Lixouri, Barkers Creek

 

Lixouri was the third garden I visited during the 2018 Castlemaine and District Festival of Gardens. 

Lixouri is very popular with garden festival enthusiasts.

It consists of terraces leading down to a small lake fringed with iris.

There is an adjoining olive grove.

Roses line the fence which divides the garden from the olive grove.

 

The terraces are edged by dry stone walls.

There are many plants typical of Central Victorian gardens to admire.

The vegetable garden had been given over to poppies which I enjoyed.

Advertisements

Cherbern Park, Metcalfe

Cherbern Park in Metcalfe is a funny, quirky garden which has been developed around the former headmaster’s residence. Metcalfe school itself was transported to Taradale Primary School where it now serves as an art room. The only substantial public building remaining in Metcalfe is the former town hall.

Cherbern Park was the second garden my friend and I visited on Sunday, the 4th of November.

The garden is adorned with a variety of garden implements, ………

…….. bits of farming equipment…….

…….and discarded domestic items.

The garden ornaments belonged to the gardener’s grandmother. Enevea, the black swan tyre planter is for you. There is also a white swan tyre planter – definitely a throw back to yesteryear.

Don’t throw away your old, broken or cracked terracotta pots, use them creatively as planters for succulents.

At the rear of the property is the old, school pine plantation.

The owners have converted the area into a play ground for their grandchildren. It comes with the suspended, old doors, giant pencils and these two tractors fashioned from tyres, old kindergarten chairs and rubbish bin lids for steering wheels. There is also a small trampoline and tree house.

 

 

On the day, there were plenty of pink flowering plants……..

 

 

 

………as well as other flowering delights…….

……….including this Bridal Veil or Weeping broom…………

 

……….iris which are a staple of many Central Victorian gardens………

………and this interesting looking flower.

We really enjoyed our visit to this garden. The gardener who remained stationed in the plant sales area said she could hear us happily chatting and laughing as we drifted around the garden. And we didn’t go away empty handed…there’s nothing like a good plant stall!

 

Granite Garden, Harcourt North

Yippee! It is the Castlemaine & District Festival of Gardens this year. The festival is running from 3 to 11 November 2018. With twenty two gardens to choose from, there is something for anyone who is even vaguely interested in gardens.

On Sunday, a friend and I visited two gardens which were new to us.

The first garden we visited was Granite Garden situated in North Harcourt on the lower slopes of Mount Alexander.

 

There are views over a vineyard and orchards.

At the rear of the house, the garden slopes upwards.  The garden is packed with trees and shrubs.

The air was heavy with the perfume of flowering citrus.

I admired the healthy and flourishing lemon trees. They must enjoy the granitic soil and the higher slopes.

It is a pity I won’t be around when the figs are ready for eating.

The property is situated near an old granite quarry. Perhaps the stone for the steps and garden edging came from there.

Shady areas have been created under the canopy of trees.

I used to grow Green Goddess in my garden in Ferntree Gully.

The purple spires of the echium are striking. I would love to grow an echium in my garden but the plant needs more space than I can provide.

Two examples of native plantings are these grevilleas and ……..

……..this leptospermum or teatree.

I was very taken by these red leaves and red seed capsules.

This new garden bed is enhanced by a simple decorative element. Bamboo garden stakes of various lengths have been spray painted and grouped together.

I am pondering whether I can use this idea in my garden.

My friend and I were able to fully absorb the peace of the garden as we sat on a garden bench and enjoyed our picnic lunch.

It is a pity my photographs can’t capture the variety of bird calls or the flash of New Holland honey eaters as they darted among the shrubs.

 

 

Wedderburn Gardens 2018

As I headed off to Wedderburn for their Garden Expo on Sunday, 21 October, it was a bright, warm day with a clear, blue sky. I could not help but notice that between Maldon and Wedderburn, the dams in the paddocks were mere puddles – a sobering sight indeed. It is going to be a hard summer.

Wedderburn lies north west of Bendigo in an area of low rainfall. This year there was virtually no rain in winter.

It was interesting to see how gardeners have coped with clay and rock and recent severe frosts followed by high temperatures.

The front garden at Wedderburn Community Centre has been developed by students undertaking landscaping courses at the centre.

I have a yellow version of this plant. I thought the colour of the flowers was really striking.

Hardy native shrubs have been planted including…….

…….. Eremophilas and ………..

………grevillias.

Hayden and Jennifer’s garden is still under construction on a site which was previously a retail nursery. Some of their initial plant choices were disastrous but experience is teaching them what will survive in Wedderburn’s conditions. I have a feeling some struggling box plants may disappear in the future.

Like the community centre, Hayden and Jennifer use raised beds for their plantings.

 

I enjoyed these yellow pig faces as did the bees.

A large, climbing white rose is a remnant of the former nursery.

Lorraine’s garden is a series of mounds built from clay and rock decorated with all manner of found objects.

The mounds have mainly been planted with succulents.

These maiden hair ferns are thriving in a micro climate provided by a sheltered verandah.

Something a Bit Different

Last Sunday, 21 October 2018, I travelled to Wedderburn for their Garden Expo. Wedderburn is a township which forms the northern apex of the Golden Triangle. The other points of the triangle are Avoca  and Castlemaine. The towns and bushland bounded by the triangle are a Mecca for gold fossickers with their metal detectors. The triangle is reputed to be the world’s richest alluvial gold nugget region famous for the purity, large size and quantity of gold nuggets found over the decades since the 1850s.

What makes this post a bit different is it is not about the gardens I visited but about the cafe where I had lunch. The 24 Karat Cafe is the only cafe in Wedderburn. I sat in the courtyard at the rear of the cafe and contemplated the illustrations with their thought provoking sayings.

 

First up, this sign was the first to attract my attention. It is painted on an old door.

My gaze travelled round to the doors of a small building which housed a store room and the toilet – dunny, outhouse, loo, lavatory, John or bathroom depending where you come from.

I noticed a person coming out of the toilet returned with his smart phone.

When it was my turn to use the toilet, I discovered the reason – the walls are covered with more illustrations. I, too, was busy snapping away. These are some of my favourites.

I was amused by these illustrations with their humorous take on life in Wedderburn.

The football code the Redbacks play is Australian Rules Football.

My Castlemaine Garden

I have been working in my garden in Castlemaine for five and a half years.

It is a small garden but it keeps me busy. I call myself a chaotic gardener – things happen when they happen. I rarely keep up with the weeding.

The photographs in this post have been taken over a number of years.

When I first arrived here, there were a number of roses both in the front and back gardens. Whilst I admire roses, I have reduced their numbers over time. My goal is to create a garden which will be easy for me to manage as I get older. Roses are hardy but they are also high maintenance.

I have found new homes for the roses I have removed. This rose found a new home with one of my sisters.

Succulents are a feature of my garden both in the ground and in pots. Provided I keep the frost tender ones under cover, they are easy to care for. I have come to appreciate their many different forms.

Bulbs do well as they can handle frosty, cold ground and tolerate dry conditions.

Iris provide a colourful spring show and can easily be dug up and moved around.

Euphorbias, gazanias and other daisies are bullet proof in Castlemaine’s harsh conditions. The euphorbias and gazanias happily self seed around the garden.

Poppies have made a home in my back garden where they self seed and emerge again each spring together with an abundance of weeds.

 

 

Merson, Castlemaine

Sunday was the last day I could visit another garden of the HEDGE. I chose to visit Merson, a small town garden.

Apparently, this is Castlemaine’s first street library. At the Castlemaine railway station there is a similar scheme, Rolling Stock, a book shelf where people can leave books and magazines for travellers to read on their journey. Despite the rise of screen based technology, books and a love of books live on.

 

In the front garden, the quince flowers and the fragrant, yellow blooms of this shrub captured my attention.

 

The borage was filled with the humming of bees.

The back garden has been thoughtfully planned with winding gravel paths……

……. and curving shapes.

Here is one of the three wicking beds which form the productive garden.

This bowl and bird bath are simple ways to provide water features.

Garden art provides added interest and colour.

Blossom and Poppies

In the Castlemaine Botanical gardens there is a tree whose appearance for most of the year is nondescript. You would pass it with barely a second glance.

But for a short period in spring, it is a picture of blossom filled magnificence. The north facing branches cascade earthwards creating a bewitching veil of blooms.

 

The tree has no label so I don’t know the species. The buds are a deep pink and the flowers are white tinged with pink.

Bees love it.

I look forward to the flowering of this tree each year.

Near the entrance to the gardens is this flower bed. I like it when it is planted with iceland poppies. I am not a big fan of the summer planting of petunias – urk!

I like the form…….

……..the texture and ……..

………the colours of the flowers.

Poverty Gully Garden, Castlemaine

Today was perfect for visiting an open garden.

Gardens of the HEDGE (Horticultural Endeavours Demonstrating Gardening Enthusiasm) have six gardens open during the period 22nd September until 7th October.

Poverty Gully Garden is in an attractive bushland setting on the edge of Castlemaine. The gardener has successfully created a garden where the challenges include poor soil, drought, severe frosts and wild life which likes to drop in for a snack. Kangaroos, wallabies, possums and hares are common on the bushland property.

If you look beyond the potted plants to the low embankment, you will see what passes for soil in Castlemaine. Yet undeterred, local gardeners rise to the challenge of creating diverse and interesting gardens.

Here are some of the views from the garden to the adjoining bushland.

The house, fencing and retaining walls are built of stone.

The gardener said there was a lot of trial and error in finding which plants would survive the demanding conditions. Her garden features plants which are bullet proof.

Native plants are used extensively throughout the garden.

The wattles are in full bloom at present.

Succulents also take pride of place.

The gardener has used succulents decoratively by inserting pieces into these old bed springs and…..

……..creating this wreath.

Pieces which survive until the 7th of October will be planted out into the garden.

Potted plants add interest to the garden as well as ………

……….the colourful mosaic work.

These pebble mosaics add great texture.

This verandah provides the right conditions ………

………for these plants to thrive.

Finally, a get-away for the grandchildren.

 

 

Winter Sun, Kyneton

Winter Sun was the second garden I visited on Saturday, the 8th of September. It stood out like a ray of sunshine amidst light industry and neighbouring residential properties with drab gardens.

In early spring, the garden is dominated by daffodils – big, yellow daffodils. They are in the driveway, ……

…….the front garden and………

 

……the back garden.

 

I was able to admire the blossom of a tree overhanging from a neighbour’s yard.

The gardener has this quirky collection of birds displayed on an outdoor heater……

……..and this impressive display of motoring signs in his garage.