From what started out as a sparse space has been transformed into a glorious garden.
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Mooroopna’s Polly Johnstone moved into her new home 27 years ago and while the backyard was bare, it was not long before she was down in the dirt, creating a space she could call her garden.
While she had not previously possessed a strong passion for gardening, it was her love of nature that got her started. From there, there was no turning back for Ms Johnstone.
‘‘I knew I didn’t want lawn and I love nature, so I just wanted to bring in as much foliage and trees as I could at the start,’’ she said.
And she has done just that.
Today Ms Johnstone’s garden is overflowing with greenery — from the small succulents to the more mature yuccas and everything between.
Due to the large space, Ms Johnstone has installed a pathway that allows people to wander through the garden, getting the best views of the many plants and decorative pieces nestled throughout.
While the garden features sheltered sitting areas surrounded by water features and statues to add to the serenity, Ms Johnstone said the garden was still a work in progress.
‘‘I don’t think it will ever be complete. I think it’ll always be a work in progress,’’ she said.
Next Ms Johnstone hopes to add a large water feature where she can have some lotuses to bring extra colour and beauty.
She said during her 27 years of developing the garden, she had been able to discover what worked and what did not.
She said due to the hot, dry climate she had found some plants were unable to cope.
‘‘I’m learning all the time and changing the plants to suit the environment,’’ she said.
Now with many native plants, Ms Johnstone said they seemed to all be getting on well.
With many different birds that often come and share in the tranquillity that the garden has to offer, Ms Johnstone said she was more than happy to have them in her space, although she was not overly happy with the mess they made of the mulch and the droppings they kindly left behind — particularly in the undercover portico area.
Ms Johnstone said over her years of building upon the garden, she had become a well-known face at various nurseries in the area.
And although it started simply through her love for nature, Ms Johnstone has found the ins and outs of maintaining the garden to be a relaxing way to spend her spare time.
‘‘For me it’s just very therapeutic and just coming out here and seeing all the greenery — it never loses that wow factor for me,’’ she said.
Ms Johnstone said she often liked to take a look at different gardening magazines where she was able to draw inspiration and ideas for her own garden.
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