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Landscape Design in Australia
Landscape design literature is really funny. Most writers assume that you own a Louvre Palace with 1 hectare of gardens to play with.
On top of this, the landscape design books often imply that spending 20-30 thousand dollars is reasonable.
With land of 450-600 square meters and the shoe string budget there is actually very little to play with.
Most new homes' owners are sceptical to spend extra dollar on their landscape design.
High cost of living, unstable job market often push landscape design into the margin of priorities.
Landscape Design Tips
Few landscape design tips can help you create beautiful garden with minimal cost.
- use low care plants,
- use synthetic grass for home,
- use mulch and stone.
It is possible to create an energy efficient home with clever landscape design.
Low usage of water, and low maintenance are key features of current Australian garden.
New Sydney apartments, Perth apartments and apartments in Melbourne are often surrounded by clever and beautiful gardens of stone, mulch and synthetic grass.
- Trees can be located on the east and west site of the house. This will reduce strong sun throughout the year.
- Northern landscape should be unobstructed and planted with drought resistant flora.
- The landscape design for southern part can have more delicate plants which tolerate semi-shade.
- Synthetic grass for home is a current trend in Australia. The times to have a lush, juicy and living grass is over and home owners need to understand this.
- Rockery, mulch and river stones are widely accepted to be part of landscape design.
Landscape Design for Energy Efficient Homes
As mentioned earlier, the low maintenance and low water usage gardens are the must in Australia. A clever landscape design will make those gardens beautiful and interesting.
For energy efficient homes the position of the tall plants is important. Trees should decorate but also protect against sun and winds.
Drought resistant plants should form a northern barrier. Vegetables, flowers and fruits should be located on the southern part (south East or South West is the optimal).
Remember, uncluttered, neat and easy to maintain garden brings as much happiness as the complex and the delicate one.
Landscape Design and Bushfires
Bushfires have been present in Australia for generations. Every year there is at least some sort of fire outbreak related to bushfires.
Inhabitants living in houses within dense vegetation are always at potential fire danger.
Clever landscape design can help to sustain nature, but this will not reduce the risk of fires.
Smarter energy efficient homes cannot help either and may even further contribute to higher combustibility.
New home design ideas can help, but it is the landscape design which is crucial.
The simplest landscape design which will discourage fire is the non-combustible barrier.
This may be obvious but it can be expensive.
Landscape Design Ideas to Minimise Fire Spread
There are number of things to remember in your landscape design which will minimise fire spread such as:
- Clearing combustible vegetation around your house
- Planting fire resistant flora
- Keeping moisture around your house
- Placing a deflection mound
- The deflection mound is very successful. It will direct fire upwards and away from your house.
Clearing combustible vegetation is very important. Gum trees and eucalyptus are by nature combustible and will encourage bushfires.
Fire resistant flora has some merits but use common sense here. Generally, any wooden material will burn under appropriate conditions.
If you have access to sprinklers then place them strategically around your house. Home design plans must consider sprinkles as integrated home design ideas.
Landscape Design with Synthetic Grass For Home
Synthetic grass for home can only help if the material is non-combustible. Otherwise, synthetic grass may become a problem. The advantages of using non-combustible synthetic grass are:
- There is no need to waste water resources during fire
- There is no need to clear it and maintain it
- Synthetic grass for home is a natural and yet presentable fire barrier