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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 branches spread the canopy wide making it an excellent climbing tree! The soft, pendulous branches…
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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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Happy National Wattle Day! Acacia leprosa ‘Weeping Form’
It’s National Wattle Day! Hooray! the time of the year when the Acacias are telling us warmer weather is on the way, I mean I have had flowering Wattles in my garden all Winter long 𤨠…..anyhooo it’s a great time of year to look around and take in all the different species and forms…
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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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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 𤣠However, my desire to learn more about the wonderful Eremophila genus has not diminished and I am slowly plodding along. You can…
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The small tree Emu Bush: Eremophila longifolia
This is another Emu Bush to add to my database, Eremophila longifolia is classically not so bushy in habit but more upright and weeping. I think it makes a lovely small feature tree with its long, droopy leaves and clusters of pink bell flowers. It can be pruned into other shapes if needed but the…
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Low and Large: Grevillea âCooroora Cascadeâ
This Grevillea ground cover always looks optimistic to me, with its large sunny gold flowers and luscious green fine leaves, it scrambles around the garden filling gaps with its happy go lucky stems. Grevillea ‘Cooroora Cascade’ is a prostrate form of ‘Golden Lyre’ with the same large flower spikes yet scrambles along the ground forming a…
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Are native plants really drought tolerant? Casuarina ‘Cousin It’
When someone tells you they want a drought tolerant garden, what comes to mind? or you may be told a certain plant is ‘water wise’Â what does this really mean? As the current drought wears on and wears thin and watering your garden becomes something you can only do under strict regulations many people are looking…
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The Greatest Geebung: Persoonia pinifolia
Geebungs are a wonderful Genus of native plant, they below in the Proteaceae 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. However since then I have seen them growing outside of their native locality of Sydney…
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A spikey, perfumed tangle of Grevillea flexuosa
This is a wonderfully messy Grevillea that likes to sprawl all over the place. Its stems literally get tangled in themselves and the leaves are stiff and spikey so they can almost grab onto other plants to hoist themselves towards the sunlight and as its name implies it is so very flexible đ Grevillea flexuosa…
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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 garden. This garden is a very good example of the 3 to 4 year timeframe…
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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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A multi-purpose favourite : Acacia baileyana Prostrate
What can this wattle not do?! it can be a dense ground cover, a spillover for a retaining wall or garden edge, a low mounding feature shrub and a lovely soft border plant. On top of all that it flowers like nobody’s business in the middle of Winter! Acacia baileyana Prostrate is a low growing…
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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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The weepiest of them all: Acacia cognata
Ahhh the river wattle, flopping about just like a willow đ 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 this 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  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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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 Sydney where the mc-mansions are taking over. On my visit today the first thing I…
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Happy National Eucalypt Day! Eucalyptus leucoxylon ‘Euky Dwarf’
Happy National Eucalypt Day everyone! I really hope you were able to appreciate a Eucalpytus tree today at the very least, or possibly able to plant one? âThe best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is nowâ â Traditional Chinese proverbs, one of my favourite quotes. If you weren’t…
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Another Callistmon for the resurgence: Callistemon subulatus âBrogo Overflowâ
I have written before about my love of bottlebrush and how I wish for a resurgence in their use in garden design and the general landscape. There are many new interesting forms and cultivars that are a far shot from the ratty, sparse unloved street trees we all know. They come in soft pinks, deep…
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Why the name Mallee?
I am often asked if I come from Mallee country in Victoria and sadly the answer is no, Mallee Design my business name was not chosen for geographical reasons it was chosen for aesthetic reasons. I am in love with Mallee Eucalypts. A Eucalyptus becomes classed as a Mallee if it has the following attributes…
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The long lived Acacia pendula
We all know that wattles get a bad rap for growing quickly, becoming sparse and also attacked by borers, many people won’t plant Acacias purely based on their shorter lifespan, not me I plant them whenever possible and to be honest 8-10 years feels like a pretty long time to me right now đ However…
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The exploding Leptospermum ‘Starry Night’
I have been monitoring these Leptospermum obovatum ‘Starry Night’ shrubs (that  I planted in a neighbours garden) closely, waiting, waiting for them to flower and BOOM! last week they exploded! I love reddish or burgundy foliage and there are several species of Leptospermum with a red tinge to the leaf however ‘Starry Night’ is…
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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 planted for year round flower, colour, foliage contrast, texture and wildlife habitat. There is something…
Tag: weeping habit