to my
Tropical Foliage Garden
If someone said to you that they wanted to
grow tropical foliage plants in a garden where the temperature drops to -3C in
winter and rises to 46C in summer, you'd probably think they were mad - I know I
would have once. Yet, that is what I did, it wasn't something I
intentionally set out to do - it just grew. 
When you think of tropical foliage gardens, you
think of the tropics; of the sun and its warmth, of relaxing by a pool or taking
a dip. The lush greenery, with palm
trees swaying in the
gentle breeze; of
the garden and the vibrant colours which comes not from flowers but
instead from the foliage, providing colour all year. Out
of all the tropical foliage plants,
cordylines
are my favourite - from the many Cordyline fruiticosa cultivars (Ti Plants) to
our more subtle native species; the diversity of leaf shape, colour
and size never ceases to amaze me. They run riot in the tropical areas of my
garden growing
happily under the palms in light shade. They caught my
attention around 4 years ago when I came across a Cordyline fruiticosa 'Rubra'
and decided to give it a try under the palms, it grew well, coped with all that
was dished up to it and added colour and form to the garden behind the pool with
its beautiful red foliage. It was my first foray into growing tropical
foliage plants that are normally considered to be indoor plants and the
beginning of my cordyline collecting days.
I
have since joined the International Cordyline Society
and my Cordyline collection is steadily growing. It has
started to reach a serious stage with over 100 different species and cultivars,
some of these are growing in more than one position as I sort out each
one's
individual preference. When I joined the ICS I was concerned about
coming
down with a condition that is still relatively unknown in Sydney, called
'cordyline madness', we would really like to see this change.
'Tropical Breeze' is open
with Australia's Open Garden Scheme on 3-4 April.
Next opening will be in autumn.
This web site was created June, 2001.
November, 2003
