If you saw Gerry visit the magnificent tropical garden in Brissie on last nights GA, you may also have been taken aback when the owner replied that it had taken him '16 years' to build his canopy of palms and trees from the usual bare expanse of lawn. I'm sure that the canopy is a lot more established at 16 years than it is at 5, but I suspect that he misinterpreted Gerry's question (or perhaps I did).

In a subtropical climate, even allowing for El Nino and global warming, 16 years seems like a long wait for a canopy.

Cheers,

Artie

Starting off in Townsville and leaving five years later my palms would have been 6mts tall and the trees well they were well over that size everything grows so fast up there.

Down here to Brissie and five years later I will admit my garden is a lot slower growng having terrible soil and not much rain, and as Hubby and I hand built the house we were just too busy so did not start on the garden till about three years ago having to take down so many trees before we could start on it. But in that three years the Grevillea's are 3mts tall most of the big trees were not planted till last January but they are over two meters now, and I reckon by sixteen years time they will be reaching for the sky my own little section of rain forest.

So I do agree with you, something very wrong with that answer......MM.

I think its subject to interpretation - the gardener, Mauri, clearly thought he was being asked 'how long has it taken to get the canopy to this stage ?', not 'how long did it take to establish a canopy ?'.

Soil is one (very important) component, but you can build it up - Brissie has a more forgiving climate than points north, IMO, although we could all do with more rain.

Cheers,

Artie