If all goes well, I'll be in a new location by June, and the most exciting prospect is that I now have the opportunity to build a garden from the ground up. This time, I hope to do it *properly* :)

Almost 800sq metres, large Poinciana and other trees at the rear, clay soil and a block that slopes -moderately- at the rear : my initial thoughts are:

- terracing, complete with retaining walls
- curved pathways to give a sense of mystery as the 'jungle' takes hold over time
- all grass removed and replaced with paving/raised beds

None of this is rocket science, but its a world apart from the approach I used with my existing garden (which, to be fair, has a charm of its own :))

In terms of plant choice, lots of native rainforest plants intermingled with the fab four - Heliconias, Gingers, Cordylines and Broms. The front will be more formal - tropical Grevillea in one bed, and a stand of Xanthostemons in the other. I've had a lot of success thus far with my closely-planted Aussie Southerns, and I'm hoping the Pendas will respond in much the same way - visitors to Roma St Parklands in Brissie can see what I'm on about in the Rainforest Walk - very closely planted for such large speciments.

Thats the plan at the moment - watch this space :)

I'm in Brissie for a week in early May, but my time will be taken up with the course I'm attending (work, I'm afraid). Ideally, I'd like to see the Birkdale garden, and Suan Sawan in Bray Park, along with Dennis Hundscheidt's 'compound' on the southside. If only more landlords were like Dennis - planting a tropical wonderland and making maintenance a condition of the lease !

I lived in SE Qld for many years, and never once made the effort to visit the Ginger Factory at Buderim : now that I am 5 hours drive from the Sunshine Coast, I'm really kicking myself over that little oversight.

Cheers,

Artie

Yes, its on the northside of the thriving metropolis known as the 'Beef Capital' - about 2km from where I am at the moment, to be precise :)

Rocky's increasingly dry years worry me, but driving past sprinklers in the *middle* of the day banishes that concern - my last 'dummy' water bill was less than $7, so I'm confident that I can double my watering and still be ahead of the woeful practices of many landowners (public and private) in Rocky.

As for the clay and the Poinciana roots, its just part of the challenge, and will make the finished result that much more glorious :)

Seeya,

Artie

Yes, I'm still within the boundaries of Rocky Shire - unless they've moved Rockonia Road and surrounding streets :)

Bit of a culture shock, leaving Fabulous Frenchville and all, but them's the breaks ! BTW, the Rocky real estate market is going like a freight train at the moment, at least in the sub-200K range. I suspect that another 12 months will see buyers in this bracket restricted to floodprone areas.....

Still the cheapest population centre on the East Coast, I'm told, and a better buy than Emerald and other towns in the midst of the mining boom.