Take a pile of rocks.
Not any rocks
but a carefully tracked down collection. Rocks of the perfect colour and shape
that make your heart beat faster when you finally discover them after scouring
every landscape supplier in the Redlands.
And what do
you end up with?
a) An education into the hefty price of
stunning rocks?
b) The realisation that stunning rocks
weigh a ton?
c) A wrecked patch in the lawn where stunning
rocks lie while you figure out a way to shift them?
Maybe, but
most importantly you end up with a landscaping dream!
Yes, for the
past few months Ian and I have been busy getting our rocks off. Or to be more
accurate getting our rocks on.
You may
remember from past blogs, the slight rise in the back garden -the jungle
waiting to be tamed?
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| Amazon country |
In a fit of gardening enthusiasm, I figure it will be the perfect spot for a rockery.
Ian isn’t totally convinced at first but, never one to rain on my parade even if it does tend to be on the scale of a Macy’s Thanksgiving extravaganza, he eventually agrees.
A simple weekend’s work. Clear the area, throw down a few rocks and stick in some plants. Easy. First comes the clearing. A couple of hours work?
Try a couple of weeks.
I actually bend the crow bar on a cluster of subterraneous tree roots. And some of the climbing weeds have their origins in the neighbouring street.
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| Half cleared |
With the weeds finally gone it’s time to dig out any plants we want to keep.
Ever
tried to relocate grevilleas that don’t want to move? The ones in this bed decide
they are there till the end – theirs or ours. We finally win the battle but my
relationship with grevilleas will never be the same. These days just the sight
of a grevillea root brings me out in a cold sweat.
Unfortunately a cleared area can look quite daunting. This one is no exception.
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| Ready for a rock concert |
More like a council waste depot than a garden. But it’s all or nothing so now begins the hunt for the perfect rocks. As I may have mentioned this takes some time but eventually we locate our gems.
Moving them is another story, and one that we finally achieve with the help of Troy the bobcat man.
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| On your marks... |
Troy
is an eternally patient man. He doesn’t even flinch when I change my mind
several times on rock placement.
In the end, we are really happy with the outcome.
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| Now it looks like a rockery |
We leave the ground to settle for a couple of weeks, then comes my favourite thing in all the world. Planting.
I decide green is the colour of choice to complement the light rocks. I want varying shades. First up a tropical standard - Dwarf Philodendron Selloum.
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| Lush, tropical and only grows to around a metre and a half |
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| Variegated Tri Star Jasmine- a perfect choice to ramble over rocks |
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| Sannantha Compact Baeckia |
I had one of these Dwarf Baeckia Virgata growing in my rockery in Mackay. It forms a beautiful green mound and gets tiny white flowers throughout the year plus it’s a hardy little begger. Recently renamed 'Sannantha Compact Baeckia' it’s hard to find but well worth the hunt.
After that it’s just the usual suspects, Variegated Mondo, Cycads - for their gorgeous deep green - and a Dwarf Brunifelsia to give occasional colour and fragrance. And, as always, we finish with lots of mulch.
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| Our work here is done....sort of |
We might have wrecked the front and back lawns and we’re probably both on our way to knee replacement surgery, but I think the end result is more than worth it. Can't wait for things to start growing!
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