Garden
Native fusion Here is another contemporary garden where natives and exotics are used together to create a diverse array of shapes and textures. In this garden, Australian natives such as coastal banksia (Banksia integrifolia), coastal rosemary (Westringia fruticosa) and Lomandra Longifolia ‘Tanika’ are combined with the architectural forms of succulents such as agave and yucca. The almost monochromatic plant palette of green and grey is designed to harmonise with and soften the cool whites and greys of the built structures.
The bromeliad family includes epiphytic and lithophytic plants that respectively root in tree branches or rocks, rather than soil. They take their nutrients from water or the debris of other plants – such as falling leaves – that collect in the hollows formed by their leaves. Their bright colours attract pollinators, including hummingbirds, bats and moths.
7. Ornamental gingers Ornamental gingers such as Hedychium sp. & Zingiber sp., with their heady fragrance and colourful flowers, make subtropical gardens pop. Their long, elegant stems make excellent cut flowers too. TIP: Ornamental gingers are heavy feeders. Give them a monthly dose of fertiliser high in potassium and phosphorus from September through to November to encourage flowering.
Scale The striking form of the large-leaf beauties shown here – Elephant Ear (Colocasia) – plays with the scale of the garden and adds interest and humour.
Colour Colour can bring a garden to life. A subtropical garden doesn’t get much down time. A periodic pop of colour will draw you through the garden, and a small punch of colourful foliage can offer interest all year round. This garden uses a small swathe of Cordyline rubra (palm lily) along with the acid green of the staghorn fern to act as an exclamation point against a darker green backdrop. Less is more when employing colour in the garden. A little colour will grab your eye; a lot of colour will confuse and detract from the harmony of the garden.
4. Prune lavender Summer is the best time to give lavender a good haircut, ideally when its main flowering period is over. If you don’t trim lavender regularly it produces fewer flowers. Prune back by a third, but don’t cut too hard – make sure you’ve left some growth as lavender won’t produce new leaves from old wood.
Grass of a different kind Ornamental and native grasses can give a garden so much colour and texture that you’ll wonder why you didn’t replace your lawn with them years ago. Word is spreading about the benefits of this sustainable garden option, however, with 47 per cent of Houzzers planting them in place of their lawn.
Set up a fire pit Fire pits can be a little involved as DIY projects, but if, like me, you like to dive right in, it’s a fun one to do. First, select a location that’s not likely to catch on fire, and which is far enough away from anything that you’d be worried about having flying embers land on. Like trees. Or the dog’s house. If your pit is properly insulated (and if you don’t mind the odd char mark) a setup on a timber deck should be fine. Just maybe have a fire extinguisher on hand. Next, get two silicon basin moulds (one large, one slightly less large), a couple of bags of concrete and a really big bucket from your local hardware store. You’ll also need some gloves, safety glasses and dust masks for safety. Gear up, then mix the concrete in the bucket. Get Dad to pour it into the larger basin, then set the smaller basin inside and weigh it down with some stones. It should be sitting about three to four centimetres above the first basin. Let it set according to the instructions on the bag while you and Dad enjoy a cuppa or a cold one together, then de-mould, and clean up the edges with a bit of sandpaper. When hard, place it somewhere that’s not flammable, fill it with firewo...
Firepit
Q