7 steps to a more climate-resilient garden
7 steps to a more climate-resilient garden
By Stephanie Oley
Climate change is prompting us to plant more sustainable gardens, especially in cities. But where do you start? And what will you need to change if this year brings drought, floods, plagues or something else you weren’t expecting?
Like the rest of the globe, temperatures in Australia have risen almost 1 degree Celsius since 1910 and are likely to rise another degree or so by 2030. Rainfall has decreased and extreme fire and drought events have become more frequent. All this is impacting the types of plants we can grow in our gardens.
However, according to CCE’s longstanding urban horticulture facilitator, Judith Sleijpen, there are plenty of steps you can take to grow a more sustainable garden. Here are seven simple suggestions.
Rewild your garden
Firstly, embrace the idea of ‘rewilding’. This practice allows a landscape’s native functions to flourish, with fewer chemicals and less active management. Think wildflower meadows instead of lawns, mixed instead of segregated veggie plots, and grevilleas instead of rosebushes.
Although rewilding has been associated with major natural reserves overseas, its principles can be applied on a small scale, too. For example, plant flowers that attract birds, and you’ll see them take care of the snails and caterpillars too. Allow a few chaotic corners, such as piles of rocks and unruly plants, and you’ll be rewarded with better biodiversity.
Foster long-term soil health
Your garden’s health begins beneath the plants – specifically, with its topsoil. Just 15 centimetres deep, the world’s topsoil is what nourishes 95 per cent of our food. In his book, Soil, Australian chef-turned-food activist Matthew Evans describes the global decline of topsoil health, as a result of decades of harmful agricultural practices.
To improve the health of your soil – whether an urban balcony, street garden or something bigger – start by covering any naked topsoil. Use organic mulch, or low-growing plants. This will prevent moisture from evaporating, and help feed the soil for future use. Go one step further and add compost, and you’ll supercharge the soil’s process of building long-term nutrients.
What to plant in your garden
Cottage-style garden, dotted with meadow flowers? Sculptural desert-scape of cycads and grasses? Trends come and go, but the orientation, drainage and surroundings of your site will dictate what you can and can’t sustainably plant there.
There’s a lot to know. So if you don’t want to depend on the ad-hoc advice of nursery staff, consider learning the basics in a one-day gardening for beginners course.
Ultimately, it seems that Australians still love an ornate garden. A 2022 survey of 1,600 plant-buyers found that the top category of garden purchases was for flowering plants (a whopping 40 per cent of the total). Drought-proof ornate plants abound, so set your sights past those water-hungry roses or perennials. Consider learning the native Australian varieties you could plant instead.
Harvest rainwater, capture sunshine
According to the government’s Your Home website on sustainable practices, around half of all household water goes to the garden. Many of the tips in this story will help reduce water use. You can further conserve water with features such as permeable surfaces instead of hard paving, or by installing a water tank to harvest rainwater.
A water-wise garden with mostly native plants and a small lawn only needs to be watered twice weekly at a depth of 30 millimetres, or around 15 litres per square metre. Install the largest rainwater tank you can, and consider solar-powering any automated sprinklers.
Planting for urban cool
Planting vines or other greenery against your hottest walls and windows (especially those facing west) will help prevent the home heating up. This is thanks to the process of transpiration: the plants’ release of moisture into the air to cool themselves.
A fabulous screening plant for small urban spaces is the fast-growing native Lilly Pilly, which can be trimmed and trained to grow up to 5 metres. Its dark, glossy leaves are cooling and beautiful, and in March the plant is studded with delicious crimson-coloured berries.
Chemical-free pest control
Learn to keep pests and disease at bay without using harmful chemicals.
One technique is companion planting, where several species are deliberately planted together to aid each other. For example, basil helps repel flies and mosquitoes from your tomatoes. Nasturtiums help to disguise your precious broccoli and cabbages, while also repelling aphids.
Encourage the presence of spiders, green lacewings, bees and other bugs to feed on aphids and other pests. Your reduced use of chemicals will also help these creatures thrive.
Add a little buzz
Finally, you can create the right conditions for bees to thrive in your garden. Bees help pollinate other plants, which improves biodiversity and helps your garden flourish.
Every extra beehive counts, as we’ve all learned from the highly destructive and tragically expensive outbreak of Varroa mites on bee populations overseas. Native Australian plants known to attract bees include eucalyptus, banksia and melaleuca. Other popular plants include lavender, rosemary and even the humble lawn clover.
The best thing about making your garden more sustainable is that benefits aren’t just for you alone. Everything in your garden is part of an ecosystem, and any biodiversity you can introduce will have lush knock-on effects elsewhere.
See also our related story on gardening for wellness.