Garden Greenery

Today I have a garden! After work last night, I went into the local Big-Box hardware store to do some research on plant options. I ended up grabbing a trolley and filling it up with 15 various plants! Most were around $10-$14 each.

Criteria for my selection – Australian native, full sun, low water/drought tolerant once established, frost tolerant, suit sandy well drained soil. Colourful flowers that attract birds and insects, no bigger than around 1 metre (about three feet for those that still count in twelves) – so I can still look over them to enjoy the view 😀

I planted them out this morning between rain showers, putting the taller ones at the back, spaced around 70cm (2 and a bit feet) apart. It rained again today, watering them in nicely and filling my water tanks 😀 If they all survive, they should fill the space nicely. So, what did I get …

Height: to 1.2m. Colourful dwarf evergreen shrub with reddish new foliage and bearing a profusion of bright red “bottle brush” flowers in spring and autumn.

Height: 40cm, Width: 1.25m. A stunning variegated correa featuring bright orange bell shaped flowers during autumn and winter. Prune as desired to maintain shape.

Height: 1m, Width: 2-4m. Bright green elliptical leaves form a dense foliaged low shrub/ground cover with dusky pink bell flowers most of the year, peaking in Winter. Prune occasionally to encourage regrowth.

Height: 40-50cm. Small, compact, mounded shrub with tiny bright pink flowers most of the year, mainly winter through to spring. Prune after flowering.

Height: 60cm, Width: 45cm. Produces masses of bright red flowers over a long period with prolific flowering throughout the warmer months, on a naturally compact and bushy plant. Relatively tough, fertilize Autumn and spring. The beauty of Kangaroo Paw is that I can split them down the track and get more plants for free – and I got four varieties!

Height: 1m, Width: 1m.Evergreen dwarf shrub, single red long-lasting flowers borne in abundance in winter-spring. Prune after flowering. Control webbing caterpillars if detected.

Height: 40cm, Width: 45cm. An electrifying display of pure bright yellow flowers on yellow haired stems, holds it colour all year round, fertilize Autumn and spring.

Height: to 1m. A small shrub with tiny, green-grey leaves and a profusion of mauve-pink fluffy flowers from late winter to summer.

Height: 30cm-75cm, Width: to 3m. A low-growing, spreading shrub with shiny, dark green leaves. Narrow, tubular red flowers have green tips and appear from spring to late summer. Prune after flowering for compact growth. (This one was tube-stock for $3).

Height: 60cm, Width: 45cm. Flowers prolifically all year round with bright red and emerald green flowers on distinctive red stems in symmetry with pale green foliage.

Height: 10cm, Width: 50-90cm. A soft dense mounding shrub with silver-mauve foliage and orange-red flowers winter to summer. Attracts butterflys and birds. Feed with low phosphorus native fertiliser, minimal trimming as required.

Height: 1m, Width: 1m. An evergreen shrub with small, oval leaves clustered around the stem. A profusion of bright pink star-shaped flowers dring summer and autumn. Light pruning after flowering will encourage strong new growth.

Height: 60cm, Width: 45cm. Features large, rich yellow flowers on strong, upright stems which produce large numbers of blooms that hold their colour. Peak flowering from spring to early summer with a secondary flush in autumn.

Height: 60-100cm, Width: 1-1.5m.A small arching free flowering shrub with purple-red brushes late spring to summer, flowering much later than similar sized bottle-brushes. Great as a small specimen or low hedging plant. Prune spent flowers in late summer. Feed with low phosphorus native fertiliser early spring or late summer.

So here’s the result of a few days effort, my new garden and open fence! Originally, the garden was my last priority, but it’s already bringing me joy 😀 It should provide some colour and nectar for birds all year round.

I’ve posted in the local Facebook group to see if anyone has some spare mulch instead of buying some.

To be honest, I made this post as a reference for me, as much as for you. Plants listed are planted in order from left to right, and I didn’t want to leave the plastic identifier tags in the garden 😀

Below you can see the tags on the plants before planting out, showing the variety of bright flowers. I’ll post the garden again once they are established next year. While my yard should be wallaby proof, I hope the possums leave them alone.

I also bought an orange tree because it was a bit poorly and cheap ($40, normally $85). Hopefully I can revive it. I actually wanted a lemon tree, but they were quite expensive. Tonight I realised I can graft lemon stems onto it – so I will hopefully end up with two fruits on one tree! Yet to be planted, this will likely go in front of my water tanks to obscure it.

Thanks for visiting, remember to take time out of your day to smell the flowers, have a great one.

Garden images taken with Olympus Pen-F and my little used but great lens – Panasonic Leica DG Summilux 25mm f/1.4.