, large flower, Lomandra 'Mist', low mounding shrub, Melaleuca 'Mini Quini', Porphyry stone, understory planting, water feature, weeping habit, Xanthorrhoea johnsonii

A Portrait of a Flower: Hakea francisiana

Look at this thing! is it not one of the most spectacular flowers you have ever seen? I have been impatiently waiting for this moment in my Hakea francisiana Grafted life cycle since I planted it 6 months ago. It… Read more ›

23/07/2021 6 Comments

Bird attracting, Drought hardy, Feature shrub, Frost tolerant, Screening plants, Small tree, Uncategorized, Winter flowering

bee attracting, bird-attracting, cut flowers, frost tolerant, grey green leaves, Hakea francisiana Grafted, large flower, long flowering period, pink flowers, winter flowering

Garden Photo Competition – Win a Medium Dish!

This Winter we’re running a garden photo competition on instagram, your chance to show off your gardening skills to us and win a Medium Spun Copper Dish valued at $545.00!! Take a photo of the spot in your garden that needs… Read more ›

13/07/2021 3 Comments

Bird attracting, Uncategorized

Bird Bath, bird-attracting, birdbaths, garden design, gardening, habitat garden, Modern Australian Native Garden, native birds

Habitat Gardening

My eye is repeatedly drawn to this delightful photo of a father Tawny Frogmouth and his hatchling. Tawny Frogmouth fathers look after their baby birds until they fledge and require wide branches or large forks in old trees to nest.… Read more ›

Bird attracting, Butterfly attracting, Landscape Design

Portfolio: St Ives Landscape Design

This garden in the leafy north shore suburb of St Ives was designed last year and built only 7 months ago, by Ash from ‘Living on the Hedge’. Part of the brief for this garden was to have plenty of… Read more ›

07/06/2021 7 Comments

AILDM, Bird attracting, Butterfly attracting, Groundcover, Hedge, Landscape Design, Medium Tree, Ornamental grass, Portfolio, Screening plants, Small tree, Uncategorized, Winter flowering

Portfolio: Bundeena Tree House

This an amazing house which spills over a sandstone outcrop and is placed underneath a giant fig tree. It is sheltered by a stand of Casuarinas and hidden from the street by its rapidly growing native garden. The garden has… Read more ›

AILDM, Bird attracting, Coastal, Groundcover, Hedge, Naturalistic garden, Ornamental grass, Portfolio, Screening plants, Shade tolerant

Banksia 'Sentinel', Callistemon 'Pink Champagne', Calothamnus quadrifidus grey form, Casuarina 'Green Wave', Cissus antartica, Ficinia nodosa, Ficus, Grevillea 'Gin Gin Gem', Grevillea flexuosa Grafted, Leptospermum laevigatum 'Foreshore', Lomandra 'Tanika', Maireana oppositifolia 'Smokey', Microlaena stipoides, Poa 'Kingsdale', Sydney Sandstone

Photo Competition Entries and Winner!

Our photo competition is finished and we’ve been absolutely blown away by all our entries. The submissions represent so many different birds and locations across Australia that we couldn’t resist putting them all in one blog post with the winner!… Read more ›

05/05/2021 2 Comments

Bird attracting, Landscape Design

But what’s the difference? Banksia spinulosa Dwarfs

There are so many different cultivars now of Banksia spinulosa that it is difficult to know which to choose… although they all look similar independently when you see them next to each other whilst they are flowering they really do… Read more ›

28/04/2021 2 Comments

Bird attracting, Drought hardy, Feature shrub, Frost tolerant, Groundcover, Natives for containers, Small garden, Winter flowering

Autumn Flowering, Banksia 'Birthday Candles', Banksia 'Cherry Candles', Banksia 'Coastal Cushions', Banksia 'Honey Pots', Banksia 'Stumpy Gold', banksia spinulosa cultivar, Banksia spinulosa dwarf, Banksia spinulosa Dwarfs, bee attracting, dense habit, drought tolerant, large flower, low mounding shrub, low spreading habit, slow growing

Happy Eucalypt Day! Eucalyptus pulverulenta ‘Baby Blue’

National Eucalypt Day is an initiative of Eucalypt Australia that aims to raise awareness of Eucalypts and celebrate the important place that they hold in the hearts and lives of Australians. I have taken some photos of one of my… Read more ›

23/03/2021 3 Comments

Bird attracting, Butterfly attracting, Coastal, Drought hardy, Feature shrub, Small garden, Small tree, Uncategorized

Autumn Flowering, bee attracting, eucalyptaus, Eucalyptus pulverulenta 'Baby Blue', EucBeaut, feature tree, foliage contrast, grey green leaves, Mallee Eucalyptus, NationalEucalyptDay, native insect attracting, pollination

Portfolio: Woolooware Rejuvenation

This native garden in Woolooware has a new owner, someone who is keen to be the new caretaker of the space and is looking forward to maintaining the native plants and learning more about them along the way. Someone who… Read more ›

19/03/2021 7 Comments

AILDM, Bird attracting, Coastal, Drought hardy, Feature shrub, Groundcover, Hedge, Landscape Design, Portfolio, Screening plants, Winter flowering

Small Scented Shade Tree: Leptospermum petersonii

I finally found a mature Lemon Scented Tea Tree to photograph which shows off its stunning weeping habit and shapely trunk and branches. Leptospermum petersonii really does make a wonderful small feature shade tree in the garden, the strong thick… Read more ›

Bird attracting, Bush tucker, Coastal, Drought hardy, Frost tolerant, Screening plants, Small garden, Small tree

bee attracting, bird-attracting, Bush Foods, fast growing, fragrant, Leptospermum petersonii, privacy screen, Quick growing, shade tree, spring flowering, summer flowering, weeping habit, white flower, wind tolerant

Portfolio: Jamberoo Consults

I have been visiting this rural property on and off for the last 3 years, each time providing the client with onsite sketch designs for different areas of the expansive garden. Working on this garden has been an absolute pleasure… Read more ›

AILDM, Bird attracting, Illawarra natives, Ornamental grass, Portfolio, Shade tolerant

Bird Bath, bird-attracting, Decomposed Crushed Granite, Dichelachne crinita, dry creek bed, Ficinia nodosa, Indigenous to the Illawarra, Juncus usitatus, large garden, Poa labillardieri, retaining wall, rural property, swale, turf pavers

Back from a Bird Language Retreat

The mantra of the weekend, a quote shared by JA Baker: “The hardest thing of all is to see what is really there.” The next Bird Language Retreat is Apr. 13th–16th 2023 _____________________________________ By Hannah Preston Two weeks ago I… Read more ›

27/11/2020 3 Comments

Bird attracting, Naturalistic garden, Shade tolerant

Andrew Turbill, Barrington Tops National Park, Bird Bath, bird calls, bird-attracting, Cymbidium suave, Glochidion ferdinandi, king parrot, Lyre Bird, native grasses, nature connection, Wangat Lodge, wildlife habitat

As delicate as a rose: Archirhodomyrtus beckleri

This small feature tree really would fit in nicely in a garden full of roses, lavender and other English cottage style plants. The tiny flowers remind me of the blooms on climbing rose bushes and this pretty rainforest tree has… Read more ›

09/11/2020 2 Comments

Bird attracting, Bush tucker, Butterfly attracting, Screening plants

Archirhodomyrtus beckleri, bee attracting, Bush Foods, feature tree, fence screening, fragrant, perfume, privacy screen, rainforest species, Rose myrtle, shade tolerant, small garden, understory planting

Something a little different: Stenanthemum scortechinii

This little low growing native shrub has many common names Cotton Bush, Snow Balls, Corroboree, salt and pepper to name a few …. it is also known as Stenanthemum scortechinii or Cryptandra scortechinii or even Spyridium whatever the name it… Read more ›

04/11/2020 2 Comments

Bird attracting, Butterfly attracting, Coastal, Drought hardy, Frost tolerant, Winter flowering

bee attracting, butterfly attracting, cut flowers, dry shade, frost tolerant, long flowering period, native bees, Stenanthemum scortechinii, white flower, winter flowering

The pretty prickly Grevillea acanthifolia

There aren’t really enough spikey Grevilleas in my opinion, when it comes to planting for birds and to create habitat especially for small birds Grevilleas are a wonderful lure, if they are spikey they can also provide shelter as well… Read more ›

Bird attracting, Frost tolerant, Hedge, Screening plants, Shade tolerant

dense habit, Grevillea acanthifolia, heavy frost, insectivorous birds, moist soil, naturalhabitatlandscapes, pink flowers, Prickly, small bird attracting, spreading habit

After a Fire …

This week I made my first trip down the south coast since the devastating bushfires earlier this year. The amount of wildlife really lost is incomprehensible when zooming down the highway cocooned in a modern bubble of distraction. The landscape… Read more ›

Bird attracting, Coastal, Drought hardy

bush fire, Eucalyptus robusta, Eucalyptus sieberi, Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Garden, Macrozamia communis, Proteaceae, Red flowers, Syncarpia glomulifera, Telopea speciosissima, Ulladulla wildflower reserve, Xanthorrhoea glauca, Xanthorrhoea johnsonii

Front garden makeovers

One of my ‘dreams’ is to walk down a suburban street and be able to admire one native front garden after another. I am always on the look out, when walking or driving, and the well-loved gardens (especially the native… Read more ›

Bird attracting, Drought hardy, Feature shrub, Portfolio, Screening plants, Shade tolerant, Small garden, Small tree, Winter flowering

Acacia 'Mini Cog', Baekea virgata dwarf, Correa alba, Eremophila 'Nivea' Grafted, Eremophila nivea 'Beryls Blue', Eriostemon difformis ‘Star Sprite’, Grevillea 'Billy Bonkers', Grevillea sericea, Leptospermum 'Cardwell', Micromyrtus ciliata, street address

Landscaping with Dwarf Kangaroo Paws: Anigozanthos ‘Bush Pearl’

I couldn’t help myself when I was in Canberra last month at the Botanic Gardens, before I even considered what I was doing I was snapping away at these Anigozanthos ‘Bush Pearl’. They just looked so stunning in the foggy… Read more ›

03/08/2020 2 Comments

Bird attracting, Drought hardy, Frost tolerant, Landscape Design, Natives for containers, Naturalistic garden, Winter flowering

Anigozanthos 'Bush Peal', cut flowers, drought hardy, frost tolerant, long flowering period, mass planting, pink flowers

Emu Bush No. 9: Eremophila bignoniiflora x polyclada

Three years ago I set myself a challenge to learn 12 Eremophila species in 12 months, it hasn’t been going very well …..yet again I have failed to meet my own deadline ? However, my desire to learn more about… Read more ›

20/07/2020 1 Comment

Bird attracting, Drought hardy, Feature shrub, Frost tolerant, Hedge, Small tree, Winter flowering

bee attracting, drought resistant, Eremophila bignoniiflora x polyclada, large shrub, long flowering period, small bird attracting, spring flowering, summer flowering, weeping habit, white flower