Kainga, where Roses bloom, life is lived at a gentler pace.Living Simply, doing all those good things like stitching, gardening, cooking and reading.

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

"Gardening in a dry climate."

Hello,

Our garden is in a dry climate. We keep records of the rain that has fallen here at Kainga.


  1. 2012- 320.25 mls
  2. 2011- 438 mls
  3. 2010- 207.50 mls
  4. 2009- 369.5 mls
  5. 2008- 483.75 mls
  6. 2007- 410.50 mls
  7. 2006-422.40 mls
  8. 2005- 406.75 mls
  9. 2004- 366.75 mls
  10. 2003- 446.75 mls
  11. 2002- 267.50 mls
The garden was also started when water restrictions were introduced here in West Australia. So our garden is fairly tough. I now know which plants will do better here. I don't bother too much with punnets of flowers, it would cost a fortune to full a spot. Roses and tough perennials are the plants that do best. We had a heatwave again last week. Temps of up to 39 degrees Celsius. Roses are enjoying a flush of Autumn blooms. It is a bit of a dull day here today the clouds are here and a bit of rain has fallen. I went out for look around the garden and took plenty of photos.

 These Roses and the Diosma and Powis Castle planted alongside the fence near the house receive no water at all except for when they were first planted.


 Last Saturday morning Ian and I went to a garage sale. There was nothing near the house we wanted but took a walk up the back yard where the man of house had his "crap" as I called it. He had cleaned out his shed. There was a pile of red and cream  brick off cuts that were free. I was happy to take them of his hands. Ian went and picked them up just after lunch. Then I got to with the rubber mallet and laid the crazy paving. It only took a couple of hours work.  This weekend it will be cemented around the edges etc. Over the years I have laid this paving as bricks have become available.


 This section of garden has lots of old fashioned roses that are in bloom.

 David Austin roses thrive here in West Australia and grow a lot bigger than if grown in England.

Quince tree.

 This Quince tree is full of fruit. It also thrives on only rainfall.


This garden bed of roses receives only rainfall. This bed contains some Delbard  Roses and roses by the Australian grower Mr Alistair Clark. I have several books about his roses. There is a lot of history involved with roses and it is interesting to read as Mr Clark named all his roses after people he knew.


Olive Tree.
 The Olive tree down the front has produced lots of Olives this year. We are currently soaking some  in brine and today another lot is finished soaking and ready to put into jars.


 This bed of Roses are all David Austins. Love going out and looking at these each morning. I am currently dead heading roses every day for at least half an hour. Dead heading keeps the bushes healthy.


 After the hot Summer the Alyssum  is back to good health. It took a knocking from the Summer heat. This small plant is a good one to have as a fill-in in the garden. I  originally got a couple of plants amongst some others that a friend gave me when we first started the garden.

Radio Times Rose.
The Radio Times roses are in full bloom. I cut these back last year for the first time. I mean I really cut them down to a stump. They have since thrived.

We use lots of mulch and collect water in rainwater tanks to provide some extra water. The water from the washing machine is also used on a small part of the garden. Last Winter I even ran the water onto the garden as we don't always receive the rain on a regular basis. Gardening in a dry climate can be a bit of a battle at times but when Autumn comes you tend to forget about those awful hot days. 

Happy days.
Bev C

20 comments:

Cheryll said...

That was a wonderful scented walk thru your garden today Bev...
ThanK You for letting me come over to enjoy it too! :)

Fiona said...

How lovely to have a walk around your garden with you... it looks so pretty and just goes to show you can have a lovely garden even in a dry climate...
Hugz

Petra said...

Hello Bev, I think you have a great lovely garden with a lot of roses and they are beautiful. I can smell them.
And I now to hot is not don but over here it is to cold this time of te year.
We had some fruit trees and they do noting for so far, it it still to cold. But we now some day it wil be better.
But you garden looks very nice and some fruit in it is also nice do you make some jam of your fruit or some other things you like.
I have some apple trees, and we love the apple crumble and I like to cook and make jam. I love my fruit in the garden we have some straw berries and black berries, red berries, and I make jam of them all.
Well Bev it was nice to she your beautiful garden and I can she you love your garden. Have a good day, take care and greetings from a to cold Holland.
Petra.

marina said...

thankyou for the tour of your lovely garden.

Terry said...

You have a beautiful garden! I love your crazy pavers path! :0)

Valspierssews said...

What a lovely garden tour. All your roses look great. The crazy paving certainly looks good.

CJ STITCHING AND BLOOMS said...

Hello Bev. I loved strolling through your very lovely gardens... Your roses are all exquisite in every way.. Love them... Roses that do not need water is a strange concept for me... All the roses I have in my garden needs lots of water... I have a difficult time imagining rain in ML when we get inches and inches at a time... Your new garden blocks for your walk is very lovely and creative.. Hugs jUdy

Bobbie Lynn said...

What a beautiful walk through your garden. Sorry to hear about what you and other gardeners are going through there. I know that we had our share of that also and still are not out of the woods. It is always one of my top prayers to always have good rains. Thank you for your visit and hope you have a lovely day and can't wait to see your next cross stitch. : )
Blessings,
Bobbie Lynn

Ivy, Phyllis and Me! said...

Good Afternoon Bev, How lovely it was to take a stroll around your beautiful garden. When I lived in Cyprus, I was surprised to find roses thrived. What I discovered was the flowers were normal during the rainy season, but as the summer became hotter, they continued to flower, but were a lot smaller.
Oh, brining your olives, takes me back to Cyprus.....that is exactly what we used to to. Some we brined and some we took to the local village to turn into olive oil....thank you for the memories.
Have a lovely day.
Best Wishes
Daphne

Jess said...

Your crazy paving path looks amazing!
I think perennials are the best choice. Yur garden looks beautiful all the time : )

Terriaw said...

How wonderful to see your garden so green and in bloom! I love that paver path you're creating. So inviting. And all the little landscaping features are fun to see too. Gardening in rough climates can be hard, so you really get to know your soil and plants. Perennials are our favorites too because of their hardiness. I've always wanted to have a rain barrel to water our flowers, especially this spring when we've had SO much rain. Lovely post!

Anonymous said...

Lovely garden, Bev! The walk is so wonderful of a cottage garden and the roses are truly gorgeous! You do so well with how you arrange and pair your plantings. We get a lot more rain here in Wisconsin in the US, and I even complain about that! When it gets hot and dry this summer, I will just think of you and how you manage with way less rain! Thank you for the tour!

Lynda said...

Such a magnificent garden Bev - beautiful.

Jeanette said...

Thanks for the tour of your lovely garden Bev. I was hoping the local fruit shop had quinces in but no luck yet. Love your crazy path. Hugs,xx.

Queen Of The Armchair aka Dzintra Stitcheries said...

You have a great garden Bev....and I love that path you made....Wow, 39 at this time of year....we are due to have 17 today although last week we were in the 20's!

Chookyblue...... said...

your garden is beautiful and a real credit to you........I ahve lost plants over the last summer.........just tooo dry.........

Karen said...

There is a real art to creating a garden in these difficult conditions. Lovely to see everything looking so good. Love the paving, too!

Binsa said...

Hello Bev, I enjoyed seeing your garden....we have had the first lot of rain since last October....I too use lots of mulch....and have replaced the plants that did not survive with drought resistant plants....Hugs Lyn

Tanya Murray said...

I am a big fan of you paving. not only is it recycling and frugal but it looks SENSATIONAL. I also love the entry way into the roses too.

cottonreel said...

Hi Bev , you left a comment on my blog so I came to have a look see of yours .
Love the path and you have lots of roses . I'm a gardener . I have roses but we have had a lot of very cold weather up to now this year so I'm not sure how the roses will react . I always feel Alyssum is a must in the garden simply because it has a wonderful smell and spreads itself well

Very nice cross stitch , I like where my heart blooms