VISIT GARDENS IN SPRING. NEW PLANTS IN "THE SHAMBLES"

Open Gardens Springtime in Montville is an opportunity to visit two of the best mature country gardens in Queensland, near the popular tourist town of Montville.

When:  Saturday and Sunday , 1^st and 2^nd October 2016

              9 30 am to   4 pm both days

Admission:  $6 per person, to each garden with all funds going to the charities described below. Under 18 free. 

Street Parking. At least ½ of the gardens are disabled access. Most of “The Shambles” is accessible

Where and Why:

“The Shambles”, at 85 Western Avenue, Montville, is a collectors garden established over the last 25 years around a century old farmhouse. Highlights will include many spring flowering shrubs, perennials, bulbs and orchids, and spectacular flowering trees. An extensive network of paths with no dead ends.

Refreshments available at The Plough Inn. Proceeds from the Open Garden benefit the Cittamani Hospice service on the Sunshine Coast   http://www.cittamanihospice.com.au . The Shambles has opened in support of many charities since 2001.

“Wongawilli”, at 19 Manley Drive, off Western Avenue, Montville, is another collectors garden commenced 16 years ago. Rowena, the garden's owner, describes having “phases of collecting plants" such as Magnolias, Wisterias, Brugmansias, Begonias and many more. A wide range of sub-tropical and temperate plants can be grown on the Range and are thriving in this garden. A difficult slope has been tamed with wide terraces and there are areas of woodland and revegetated gullies, a testament to the skill and horticultural knowledge of the owner. Proceeds from Wongawilli go to Fiji cyclone reconstruction relief.

“The Shambles” Web   http://www.montvillegarden.com

“The Shambles” Blog and Facebook   http://montvillegarden.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/montvillegarden

ABC  Gardening Australia http://www.abc.net.au/gardening/stories/s4248133.htm

Youtube  https://youtu.be/MkT1vFZYP_o

Web references:  Queensland Tourism   http://www.queensland.com/en-AU/event/open-gardens-springtime-in-montville

But the fun of gardening goes on

Plants added September 2016

Dampiera purpurea  Small perennial suckering herb that reaches 1 to 1.5 metres high and can spread to 2 metres across.  Purple flowers   Nr Trachelospermum arch/Araucaria walk Eastern Australia

Dodonea viscosa    Sticky Hop Bush  A species of flowering plant in the soapberry family, Sapindaceae, that has a cosmopolitan distribution in tropical, subtropical and warm temperate regions of Africa, the Americas, southern Asia and Australasia          North West Corner Garden (behind Chair)

Hardenbergia violacea (2)  syn. H. monophylla is a species of flowering plant in the pea family Fabaceae, native to Australia from Queensland to Tasmania.[1] It is known in Australia by the common names false sarsaparilla, purple coral pea, happy wanderer, native lilac and waraburra (which comes from the Kattang language).[2] Elsewhere it is also called vine lilac[3] or lilac vine.     Nr Trachelospermum arch/Araucaria walk  Eastern Australia

Hovea acutifolia  (5)   Pointed leaf Hovea   Wet forests and rainforest margins from south-east Queensland to the central cost of New South Wales. Genus names after Anton Hove, a botanical collector.    Criss Cross path Garden, Western Hydrangea walk under window, North West Corner Garden

Hovea longifolia  (5)    Round leaf Hovea This native pea develops into an upright, medium shrub. The leaves are linear to oblong, dark green above and paler beneath. In spring, bluish-purple flowers appear in clusters of two or three along the branchlets.            North West Corner Garden,  Araucaria walk  New South Wales Queensland

Lomandra longifolia  (2)  Spiny Mat Rush.  Perennial, rhizomatous herb. Leaves are glossy green, shiny, firm, flat. They can grow from 40cm up to 1m long and 8-12mm wide and are usually taller than the flowering stem. Leaf bases are broad with yellow, orange or brownish margins and the tips of the leaves are prominently toothed.         Near Back stairs, North West Corner Garden

Prostanthera ovalifolia  oval-leaf mintbush or purple mintbush, Flowers are mauve or a deep purple blue, occurring between August and November. Its native distribution is in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria.    Rainforest garden near path

Prostanthera sieberi “Minty”    Small upright compact shrub. Full Sun to Part Shade    Tubular violet profuse spring early summer with mint fragrance.   Rainforest garden near path

Grevillea gaudichaudii x longifolia “Fanfare”  Prostrate grevillea with deeply lobed leaves with reddish new growth and burgundy toothbrush flowers in spring-summer                   Front Embankment Eastern end.  Eastern Australia