WA Gardenning and trees in pots

[Belinda Corbett]

Hi everyone, I’m in Mandurah near the coast. I’m about invest a bit in my garden. It’s currently mainly money-sucking lawn. I’m talking trees (I have no shade!), a hedge for front yard privacy, Aussie native plants (because I want to save on water and encourage some more fauna) and fruit trees in containers. I’ve never grown trees in containers before so I would appreciate any tips.
ps The photos show all the areas of my garden

 

[taisla97]

I'm giving a go at growing both natives and fruit trees in containers atm too - at least until I move to a place with a decent-sized yard to plant them. We'll see how it all turns out. I'd appreciate some tips too. Good luck!

 

[Mark]

Hi Belinda, thanks for joining SSC!

You have a lovely property and a lot of potential to create a wonderful food garden.

Don't forget to interact some more on our forums to get to "Gold" - cheers

 

[Albert]

You have a great space to grow in. I'm interested in knowing how your trees end up!

 

[AZ Orchard]

Welcome You have a really nice area to grow in and it would be fun to see what you create there.
Plants grown in pots or containers dry out faster, so if you include some moisture holding materials in whatever mix you use, it helps. I rely on peat moss or coco coir and even worm castings are great additions to retain moisture. Plus, the castings are an excellent fertilizer. You can also add a layer of mulch to the top too.

 

[LisaN]

Hey! I'm in Kalgoorlie. You are the closest person I have found so far.
I'm still new but if i can help in any way let me know. I have a large section of my front yard in containers / large pots and I haven't killed it yet do you have an idea of what look you are going for?

 

[t4ms]

Hi Belinda,

Do you have a local small nursery nearby? The owners of my local nursery are a goldmine of information. I spent yesterday being guided around their tree section (everything from citrus to vines to ornamental trees) and was instructed on what would be the best to grow in a container and specific to my local microclimate (aspect, shelter, temperature etc) as well as what I could cope with looking after. I live in a small town so they were able to advise me on my actual garden requirements as they know the block and know how windy and cold it gets in winter. For example, they advised against a lemon tree as the combination of frost and wind would be a killer but thought I'd do well with a type of plum (not as susceptible to fruit fly up here).

They've given me excellent information in the past and everything I purchase from there grows like a weed. The plants are all locally propagated and grown from seed so they do very well.