🖼️
The project:
From Debris to Dreamscape
After building a granny flat in my backyard, I discovered a passion for landscaping. The site was covered in construction waste, hardened cement, and stones, which took considerable effort to clear. Using only a shovel, bucket, and rake, I spent a week levelling the ground before repurposing leftover bricks as garden edging. I installed weed matting, added topsoil, and sourced affordable plants from Facebook Marketplace, Bunnings, and my own garden. White pebbles and black mulch completed the look. Despite challenges with paving a sloped alleyway, persistence paid off. The project transformed my backyard and proved that determination can create something beautiful. More importantly, it reminded me that skills have no gender—passion, perseverance, and a willingness to learn are all it takes to break stereotypes and succeed.
- Materials:
Left over from Granny build- Bricks, Sand
Facebook- plants
Bunnings- Bastion Cement , Bastion blue metal, Saxon Weedmat, Jack Weedmat pins, Saxon Garden edging, Tuscan path pegs, Pine gro black mulch, Fine farms cow manure, Gloves, plants, paint brushes, paint
Flower Power - white cowra pebbles, blue metal
- Tools:
Bucket, Shovel, rake, hammer, spirit level, garden fork, trowel, wheelbarrow, broom, dustpan
- Step 1:
- Clear construction waste, nails, plastic, cement, and stones.
- Remove hardened cement and embedded debris.
- Level the ground using a shovel, bucket, and rake.
- Repurpose leftover bricks to create garden edging.
- Install weed matting.
- Add topsoil to planting areas.
- Source affordable plants and succulents.
- Plant and arrange the garden beds.
- Install additional weed matting in open spaces.
- Lay white/black pebbles/ mulch as a low-maintenance ground cover.
- Apply black mulch around plants.
- Prepare the narrow alleyway by removing cement slurry.
- Install pavers and adjust for the natural slope.
