Widely available
Low maintenance
Easily propagated
Not too thick (snake problem!)

Flowering and fast growing (is this possible if I don't want it too thick?) would also be nice to have :)

Secondly, I also have to choose some lawn seed suitable for the same soil. Turf isn't an option as getting it here is a big issue. It would have to be drought resistant, and slow growing would be great :) I've been looking at some of the Yates products (Droughtsmart and Tough'n'Hardy). Does anyone know if these are any good or have any better ideas?

Cheers

Can't help about a lawn grass.

look to the native species especially indemics to your area, the local land care group will have heaps of info' in that department.

there will be native grasses there that will work for you as well. if the sand contains salt there is a very hardy cooch that loves those conditions.

casuarina's are good in this department.

and don't worry about the snakes let them worry about themselves they are part of nature. we found if you leave them alone they will leave you alone. you let them know you are around (walk heavily) they will feel you coming and be long gone before you are ever likley to see them.

if you encounter a snake walk the other way have a tea break and when you come back it will be gone and probably never to be seen again. a good intelligent dog is an asset.

len

I hear what you're saying with the snakes but with a couple of young kids we'd rather not give them the opportunity to be there in the first place :)

Pigface sounds like it could be the ticket. Also found something called Goats Foot or Railroad Vine. Does anyone know anything about it? Sounds like it could be a bit weedy.

Just to try and clarify what type of soil we have, it's sandy but almost black in colour. At the moment the area is covered in some kind of fern and also has a small gum tree growing in it. Apologies if this is a bit vague but I'm a gardening newbie :)

Cheers

i don't think you are going to stop them, they may come because you have a food source ie.,. frogs or rodents to eat. usually they don't come just because of habitat you create. adn they certainly wouldn't be laying in that habitat waiting to attack anyone, that is not how snakes work. most snake bite occur from people invading the snakes space that is simply not leaving it alone.

also you need to be educating the kids, and like a said a good dog from a rural working litter will be good protection for the kids.

wonder also if the kids would be playng in this area of your yard? but like i said it wouldn't matter if you laid artificial grass or cement at anytime a snake could decide to visit or pass by, in its quest for food or simply to get to somewhere else.

we created or improved habitat on our rural block and we saw no more snakes than anyone else did, even when walking around the 70 acres with our grandchildren. and in the 6 years we where there was none of our neighbours or anyone else that we are aware of who had been bitten by a snake.

len