Modern Australian Native Garden

Most Memorable Planting Combinations at the National Arboretum

Every time I visit our nations lovely Capital I seem to find myself at the National Arboretum, by default I manage to eke out at least half an hour to check in on some of my favourite plantings. I have… Read more ›

19/08/2022 1 Comment

Kath Gadd

Drought hardy, Feature shrub, Frost tolerant, Groundcover, Hedge, Landscape Design, Ornamental grass, Small tree, Winter flowering

Acacia baileyana prostrate, Australian Native Garden, bee attracting, Correa glabra, Eucalyptus pulverulenta 'Baby Blue', foliage contrast, grey green leaves, Lomandra confertifolia ssp Rubiginosa, Modern Australian Native Garden, National Arboretum, planting combination, understory planting, weeping habit

Bird Nerd-ing in a Mallee Birdbath

Our friend Angus Stewart in Tasmania (from Gardening with Angus) recently captured all these wonderful birds making use of his Mallee Dish – including a few that we’ve never seen before since they only occur in Tasmania. In this video… Read more ›

27/07/2022 2 Comments

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Frost tolerant, Naturalistic garden, Products, Winter flowering

Native Nurseries Across Australia

This is a collection of nurseries I’ve visited, bought from and love. I’ve written about some of my favourite Native Nurseries in blogposts before but it’s handy to have one reference list to come back to isn’t it?! It’s by… Read more ›

15/03/2022 11 Comments

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Coastal, Drought hardy, Feature shrub, Illawarra natives, Natives for containers

Can you help us find a new home?

We are looking to find (ideally purchase) a new home for Mallee Design where we would like to setup a small design office, a native garden and birdbath display. Do you know of a place that might suit? We thought we… Read more ›

25/02/2022 2 Comments

Kath Gadd

Portfolio

Australian Native Garden, birdbaths, design office, display garden, illawarra, Modern Australian Native Garden, Native Garden Design, property, property hunt, water bowls, wollongong

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

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Uncategorized

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

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

Kath Gadd

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

Health Benefits of Gardening

Stress Relief, Connection to Nature, Connection to Community, Physical Health, Personal Growth ….just to name a few! I am no stranger to “stress weeding” or “stress pruning” for that matter. There is something indescribably satisfying about pulling unwanted weeds out… Read more ›

23/04/2020

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Drought hardy, Feature shrub, Groundcover, Landscape Design, Naturalistic garden, Screening plants, Small garden, Uncategorized

aildm_aus, Anigozanthos 'Landscape Lilac', Australian Native Garden, benefits of gardening, Eremohpila nivea 'Blue Velvet', Eremophila 'Nivea' Grafted, Everlasting Daisies, gardening, mental health, Modern Australian Native Garden, Native Garden Design, Rhodanthe chlorocephala ssp. rosea, stress relief, wellbeing

Potfolio: Ashfield Revisit

I was very excited to be asked back to one of my favourite clients, to do a design for the rear of her property, it also meant I was able to have a proper nosey at the establishment of the front… Read more ›

01/10/2019 1 Comment

Kath Gadd

Feature shrub, Landscape Design, Naturalistic garden, Ornamental grass, Portfolio, Small garden

aildm, aildm_aus, Banksia 'Coastal Cushions', Callistemon 'Little John', Eucalyptus 'wimmerensis 'Tuckertime Honey Pots', feature tree, grey green leaves, Lomandra 'Little Lime', Meeboldina 'Velvet Rush', Modern Australian Native Garden, Poa 'Kingsdale', Poa labillardieri, street address, weeping habit, Xanthorrhoea johnsonii

Portfolio: Gladesville Front Garden Design

This sweet front garden was built earlier this year after a quite extensive house renovation in Gladesville, it is somewhat of a “treat” for the client and the house to have a fresh start after a year of messing building… Read more ›

22/09/2019

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Feature shrub, Groundcover, Hedge, Landscape Design, Naturalistic garden, Portfolio, Screening plants, Small tree, Winter flowering

Acacia 'Lime Magic', aildm, Anigozanthos 'Big Red', carpeting ground cover, Corten Steel, Decomposed Crushed Granite, fast growing, feature tree, foliage contrast, grey green leaves, Hardenbergia 'Flat White', Modern Australian Native Garden, Red flowers, street address, well drained soil

The flexible Pennisetum alopecuroides

Pennisetum alopecuroides is a striking native grass that makes a bold statement planted independently, as a border, backdrop or en masse. This is commonly know as Foxtail grass not to be confused with the South African Pennesetum which has become a… Read more ›

18/07/2019

Kath Gadd

Drought hardy, Frost tolerant, Ornamental grass

bird-a, fast growing, finch, mass planting, Modern Australian Native Garden, native grass, Pennisetum alopecuroides, Pigeon, wildlife habitat, wind tolerant

Portfolio: Woolooware Garden Design

This residential garden was designed at the beginning of 2017 and built later that year, to complete the property’s brand new modern extension. The owners had acquired some beautiful, large sandstone boulders from offsite to be used in the new… Read more ›

15/06/2019 26 Comments

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Coastal, Drought hardy, Groundcover, Landscape Design, Portfolio, Screening plants

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 I realise now that I took so… Read more ›

23/05/2019 3 Comments

Kath Gadd

Drought hardy, Landscape Design, Naturalistic garden, Screening plants, Shade tolerant

Allocasuarina verticillata, Anigozanthos 'Big Red', Correa baeuerlenii, Correa reflexa var. nummularia, Eucalyptus macrandra, Fiona Brockhoff, Lomandra 'Tanika', Melaleuca nesophila, melaleuca quinquenervia, Modern Australian Native Garden, Poa labillardieri, Red flowers, Themeda australis, understory planting, weeping habit, wind tolerant

Portfolio: Bexley Garden Design

This is a sweet little garden I designed about 4 years ago and it has been lovingly slowly built by the owner’s friend. It is a small rear garden behind a modest brick house in the south western suburbs of… Read more ›

13/05/2019 2 Comments

Kath Gadd

Groundcover, Portfolio, Screening plants, Small tree

Acacia 'Mini Cog', Acacia baileyana prostrate, Acacia fimbriata Dwarf, Backhousia citriodora, Baekea virgata dwarf, Casuarina 'Cousin It', Casuarina 'Freefall', Dianella caerulea, Dichondra repens, Ficinia nodosa, foliage contrast, Grevillea 'Orange Marmalade', Lomandra 'Lime Tuff', Modern Australian Native Garden, Poa 'Kingsdale', weeping habit, wildlife habitat

Mother appreciation day: 10% discount on Mallee Spun Copper Dishes

As far as I am concerned Mothers Day is a load of consumer hype, mothers should be appreciated everyday not once a year, you can tell that this mother is tired 😉 I dream of having a deep veranda with a… Read more ›

03/05/2019

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Naturalistic garden

Australian Native Garden, discount, Modern Australian Native Garden, Mother's Day Sale, small bird attracting, water, water bowls, water feature

Another special Dwarf Eucalyptus for small gardens: Eucalyptus citriodora ‘Scentuous’

The lemon scented gum is one of my favourite fragrances, that pungent citronella smell released after the rain or at dusk on a summer evening makes me all sentimental about our incredible flora. Unfortunately Eucalyptus or Corymbia citriodora doesn’t mix… Read more ›

26/03/2019 20 Comments

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Drought hardy, Naturalistic garden, Small garden, Small tree

bee attracting, Corymbia citriodora 'Baby Citro', Eucalyptus citriodora 'Scentuous', feature tree, fragrant, grafted, Modern Australian Native Garden, summer flowering, weeping habit, white flower

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… Read more ›

11/03/2019

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Coastal, Drought hardy, Feature shrub, Groundcover, Natives for containers, Shade tolerant

Autumn Flowering, Banksia 'Coastal Cushions', bee attracting, clay soils, large flower, low mounding shrub, Modern Australian Native Garden, understory planting, well drained soil

Expert Grass Tree advice!

My favourite supplier for Grass Trees is located on the Northern NSW coast they are called Bruinsma Grass Trees and stock lovely healthy specimens, however that is not all they do… They also follow up and offer excellent advice through… Read more ›

01/03/2019 52 Comments

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Bush tucker, Feature shrub, Natives for containers, Ornamental grass

bee attracting, Bruinsma Grass Trees, large flower, Modern Australian Native Garden, street address, understory planting, well drained soil, Xanthorrhoea, Xanthorrhoea johnsonii

The display gardens of Austplant Nursery

I have been away in Victoria for the past few weeks, camping on Wilsons Prom and then visiting native nurseries and gardens on the Mornington Peninsula. It was a wonderful holiday that has left me with a touch of post… Read more ›

23/01/2019 3 Comments

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Drought hardy, Feature shrub, Groundcover, Hedge, Landscape Design, Small tree

Happy little inner city garden: Leichhardt Garden Design

This small garden in the inner west of Sydney is actually quite generous, there is room for lawn, a studio and a seperate outdoor eating area. This means there is also room for lots of different native plants! Hooray! we… Read more ›

04/12/2018

Kath Gadd

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

Acacia 'Burgundy Cascade', Acacia cardiophylla, Adenanthos sericea, Anigozanthos 'Big Red', Banksia 'Sentinel', Casuarina 'Green Wave', Conostylis candicans, Corten Steel, feature tree, foliage contrast, Grevillea 'Dorothy Gordon', grey green leaves, Leptospermum 'Starry Night', Maireana oppositifolia 'Smokey', Modern Australian Native Garden, Ozothamnus 'Radiance', weeping habit

The arching canes of Old Socks: Grevillea leucopteris

There are a group of Grevilleas which throw their flowers out on tall leggy canes, up into the air far away from their foliage. Grevillea petrophiloides is probably one of the better known and more available ones in NSW, but… Read more ›

31/08/2018 2 Comments

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Coastal, Drought hardy, Feature shrub, Frost tolerant, Screening plants

foliage contrast, fragrant, Grevillea leucopteris, grey green leaves, large flower, Modern Australian Native Garden, WA, white flower, wildlife habitat

One My Favourite Grafted Grevillea Standards: Grevillea ‘Green Glow’

This post is about one of my favourite grafted grevillea standards, I actually have 2 or 3 favourites and unfortunately they are all a little hard to come by however all worth trying to find a place for in your… Read more ›

20/08/2018 24 Comments

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Drought hardy, Feature shrub, Formal gardens, Frost tolerant, Small garden, Winter flowering

clay soils, feature tree, Grafted Grevillea, Grafted Grevillea Standard 'Green Glow', interesting foliage, Modern Australian Native Garden, Red flowers, weeping habit

Portfolio: Garden Design Bulli

Yesterday I spent a sunny winter morning pruning and shaping in this coastal garden in Bulli, I love returning to one of my designs to do a little maintenance and tweaking, and this is one of my favourites 😉 This… Read more ›

11/07/2018 5 Comments

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Coastal, Feature shrub, Medium Tree, Portfolio, Screening plants, Small tree, Winter flowering

Acacia 'Mini Cog', Banksia 'Coastal Cushions', Banksia 'Sentinel', bee attracting, Eremohpila nivea 'Blue Velvet', Eucalyptus 'Euky Dwarf', Eucalyptus 'Wildfire', feature tree, Grevillea 'Peaches and Cream', Grevillea 'Winter Delight', grey green leaves, Modern Australian Native Garden, Rhagodia spinescens, silver foliage, street address, Westringia 'Smokey', wind tolerant

Portfolio: Garden Design West Wollongong

This front garden in West Wollongong was created to function as a place for peaceful relaxation and observation, it also needed to have careful consideration in regards to levels and access to the front gate and letterbox. Originally the front… Read more ›

13/12/2017

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Drought hardy, Naturalistic garden, Portfolio, Screening plants, Small garden

Anigozanthos 'Big Red', Bird Bath, bird-attracting, Brachyscome 'Mauve Delight', Casuarina 'Green Wave', Ceratopetalum 'Johannas Xmas', clay soils, Decomposed Crushed Granite, Eremophila 'Nivea' Grafted, foliage contrast, Galah, grey green leaves, Modern Australian Native Garden, Parrot, Poa 'Kingsdale', Scaevola 'White Carpet', Stoneset, Themeda 'Mingo', Xanthorrhoea

The ‘New’ formal Native Garden

When most people think of a formal garden the first images that spring to mind are rows of neatly clipped Buxus borders with some Robinia topiary and maybe a screening Camellia hedge. These are some of the easiest plants to… Read more ›

28/11/2017

Kath Gadd

Bird attracting, Formal gardens, Hedge, Landscape Design, Uncategorized

Acacia baileyana prostrate, Baeckea imbricata, Banksia spinulosa dwarf, foliage contrast, grey green leaves, Hibiscus insularis, Modern Australian Native Garden, Myoporum parvifolium, Rhagodia spinescens, weeping habit

Mallee Design

Native Garden Design & Consultation

Tag Archives: Modern Australian Native Garden

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Archive

Most Memorable Planting Combinations at the National Arboretum

Bird Nerd-ing in a Mallee Birdbath

Native Nurseries Across Australia

Can you help us find a new home?

Garden Photo Competition – Win a Medium Dish!

Portfolio: St Ives Landscape Design

Health Benefits of Gardening

Potfolio: Ashfield Revisit

Portfolio: Gladesville Front Garden Design

The flexible Pennisetum alopecuroides

Portfolio: Woolooware Garden Design

Native Plants in Fiona Brockhoff Gardens

Portfolio: Bexley Garden Design

Mother appreciation day: 10% discount on Mallee Spun Copper Dishes

Another special Dwarf Eucalyptus for small gardens: Eucalyptus citriodora ‘Scentuous’

It’s that time of year again! Banksia ‘Coastal Cushions’

Expert Grass Tree advice!

The display gardens of Austplant Nursery

Happy little inner city garden: Leichhardt Garden Design

The arching canes of Old Socks: Grevillea leucopteris

One My Favourite Grafted Grevillea Standards: Grevillea ‘Green Glow’

Portfolio: Garden Design Bulli

Portfolio: Garden Design West Wollongong

The ‘New’ formal Native Garden