We must feel part of the land we walk on and love the plants that grow there…if we are to achieve a spirit in the garden.

Gordon Ford

There are many native plants that I love, well obviously otherwise I wouldn’t create native only gardens, however some inspire me more than others. Cushion Bush or Leucophyta brownii is one such plant.
The quote above is from the late Gordon Ford whom dedicated his life to creating Natural Australian Gardens and it is a quote that resonates strongly with me.

I have passionate feelings about many native plants and often hear myself exclaim how much I LOVE this shrub or that tree or that grass, often it is quite irrational and a little impractical as they are species that really aren’t suited to my garden. Leucophyta is one such species, so when I see it growing happily like in the image above I feel immense joy, I know I sound a bit mad…….;)

This is a coastal planting installed and maintained by a bush care group out the front of my Dads place in Geilston Bay Tasmania.
Whenever I go back to Tassie I feel more and more nostalgic for the plants that grow so easily there, it seems that everyones garden is overflowing with humidity hating species. It makes me want to move back with my renewed appreciation for dry summers and cold drizzly winters.

The Leucophyta brownii seen in these image is the straight species and this is about its mature height of 1 metre by 1metre, doesn’t it look beautiful against the Poa sp.  with its contrasting foliage and form? There are dwarf cultivars available but then you don’t get the generous pale yellow flower heads that the bees love so much and the insectivorous birds appreciate.

The cushion bush also looks great with plain old Lomandra longifolia and some salt bush. The special Tasmanian sunlight also helps make these plants look exceptional, the sunlight is different down there, I’m not sure how or why but it is much easier to take successful landscapes photos in Tasmania. Well that is it my rant for my love of Cushion Bush, I also have a great LOVE of salt bush, Poa, Leptospermums…….I could go on forever really but at least I have one out of my system.