Heronswood gardens in Dromana in the heat of the Australian summer

Here are some pictures from a recent visit to the Heronswood gardens in Dromana Australia. The gardens are owned by Clive Blazey who is the owner of the diggers club business which is most well known for selling heirloom seeds.The summer here in Australia has been a really punishing one with several days over 40 degrees Celsius. These pictures are from the start of the really hot weather so things still look quite green, especially in these gardens where they have lots of irrigation in place. Shortly after my visit there was a fire at the gardens that spread from a nearby bushfire. It burnt down the cafe and damaged a small part of the house. Luckily the gardens survived relatively unscathed.

View from near the front entrance.

 

View up the driveway of what I assume is Clive's car which looked to be a really old Citroen. 

Single dahlia flower.

A veldt lily growing under a Moreton bay fig tree. They could make a nice substitute for other shade loving plants such as clivias or oak leaf hydrangeas.

A classic canna lily in full bloom (probably Canna indica)

A view of the Heronswood produce garden. There were lots of interesting heirloom varieties growing in these terraced beds. Dripper irrigation througout.

One of my favorites growing at the top of the vegetable garden. I'm pretty sure this variety is called 'prado red'.

View from the top of the garden showing the now destroyed cafe. It had a lovely thatched roof. I remember thinking that it could be vulnerable to ember attack when I was there. 

If you mention the word 'tradescantia' amongst Australian gardeners many would run for the hills. Unlike the dreaded weed this tradescantia is an ornamental plant.

 

One of many beds which surround the main house.

Some fine hedging and topiary near the main house.

Another of the beds surrounding the house. Note the large Canary island palm in the background. They were really popular back in the early days of Australian  settlement.

Not sure what this nice white flowered plant is called but it sure looked attractive.

A view down the lawned area. One thing about this garden was that it was a really steep slope. It would make mowing very interesting.

The acanthus that lined this path made for a prickly journey.

More topiary near the main house.

This section is supposed to be a setup that diggers promotes where you grow a years worth of vegetables in 5 garden beds.

 This is a view from the top of the herb garden.

 Lotus flower in the sun.

Allium drumstick.

Visit to the gardens of St Erth in Blackwood Victoria Australia.

St Erth gardens in Blackwood

A quick entry this month on a recent visit to the gardens of St Erth in Blackwood Central Victoria. The St Erth gardens are one of several gardens operated by the diggers club which is basically a company that specializes in selling heirloom seeds and plants. They are located on Simmons Reef Rd in a small and charming town named Blackwood which is in between my hometown Macedon and Ballarat. For those not acquainted with the diggers club I recommend you have a look at their webpage www.diggers.com.au. You can find some really rare plants there. If you are into growing your own produce you will find the gardens of St Erth amazing. They are decked out with all sorts of edibles and have a large assortment of espaliered fruit trees. It also features an arboretum and several ornamental beds.

What a fantastic tree in bloom. If it wasn't for the hose in the bottom right of the picture this would look like a scene from the Hobbit.

I thought the new bean frame I made at home looked great and then I saw this one. So much more artistic than my standard design.

The Hellebores were still in bloom.

More incredible trellising.

Below are some examples of how in St Erth they use edible plants as ornamental features.

A border of chives.

Garden art / functional grow frame with a fellow friend gardener (you know who you are :) ) spying something in the background.

Espaliered fruit trees are in abundance in St Erth. They must get a large yield come harvest time.

View looking back at the house (circa 1860s) from the arboretum.

Lots of Dafs.

A view from inside the house looking out onto a part of the ornamental garden. I love the plant that is climbing the post on the left.