Sustainable Garden Design Perth & Fremantle, Australia
Landscaping Design: Garden Plants

Why plant local native species?
When planting out a garden it is always important to consider the local conditions. And when doing so an interesting point of departure is an exploration of the indigenous species to the area. Our first inspiration for garden design is the natural environment itself. Growing up in Perth I was often struck by the beauty of the coastal heathlands surrounding City Beach, Swanbourne and Cottesloe, and also the ability of the native species to thrive in the harshest of environments with the poorest of soils.

It is easy to forget how beautiful our own species really are but we are reminded by the huge overseas interest in our local native species that there is something unique about Western Australian flora.

Can I incorporate existing plants and structures into a new garden design?
If it isn’t broken don’t fix it
Many established plants in your garden have stood the test of time. By nature I am not the slash and burn type garden designer. If an existing plant serves a long-term purpose in the garden then it is best to keep it and plant around it. Although I am not adverse to removing unproductive plants in the garden when necessary and turning them into mulch which can be reused in the final garden design. Creating more organic designs around already existing and established plants often produces very desirable outcomes. One of the Zen rules of effortless gardening is that if you have tried to kill off a plant on numerous occasions with no success you should learn to love it.

This also goes for existing structures such as ugly fencing. The rule of thumb in this case would be to paint over it or plant over it.

One man’s trash is another man’s treasure

This is one of the mantras that I live by. I am not a big fan of heavy machinery and skip bins. My personal preference is to work with the natural contours of an existing garden. When this is not possible it is often preferable to move existing soil into raised garden beds or feature mounds.

Put unwanted paving in the quokka or incorporate your old seventies pavers into your design by painting them with natural lime-wash paving paints. There are an infinite number of solutions which can save you time and money.

Should you have listened to what your grandma told you?
In selecting species that work in Perth conditions grandma knew best. Many gardens of older eras were hand watered meaning it took significant effort to keep them alive in summer. Grandma was very adept at selecting species that would pass this survival test.

Personally, as was my grandma, I am a big fan of fifties and sixties era plants including philodendrons, monsteria deliciosa (Swiss cheese plant) and the array of architectural succulents that proliferated in that era of garden design. My wife is more of a fan of classics such as roses plumbago and gerbras. These species of exotics may be incorporated into a garden design but should preferably be integrated into mainly native designs punctuated with flourishes of exotic plants with which you have a warm association. I call these ‘heart’ plants and still believe it is ethical to include the plants you love in a water-wise garden.

Can I have a sustainable food producing garden?
The short answer to this is yes. There are many systems such as permaculture which provide excellent models for sustainable food producing gardening systems.

At the least, it is desirable to reserve a space close to your kitchen which provides most of the herbs included in your daily cooking such as basil, spinach, coriander and oregano. It is also preferable to include easy to grow fruit trees such as lemon, lime, orange and mandarin. In my own gardens I have had particular success with plants well suited to our climates such as fig, mulberry and loquat trees. I am particularly fond of these plants because they require a minimal amount of care on behalf of the gardener and are wildly adored and harvested by my three children.

How can I grow food in my postage-stamp sized garden?
In my recent garden designs I have incorporated raised garden beds filled with herbs, vegetables and miniature fruit trees into smaller courtyard areas. In many of these designs I have integrated a sitting bench to the full of the garden bed allowing the space to be optimized. Other features that I have included are vertical gardens which may easily be planted with herbs or edible green leaf vegetables and can be placed near the kitchen for easy access.

How should I allocate my budget to my gardening project?
The general rule of thumb passed onto me by a wise landscape architect friend of mine is to always allocate funds to projects which have an immediate impact on your life. This may mean writing a list of priorities and dividing up projects into parts rather than spreading it thinly across the whole garden and not achieving anything substantial. I would always advise clients to spend money on an outdoor living space that makes a house more functional than spend it on an expensive water feature which has a lesser impact. In the end this is always a personal choice but I have always found it beneficial to promote form over function. The form of course doesn’t have to be ugly.