I'm a newbie, and have only looked at this site when I've had specific
problems, as we're still busy landscaping our new house. Now I'm up to the
stage where I have to pay a bit more attention to the soil, having installed
adequate drainage behind the retaining walls. Once that's completed, I
intend to create rock gardens, and intend to use rock mulch on the garden
beds, instead of the more traditional types of mulch. We live in the
southern part of Australia, where we've just come from a drought, but still
have water restrictions, and summer is just around the corner. One of my
aims is to be as conservative as possible with water, given that we've
already established a tropical garden.

With the laying down of rock mulch, I believe I'm supposed to lay weed mat
first, on top of the soil, and then lay the rocks on top of this. Is this
the best way to attain my ambition of retaining moisture below the soil?
And, other than the weeds that will inevitably grow in between the rocks in
time, is this a good way to reduce the amount of weeds? I'll be installing
drip-feed irrigation hoses just below the surface, to assist in providing
enough water to the plants. Also, there will be a "dry" rock garden creek,
in which I'll introduce a level of fall to direct additional rainwater to
these plants. (I'll lay butyl below the surface of the "dry creek" bed to
assist the water runoff to the plants along the way).

Also, does anyone have any ideas on the proximity of rocks to plants? I hope
to grow moss on some rocks, but there are a lot of palms and birds of
paradise, tree ferns, birds nest ferns and other tropical plants that might
not appreciate the proximity of sun-heated rocks near their trunks.

Thanking you in advance for your replies!

Casey.