Red and Gold Makeover
In this fun makeover, Don demonstrated how to use colourful foliage plants to complement the colours on a house. The roof of the little cottage was red, and the walls were painted a yellowish colour. The front garden (actually a huge ‘planter box’) was planted out with swathes of golden jade and bright red flax, then topped with matching mulch to accentuate the bands of colour.
Getting started
The garden bed was infested with onion weed, which can be treated with a weedicide such as glyphosate but it is a very long and time consuming process. For the makeover, Don decided to remove all soil to a depth of 40cm and then top the bed up with organic garden mix. As he was digging out the soil he uncovered the old front steps buried in the garden. It would have been difficult to plant over the top of the steps, so they were removed using a jackhammer (hired for the day for $56). A clump of cannas was dug up and saved for use elsewhere in the garden.
Setting out
Working to a rough plan, Don used spray paint to mark out red areas to be planted with flax, on either side of a central ‘yellow brick road’ area for the golden plants. Once satisfied with the shape of the planting areas, he used the ‘put and look’ method to determine the spacing for the plants.
Plants
The red section of the garden was planted with Phormium ‘Maori Chieftain’, a variety of New Zealand flax. It grows to around 1m (3′) tall, and has cherry red, strappy leaves. The yellow section was planted with Chinese jade (Portulacaria afra ‘Aurea’). This succulent plant has gold foliage and cherry red stems, which match the leaves of the ‘Maori Chieftain’ flax. The only disadvantage of jade plants is that they are very brittle, so they must be handled carefully.
Both jade and flax are drought tolerant and hardy. While they need watering through the hottest months, they prefer to be kept fairly dry in winter.
Finishing touches
Two different mulches were used to accentuate the swirly red and gold pattern. A fine red mulch (Redwood Fines) was used in the red section, while a creamy, wood coloured mulch (Pine Wood Chip) was used around the golden plants. Slow release fertiliser (Nutricote for Trees and Shrubs) was applied to the planted area. The new garden bed was thoroughly watered, then checked again after 4 days to make sure the water had soaked into the new soil mix.
Cost
Chinese jade – 100mm (4″) pots cost $5-$6; 200mm (8″) pots are priced at around $20. (Tip: Jade can be grown easily from cuttings, so ask your friends for small pieces from their plants.)
‘Maori Chieftain’ flax – 150mm (6″) pots cost $9-$13; 250mm (10″) pots cost $29-$45.
Premium Organic Garden mix – $43.50 per m2
Redwood Fines – 60 litre bag, about $7.50
Pine Wood Chip mulch – 60 litre bag, about $6.75