Category Archive: Gardens

Happy days gardening in retirement.

Categories:

Gardens

October 10, 2012

By James Wall

A couple of weeks ago I was fortunate enough to be invited to visit the Parkglen Retirement Community in local Keysborough. It is on 8 acres of lovely pathways and gardens. Just the place to age gracefully. And for a frustrated gardener like me who has to spend too much time in his nursery rather than his own garden, this would be just the dream place for me in my retirement. Lets hope life pans out that way.

These people are not all keen gardeners but the have an appreciation of their surroundings and have a lot of knowledge, even if they don’t realise it. That is because each of these people have experienced over 250 seasons throughout their lives. Even the very best horticultural apprentice in Australia (one of which I believe works at Gardenworld !!!) can’t possibly have gained the knowledge as someone who has seen at least 65 winters pass by.

There was a couple of keen gardeners, a woman with great botany knowledge and then a few who had projects in progress. Everyone gets their own little garden, but there is no pressure on anyone, but there is also admiration and respect for those that have some plants that are doing exceptionally well. It was a wonderful morning, and here are a few images of what we saw.

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A country garden in August

Categories:

Gardens

August 6, 2011

By James Wall

Having got out of Melbourne for a visit to an aunts 80th birthday, I headed to a little place just outside of Daylesford, down here in Victoria. A place once bustling with gold rush, but now a sleepy hollow with cows and potatoes, it was good to take a break from the big smoke.

There is another aunty who lives just down the road. Mum said to me when I left the party, call in and have a look at Marj’s garden. She was good to tell me that, because around this little miners cottage was a jewel of a garden. With no one else around, it made exploring it all the more surreal.

There are formal hedges and desolate succulents on tables. Hebes, flax, climbers, iberis and big juicy hellebores that in real life were show-stoppers. This climate is cold in winter and damn hot in summer. At its wintery moment, it is like a sleeping giant, about to come alive.

What I loved about it was all the little nooks and crannys, and the way that there are different surfaces, pots and choices of plants that somehow work. If a lesser gardener tried this, it could turn into a jumbled mess, but my aunty Marj has got a real artistic style, and this garden just inspires.

I loved it so much, there are a lot of photos. I hope you enjoy them, and get something out of them for your garden. I know I will !