Bronte House
Presenter: Nigel Ruck
Bronte House is a glorious, historical property in Sydney’s eastern suburbs with magnificent gardens. They are full of inspiration with the ability to ignite a passion and desire for gardening in anyone. There are a few different sections; Victorian perennial, sub tropical, a Frangipanni garden and Nigel’s favourite, the succulent garden.
Succulents came back into fashion a few years ago with a vengeance becoming increasingly popular due to drought. With the accompanying push towards waterwise gardening it is a win situation for anyone using them in their garden.
Apart from their incredible range of shapes, sizes and colours, succulents have an amazing ability and the right equipment to cope with very dry conditions for months on end due to the long dry season experienced in their native environments, places like Mexico, Arizona and Africa. The way they survive is by storing water in their leaves, stems and roots so dealing with our dry Australian conditions is no problem at all. This makes them an excellent choice for waterwise gardens. However, many species rely on a wet season, during which they produce growth and do their water storing business and so still need to be watered, just not as much as some other plants.
They way they have used succulents at Bronte House should give you plenty of inspiration and landscaping ideas that can be adapted to your own garden. For example, group plantings for big effect and a bold statement, rock gardens, hot, dry areas, shallow soils and slopes. Succulents are also perfect for accentuating strong, architectural lines, and are used a lot in funky, contemporary landscapes
Most succulents like a sunny position but there are some varieties that do well in shade. What they all need is really good drainage, which may involve building raised beds to ensure the water gets away.
Maintenance is pretty minimal, which is always good news. Use a slow release fertilizer in spring and autumn around the base of the plant, give them the occasional water and remove any dead bits to keep them looking good.
Snails and slugs can be an issue so sprinkle a few snail pellets around the base. For pots and containers look out for Mealy bugs. They can be controlled with something like Confidor which should stop the cheeky bugs.
Low maintenance and drought tolerance makes succulents excellent for waterwise gardens.
Bronte House is a glorious, historical property in Sydney’s eastern suburbs with magnificent gardens. They are full of inspiration with the ability to ignite a passion and desire for gardening in anyone. There are a few different sections; Victorian perennial, sub tropical, a Frangipanni garden and Nigel’s favourite, the succulent garden.
Succulents came back into fashion a few years ago with a vengeance becoming increasingly popular due to drought. With the accompanying push towards waterwise gardening it is a win situation for anyone using them in their garden.
Apart from their incredible range of shapes, sizes and colours, succulents have an amazing ability and the right equipment to cope with very dry conditions for months on end due to the long dry season experienced in their native environments, places like Mexico, Arizona and Africa. The way they survive is by storing water in their leaves, stems and roots so dealing with our dry Australian conditions is no problem at all. This makes them an excellent choice for waterwise gardens. However, many species rely on a wet season, during which they produce growth and do their water storing business and so still need to be watered, just not as much as some other plants.
They way they have used succulents at Bronte House should give you plenty of inspiration and landscaping ideas that can be adapted to your own garden. For example, group plantings for big effect and a bold statement, rock gardens, hot, dry areas, shallow soils and slopes. Succulents are also perfect for accentuating strong, architectural lines, and are used a lot in funky, contemporary landscapes
Most succulents like a sunny position but there are some varieties that do well in shade. What they all need is really good drainage, which may involve building raised beds to ensure the water gets away.
Maintenance is pretty minimal, which is always good news. Use a slow release fertilizer in spring and autumn around the base of the plant, give them the occasional water and remove any dead bits to keep them looking good.
Snails and slugs can be an issue so sprinkle a few snail pellets around the base. For pots and containers look out for Mealy bugs. They can be controlled with something like Confidor which should stop the cheeky bugs.
Low maintenance and drought tolerance makes succulents excellent for waterwise gardens.
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