Farm1 wrote:

LOL. Take heart. I started in this place with some very rotten dirt
and the hydophobic soil too. It took me a long time of using manure
and mulch but each year things do get better. I now have worms and
instead of being a pale calf sht yellow colour I now have soem areas
of rich brown soil.

The top few inches is often quite good, stuff that's built up over the rock
and shale. But it's shallow, and it is quite hydrophobic. If I plant a tree,
I make a little saucer around the base for it, to retain the water. I
planted some argyle apples (not my favourite gum) in deep holes, and they
just took off. crazed trees, never seen anything like it.
I give every new tree a green 2 year plant pill.

BTW, not all English style plants are a failure in our area - it just
means choosing the right ones. Tell your mother to give you some
Euphorbia s - they do reasonably well in rotten soilb ut do
brilliantly in better soil. I buy 2 English gardenign mags -
"Garedens Illustrated" and "The English Garden" as I find that the
ideas are so good int hem for design and mass planting but then I have
to choose the local do good plants.

One of the best trees here is Oaks, so lots of english things are ok.... the
buxus hedge is doing well (silly fussy little thing it is, the roos take
leaps over it). Roses love it. Many herbs (woody ones) do really well.
Chinese elms!

There are lovely dry gardens in our area... the sculpture garden
down at the National Gallery, for instance, and over at the
Botanical Gardens there's a real beauty.

Yes they are lovely, especially the sculpture garden. But go for a
walk through the ANU at sometime - good ideas there.

Yes, I saw their paving and grasses a year ago, and that's probably what
really got me motivated.


Also go off to some fo the open gardesn roudn here - lots of good ones
round here. Try to get to Michelago if it's ever open.

Micelago is a great garden, I love those pipes made into pillars for the
wisteria walk. Just down the hill from me some people have their garden open
every spring. Huge trees, which are the bones of the garden, it is quite
magnificent.

--
ant