Coastal Gardening
Presenter: Nigel Ruck
Episode: 26 (3rd November 2007)
If you are looking for inspiration and ideas for your garden and want to use plants that will thrive with a minimum amount of fuss then your own neighbourhood is a great place to start.
Have a look around and see what plants are doing well. This is particularly relevant when selecting natives that are endemic to your area especially in coastal situations where the conditions can be quite a challenge.
Nigel looked at house which is only a few houses away from the ocean and they have used local indigenous plants with great success. It is a beautiful low maintenance garden with plenty of sass.
Gardens close to the coast are often subject to big natural rock shelves which run just under the soils surface, and sometimes above. In these areas it is important to build up your garden so that it has good soil depth.
By choosing local indigenous plants you can avoid a lot of work because these plants are used to the conditions and not only grow in the area but will thrive. Plants like Acacias, Dianellas and Westringias are perfect examples of local plants for the Curl Curl area of Sydney.
These types of plants you will not only see in the garden, but also on the coastal plains and sand dunes of the local area. Such conditions are pretty severe, salt laden winds buffeting the foliage and shallow infertile sandy soils and yet these plants have adapted beautifully and absolutely love it.
You don’t need to replicate the look of the plants growing in their natural state but you can certainly use the plants in one way or another.
Back in the garden to add to the natural feel you can use products like decomposed granite as decorative mulch and using natural sandstone steppers make the perfect path and blend in with the theme.
When it comes to watering plants in the garden the owners have installed a rainwater tank under the back deck. The tank is not huge but it does the job and it is a clever use of space.
Episode: 26 (3rd November 2007)
If you are looking for inspiration and ideas for your garden and want to use plants that will thrive with a minimum amount of fuss then your own neighbourhood is a great place to start.
Have a look around and see what plants are doing well. This is particularly relevant when selecting natives that are endemic to your area especially in coastal situations where the conditions can be quite a challenge.
Nigel looked at house which is only a few houses away from the ocean and they have used local indigenous plants with great success. It is a beautiful low maintenance garden with plenty of sass.
Gardens close to the coast are often subject to big natural rock shelves which run just under the soils surface, and sometimes above. In these areas it is important to build up your garden so that it has good soil depth.
By choosing local indigenous plants you can avoid a lot of work because these plants are used to the conditions and not only grow in the area but will thrive. Plants like Acacias, Dianellas and Westringias are perfect examples of local plants for the Curl Curl area of Sydney.
These types of plants you will not only see in the garden, but also on the coastal plains and sand dunes of the local area. Such conditions are pretty severe, salt laden winds buffeting the foliage and shallow infertile sandy soils and yet these plants have adapted beautifully and absolutely love it.
You don’t need to replicate the look of the plants growing in their natural state but you can certainly use the plants in one way or another.
Back in the garden to add to the natural feel you can use products like decomposed granite as decorative mulch and using natural sandstone steppers make the perfect path and blend in with the theme.
When it comes to watering plants in the garden the owners have installed a rainwater tank under the back deck. The tank is not huge but it does the job and it is a clever use of space.
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