You really cant go past local knowledge, so I'd strongly suggest that you take a good look around gardens in your area. Nurseries are also helpful, but you have to balance their advice against their profit motive - the good ones will make recommendations based solely on the best possible outcome for you. I also look at council landscaping - the plants might be doing it tough, but its surprising to see how well many species perform in the harshest of conditions.

My current block has the same characteristics you've described, without the advantage of North-South orientation. My experience has been that the following do well in clay, and will be excellent foundation plants within 2-3 years of planting (from a 6" pot):

- Xanthostemon Chrysanthus (Golden Penda) : takes the brunt of the afternoon Rocky sun and just looks sensational, even without flowers. Not so much as a single pest, despite the exotic Syzygium opposite being regularly gnawed on :)

- Syzygium Australe Southern Form (Aussie Southern) : all LillyPillies arent the same, and this has a fantastic growth rate. I also like Wilsonii and a host of others, but this is the pick for a site such as yours, IMO.

- Murrayas : both exotic and the local species - fast growers, tough-as-nails and great foliage / scented flowers.

Others might suggest wattles, palms etc as pioneer plants - again, you need to see what works in *your* location. Be very careful in your choices re large trees - in addition to issues with roots and falling branches, I'm coming to the realisation that too *much* shade might be just as difficult a challenge as having too little. Having stood in a baking 40deg backyard 18 months ago, this was inconceivable, buts its definitely an issue with the new block.

I'm also going to try wire trellis and climbers at the new place : my lone Pandorea Pandorana was never given the start it deserved here, but has hung in there magnificently. There are a host of exotic climbers, too - my personal preference is for natives where possible.

Speaking to a local gardener recently, I was reminded of the importance of regularly checking the acidity of your soil - I started at 6.5, but all the compost, fertiliser, watering etc is bound to have an impact. He told me of a mate who grew 5 acres of lucerne purely to provide compost to his own garden - thats one serious gardener :)

I believe that the main challenge facing all mainland gardeners at the moment isnt soil, plant choice or orientation - its rainfall. I remember Coffs as a lush, subtropical paradise with abundant rain - I sincerely hope that remains the case while you establish your own oasis.

Cheers,

Artie