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Advice for Brisbane gardens.

Our advice articles, garden ideas and design thinking for Brisbane homeowners.

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A Brisbane garden part-way through a staged renovation, with established structure in one area and new planting beginning in another
6 August 2026·Advice

How to Phase a Garden Renovation in Brisbane (and Budget Over Time)

You don't have to do the whole garden at once. Here's how I sequence a renovation so the early stages don't get ripped up later, and the budget stretches over years.

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A lush Brisbane subtropical garden in soft autumn light, the best season for planting in the southeast
1 August 2026·Advice

When to Plant What: A Subtropical Garden Calendar for Brisbane

Brisbane runs on a different clock to the southern states. Here's the real subtropical planting calendar I work to, season by season, and why timing changes a design.

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A Brisbane poolside garden bed of golden cane palm and cordyline behind glass fencing, with travertine paving edging a blue pool
29 July 2026·Advice

Poolside Plants in Brisbane: What Actually Survives the Splash Zone

A poolside bed in Brisbane fights chlorine splash, radiant heat off paving and glass, and the skimmer basket. Here's how I plant it so it looks lush and never becomes your Saturday chore.

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A Brisbane garden bed carpeted with dense green groundcover over dark mulch, no lawn
24 July 2026·Advice

Ground Cover Plants in Brisbane: The Living Mulch That Beats Weeds

Ground cover plants earn their keep in Brisbane as living mulch: smothering weeds, holding a slope through a storm, and softening the strips too narrow to mow. Here's how I choose them.

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A native gardenia (Randia fitzalanii) as a small tree with glossy dark-green foliage in a Brisbane front garden
18 July 2026·Advice

Small Trees for Brisbane Gardens: Shade Without Regret

The best small trees for Brisbane gardens stay clear of powerlines, keep their roots out of your slab and shade a west wall without swallowing the yard. Here's how I choose them.

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A waterwise Brisbane garden bed of agaves and native grasses in gravel on a hot, unshaded aspect
12 July 2026·Advice

Drought Tolerant Plants Brisbane: Waterwise Picks That Survive Our Wet Summers

Drought tolerant plants sound simple until a Brisbane February rots half of them. Here's how I choose waterwise plants for our wet summers and long dry spells.

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A Brisbane native garden bed built on heavy soil, with mounded and raised planting, mulch and shrubs, no people
7 July 2026·Advice

Plants for Clay Soil in Brisbane: What Actually Copes

If your block has reactive clay that drowns roots in February and sets like concrete by spring, here's how I design around it, and the plants that shrug it off.

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A dense lilly pilly hedge screening a timber fence in a Brisbane backyard
29 May 2026·Advice

Screening Plants in Brisbane: Privacy Without the Regrets

Privacy is the most common brief in Brisbane. Here's how I choose screening plants that stay dense, suit narrow beds and never outgrow the job.

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Layered shade planting of bromeliads, ferns and native violet beneath a Brisbane tree canopy
8 May 2026·Advice

Shade Gardens in Brisbane: Working With the Light You Have

Yes, you can have a garden in the shade. How I read Brisbane's shade types, the plants that thrive there, and what to do when the lawn gives up.

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Excavator working on a sloping Brisbane backyard build with retaining walls and fresh paving
24 March 2026·Advice

Backyard Landscaping Costs in Brisbane: Small Yards, Pools and Sloping Blocks

What actually drives backyard construction costs in Brisbane (access, slope, drainage, materials and pools), and why a compact yard is not automatically cheap.

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Homeowner sketching garden ideas on a tablet beside a bare Brisbane backyard ready for planting
26 February 2026·Advice

Brisbane Garden Design: Where to Start (DIY, Apps, or a Pro?)

Not every garden needs a designer. An honest triage of when DIY works, what design apps can and can't do, and the middle path most people don't know exists.

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Landscape plans and a tape measure on a retaining wall at a Brisbane residential building site
3 February 2026·Advice

Do You Need Council Approval for Landscaping in Brisbane?

Most garden work in Brisbane needs no approval at all, but the exceptions are specific and expensive to get wrong. A designer's guide to the common triggers.

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Half-finished DIY garden bed with loose pavers and a young tree planted too close to a Brisbane house
13 January 2026·Advice

Top 10 DIY Landscaping Mistakes I See in Brisbane

Most DIY gardens fail for the same ten reasons, and almost none are about plant choice. The most common mistakes I see across Brisbane, and how to avoid them.

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Designer's hand-drawn garden plan beside material swatches and a calculator on a studio desk
9 December 2025·Advice

How Much Does Landscape Design Cost in Brisbane? (2026 Guide)

One of the most common questions I get asked. A garden is almost never one bill, so here are the ways in at different budgets, and how to break the work into areas and stages so the number feels manageable.

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A resolved Brisbane garden with a shaded entertaining deck meeting lawn and layered planting
14 October 2025·Advice

Is a Landscape Designer Worth It? An Honest Look at the Value

Design fees are real money, and the sceptics have a point worth answering properly: what you're paying for, when it pays for itself, and when you don't need one.

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Architectural house plans and a landscape site plan side by side on a new build project table
17 June 2025·Advice

When to Engage a Landscape Designer on a New Build or Renovation

The best time to bring in a landscape designer is while the architectural plans can still change: levels, drainage and trees are decided early and expensive to undo.

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