GUILFOYLE’S  VOLCANO  Who wouldn't love a garden that's so hardy you don't even need to water it? Jamie Durie is visiting one of the most drought-resistant, water wise gardens in the country. What's even more amazing is that when you take a step back this garden resembles an active volcano. Jamie has all the tips you need to use succulents in your garden design at home and he'll even show you how easy it is to propagate them yourself.

ABOUT  GUILFOYLE’S  VOLCANO  Guilfoyle’s Volcano was originally built in 1876, to help with drought and watering issues for Melbourne’s Royal Botanic Gardens. After lying idle for 60 years, it was restored as part of a significant landscape development project called Working Wetlands. The garden took three years to complete from planning to construction, and uses drought tolerant plants, storm water harvesting and state-of-the-art irrigation programming.

 

 

Some examples of plants in the garden include:

Medusa’s Head (Euphorbia caput-medusae)

Queensland Bottle Tree (Brachychiton rupestris)

Kattang Karpet (Casuarina glauca prostrate)

You can visit Guilfoyle’s Volcano free of charge at Melbourne’s Royal Botanic Gardens 7.30am to sunset every day of the year.

 

 

 

SUCCULENTS  Succulents are plants that store water in their thick, fleshy stems and leaves. Included in this group of plants are cacti, aloe and many other species. They are great for dry areas and can be propagated easily.

1. Take a cutting of a succulent plant stem and top then place it in the sun for about three to five days, until it grows a skin over where it has been cut.

2. Once it’s sealed, lay the cuttings directly on a tray, or pots filled with good quality soil, digging the cutting gently into the soil. Adding peat and perlite to the soil encourages moisture, nutrients, water and trace elements to help promote root growth.

3. Place these in a sunny spot in your garden and water them. Water again each time the soil dries out, around once a week.

4. In about a week and a half to two weeks you will see small, pink roots growing from the ends that will eventually grow in new baby plants. Once the original leaf has started to wither, carefully remove it and plant your new succulent in a pot.

     

 

 

WEBLINKS  For further information on Guilfoyle’s Volcano take a look at the following website:

http://www.rbg.vic.gov.au/