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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. 13thā16th 2023 _____________________________________ By Hannah Preston Two weeks ago I mentored at a bird language and nature connection retreat hosted by Wangat Lodge and run…
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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 as food. This is Grevillea acanthifolia a large shrub reaching upto to 3 metres high…
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Try something exotic! Tecomanthe hillii
How non native does this spectacular flower look?! It is the flower of the Fraser Island Vine or Tecomanthe hillii a gentle climber which is endemic to North Eastern Queensland. Tecomanthe hillii enjoys fun sun to part shade in a warm sheltered position. The specimen in these photos is growing on a post underneath a…
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The Partying Pea: Chorizema cordatum
This outrageous little pea flower is growing in my daughters primary school, it thinks it is unassuming and doing its own thing, little does it realise what a show off it is! Chorizema cordatum is a wonderful South West Australian species which grows in moist gravelly well drained soil. It will grow in full sun…
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Dainty and Delightful Fringe Myrtle: Micromyrtus ciliata
This sweet little native shrub is in full bloom at the moment, it started in late Winter and can continue until Summer in some cases. Micromyrtus ciliata is one of those species which gets so covered in flowers that you can barely see the leaves! The shrub only reaches half a metre high by upto…
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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 ones) always pop out at me. Gardens where people have made an effort and show…
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Screening with Hardenbergia violacea
This climber always surprises me every year with how aptly it lives up to its common name of Happy Wanderer. The little pea flower spikes really do have tiny smiling faces with bright green eyes. Hardenbergia violacea is a local native climber or scrambler to most of the east coast of Australia, growing naturally on…
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An oldie but a goodie: Thryptomene saxicola ‘FC Payne’
This is a classic 70’s native garden plant, a WA species which doesn’t need to be grafted to grow elsewhere in Australia and for good reason it has stood the test of time. Thryptomene saxicola ‘FC Payne’ is hardy and tough, growing and flowering through shade, frost, drought and a harsh prune. It enjoys a…
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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 š I say it is on trial or has been on trial for a while as it does have a couple…
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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…
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Portfolio: Summer Hill Garden Design
This tiny garden in Sydney’s inner west is very shady to say the least, there were three existing native trees in the garden competing for space. However, they are all relatively small and although they took up most of the direct sun they also manage to create a relaxed ‘bushy’ feel to a high density…
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Silver in the Shade: Plectranthus argentatus
If you are looking for a native understory plant to grow where no plant has succeeded before give Plectranthus argentatus a try. It will grow in the dry soil under large trees and ramble about filling in bare patches and creating a dense silver layer to a dark forgotten corner. Plectranthus argentatus has a lightly…
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Level 2 Water Restriction friendly plants: Calothamnus quadrifidus
Yesterday NSW moved into level 2 water restrictions, it has been a long time coming, with bushfires still burning up and down the east coast and dam levels at an all time low. The hardest hit are out west where they have been buying in drinking water for most of the year, smoke and dust…
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The Greatest Geebung: Persoonia pinifolia
Geebungs are a wonderful Genus of native plant, they below in the ProteaceaeĀ family like Banksias and possess a variety of flowers, leaves and habits. In fact I have already written about Persoonia pinifolia a couple of years ago, see here.Ā However since then I have seen them growing outside of their native locality of Sydney…
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I need to remember this fern: Blechnum cartilagineum
I am not very good with my native ground cover ferns, I have a handful which I use over and over again which I know to be hardy and pretty. I was walking in the Blue Mountains this weekend and exploring the rainforest and waterfall walks, these plants are not my favourites, I usually am…
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Portfolio: Northmead Garden Design
I was lucky enough to be asked back for some follow up advice for this charming native habitat garden in the outer suburbs of Sydney today. The renovations are finally over and the garden hasn’t faired too badly with all the coming and going. This property is located backing onto bushland which in times of…
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Yum Yum: Acacia cardiophylla
This is a wattle close to my heart, it is one of the most strongly perfumed Australian native flowers I have come across, but not in a over-powering sweet, honey-nectar way, it is more of a Boronia type scent…yum, yum… This is also a very useful Acacia for its capacity to withstand strong winds, I…
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Wonderful Winter Wattles: Acacia iteaphylla
I love wattles, they are so useful for quick screens, winter flowers and perfume, they grow quickly and can act as a coloniser for a new garden giving it almost immediate structure. The older I get the longer lived Acacia species seem to me too, they can last 8 to 10 years sometimes 15 if…
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The weepiest of them all: Acacia cognata
Ahhh the river wattle, flopping about just like a willow š Acacia cognata surely must be the weepiest and most cultivated of wattles, it is being remade and re branded everywhere! and for good reason too. Acacia cognata has a weeping habit like no other and creates a soft gentle screen or eye catching feature…
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Pink and Grey: Guichenotia ledifolia
As a colour combination pink and grey is one of my favourites, especially on a plant, grey leaves and a soft pink flower win me over every time! Luckily for me it is a fairly common combination in native Australian plants, look at thisĀ Guichenotia ledifolia I photographed in Canberra Botanic Gardens last weekend. Guichenotia’s are…
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Native Plants in Fiona Brockhoff Gardens
I went to the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria in January this year to see three gardens designed by one of my favourite Landscape Designers and of course they did not disappoint. In fact Ā I realise now that I took so many photos and was so inspired that I have been a bit overwhelmed by how…
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A must have in your habitat garden: Bursaria spinosa
All hail sweet Bursaria! this native plant is a superstar performer in a native habitat garden fulfilling so many critters requirements and needs. I have been collecting images of Bursaria spinosa for about 10 years now, always looking for a flattering angle and light, it is not a particularly showy plant if not in flower,…
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Correas and Croweas: Special Shady Friends
I spent last weekend in Mount Victoria, staying in a log cabin surrounded by a wonderful bush garden. There were plenty of Banskias, Eucalypts and Acacias but what really filled the garden out were the swathed of Correas and Croweas planted densely under the gum trees. Both Crowea and Correa species like to grow in…
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It’s that time of year again! Banksia ‘Coastal Cushions’
It’s my favourite time of year again Autumn! Hooray! goodbye humidity, I will not miss you and neither will my favourite native plants. Autumn is also wonderful because the Banksias are budding up or out already and everywhere I go lately one particular dwarf Banksia is catching my eye, Banksia spinulosa ‘Coastal Cushions’. This post…
Category: Shade tolerant