Gardens in Australia

Despite facing the many extreme forces of nature - drought, flood, bushfire, sand, salinity, erosion, coastal salt-winds, frost and snow - gardeners have adapted and developed gardening approaches that work in Australia. As a result, Australian garden styles are as diverse as Australia's climate conditions: from the practical old colonial homestead garden to the suburban backyard filled with roses, wild artist's gardens by the sea, English-style perennial borders and grand old rural estates, to lush tropical retreats and inner-city spaces. "Imported" traditions have always been adapted in a unique way to embrace the natural elements, making style relevant to the specific site. This text surveys, with the accompany of photography, the breadth of great garden styles in Australia today.