A new native front garden with pond and lighting completed as a first D.I.Y. project by first-home owners.
The project
We recently built our first home, and having literally spent every last penny, I decided to take on the landscaping myself. After spending weeks walking through nearby suburbs and snapping photos of plants and garden features I liked, I felt ready to give it a go.
Along the way, I managed to rescue a beautiful 60-year-old frangipani from a demolition site — a piece of history I couldn’t let go to waste. Other than that gem, I wanted to focus mainly on natives.
A brilliant young staff member at my local Bunnings was a huge help — full of knowledge and enthusiasm — and guided me through selecting a range of Australian natives to fit my rough plan. I aimed for a warm palette of reds, yellows, and oranges, with just a hint of white for contrast.
I also had some old jetty poles gifted to me, which I incorporated into the design for a natural, coastal feel. And, of course, I couldn’t resist adding a water feature — a three-tiered pond with a waterfall and small fountains to tie it all together.
After seven months and more trips to Bunnings than I can count, I’m proud to say the project is finally complete. Now it’s just a matter of waiting for everything to grow — fingers crossed it all comes together as imagined.
Steps
Step 1
First I removed three years worth of weeds, and trimmed some established trees.
Step 2
I covered the ground with weed matting and then painted some lines with line-marking paint. This showed the position of paths, ponds and features.
Step 3
Next I added my irrigation pipe and conduit for lighting. Then I added the steel edging for the paths.
Step 4
The next step was to get a load of cottage mulch and fresh soil delivered. That was fun to move!
Dirt delivery
Step 5
From here I started planting. I used a Stanley knife to cut the weed matt and a large garden drill bit to drill some holes for the plants. I used some Osmocote premium potting mix for each hole.
Step 6
Last step was to add my features: Pond, jetty poles and lighting.
Step 7
A few more images of my finished project.
Step 8
I wanted to create some projected lighting effects onto the house. HPM spotlights offered plenty of options to get this right.
Projected images of garden.
Tools and materials
Materials used in the project:
Tools used in the project:
More inspiration for your native garden
Bunnings Workshop member EGuignard removed weeds and infested trees to create a native Australian front garden with paving.
Community member TheSaltyreefer used mulch, stones and native plants to create a native riverbed run.
Get more inspiration from our Top 10 most popular garden makeovers and 10 ways to update your garden.
