Native Grasses.

This summer the weather conditions here in Mudgee,  with lots of rain and then the intense heat,  have lead to the rapid growth of our native grasses.  This is proving to be an inspiration.  Wandering around the property and gathering knowledge about the grasses that flourish here  is adding new perspectives on  possible  design directions for the gardens.

Kangaroo Grass, Themeda triandra, photographed here on The Eastern Terrace,  is one of the most widespread and recognizable members of the grass family in Australia. It probably dominated all Australian grasslands before European settlement.  It is also one of the most aesthetically pleasing, with these wonderful rust coloured seed heads appearing in summer, whilst in spring the fresh tussocks provide a vibrant green in the landscape.  Yet it is not much seen in Australian landscape design. Let's hope that changes soon.

Although Themeda triandra itself is not endangered it does grow in Temperate Grassland communities, which have been declared as endangered.  These grasslands are under threat due to loss and fragmentation through inadequate land management practices. As Kangaroo Grass does not tolerate heavy or continuous grazing, it can be a useful indicator of the level of disturbance in an area. These endemic grasses, perfectly suited to our environment,  provide us with an opportunity to explore a truly local style of landscaping across this property.

A Note on Scale

Pollarding the plane tree in the Main Courtyard was mentioned in this blog on January 30.   The strong "sculptural" impact of this is one of the main motivations.  But pollarding also has some purely practical benefits.   The height of the final tree is the first issue to consider.

The height to the top of the railing around the Wine Cellar is four metres and the final height of the pollarded tree probably shouldn't be more than twice that;  that is around eight  metres.  Left to its own devices a London Plane could reach thirty metres or six times the current height of the tree!.  This would overwhelm both the architecture and the Main Courtyard.

The first step in pollarding is to remove the central leader. It is then possible to start developing the characteristic candelabra form of a classic pollard.

Wet Feet

The ongoing consequences of the floods in late 2010 are still being felt.  We are now seeing that a number of trees are suffering because of "wet feet".

Several Zelkova trees planted along the driveway may die or at the very least suffer severe damage because the water table in this part of the property rises to the surface in a very wet season.

In another  wet season a decade ago we lost the majority of Cypress Pines (Callitris endlicheri ) that we had planted here as an avenue,  so it seems that there will be an ongoing problem in this area. Does this mean that we should rethink the concept of having an avenue of trees along the driveway?  Or is it just a matter of finding a tree that can cope with the range of conditions ?

What's Blooming This Week?

Madame Isaac Pereire,  claimed to be the most powerfully fragrant of all roses,  is in full bloom this week in The Old Cottage Garden.

Heritage roses, antique roses, old garden roses;  whatever you choose to call them,  we have a number of them in the Cottage Garden, including some very early  varieties such as The Red Rose of Lancaster, The White Rose of York, Rosa Mundi and The Grand Duke of Tuscany.

These roses are tough, having passed the test of time and surviving the harshest conditions.  We like that. We don't have time to pander to the needs of prima donnas.

Size Does Matter

The peach trees in The Old Orchard had got too big to be manageable so this gave Clive the perfect excuse to play with his new toy.  The chainsaw got a workout and the trees are now sorted.

With the trees  being so big it was not possible to net them and without nets we lose every peach.  But netting needs to be quick and easy, so small is best.

In future we will keep new fruit trees smaller and  have also begun collecting dwarf fruit trees to be grown in  wine barrels in the revamped Old Cottage Garden.

Green Walls

 

Green walls are used in The House Gardens, dividing the area into rooms, providing structure to the garden and shelter from harsh winds.

All our green walls so far have been made using Star Jasmine, grown over a framework of steel mesh. This twining climber grows quickly enough to provide a good coverage in only 2-3 years but not so quickly that it becomes problematic  to keep trimmed.

One additional beneficial outcome is that these walls are now being used as nesting sites by many small  birds. 

Netting the Fruit

Protecting stuff is one of the main activities in a country garden,; protecting seedlings from extreme heat, protecting  trees from animal attack, or as in this photograph, protecting fruit from birds.

The thing about some birds, especially parrots, is that  they don't necessarily want to eat the fruit.  They just enjoy nipping the fruit off the branch, watching it fall then repeating the process until there is no fruit left.  

So even if the fruit is a long way from ripe nets need to be put in place early.