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DIY Garden. Marino RocksWe recently built our first home, and having literaly 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.
Materials
Recycled Jetty poles.
Steel path edging.
Crushed River pebble. And full river pebble.
Cottage mulch.
Few different pond sizes.
Some recycled cages I found on market place for Gabion fencing.
Plenty of hose and fittings for irrigation.
BHive Watering system.
Some HPM lighting.
Some cobble stones left over from someone else’s job.
Plenty of natives (All from Bunnings)
Tools
Started with teh Weed matt - Weed matt and Weed matt pins.
HPM Lights - Garden Lights
Rusty look Garden Edging - Rustly Steel Garden Edging.
I used and reccomend the below:
AquaPro pond pump - Pond Pump
Aquapro Fountain Kit - Fountain Kit
Hosing to suit for water fall above - Non Kink Hose
Filter to suit above - Large Filter for pond
Small Fountain pump for lower pond - Small Feature Pump
A few B-Hive tap timers.
I think i bought one of every Irrigation fitting avaliable and still forgot one LOL - Irrigation fittings.
A range of Natives from Bunnings - It was helpfull to have good advice from someone who also has a intrest in Navies. - Natives
All plants topped with Osmocote as reccomended by Garden member at bunnings. - Native slow release
Steps
Step 1
Firstly I removed 3 years worth of weeds and trimmed some established trees.
Step 2
I covered the ground with weed matting and the painted some lines with line marking paint. This showerd the position of paths, ponds and features.
Step 3
Next i added my irrigation pipe and conduit for lighting. Then I added the steal edging for the paths. 
Step 4
The next step was to get a load of cottage mulch and sfresh soil delivered. That was fun to move. 
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. Potting Mix.
Step 6
Last step was to add my features.
Pond.
Jetty Poles.
Lighting.
Step 7
A few more images of my project.
Step 8
I wanted to create some projected lighting effects onto the house. HPM spotlights offered plenty of options to get this right. 
Good Evening @KanoLaLa
Now that garden really fitrs well with your house! A brilliant look with solid components.
The low Gabion Edge you have created 
Oh yeah! I have often looked at the cyclone mesh fencing and sat there figuring out how to maximise the use of the material verse thoses corner edges You have nailed it! (I am presuming that the cages are made from cyclone mesh lol) There is no bowing in the straight full lines so I am wondering how frequently you put stay wires between the sides, mainly in case someone else wants to have a go at creating the same edge that you for their yard.
I think the core10? edging of the path with the seperation of the mulch and gravel also beds the garden area in well.
You have a nice low maintenance yard
Dave
Good Afternoon @KanoLaLa
Nice score on the cages then! I put a recyled hardwood timber lengths on a couple of my bench seats and it really snapped it all together.
Gabion wall bench seats is the project.
I have thought an LED rope light on top of the rocks with no presure point would give a nice glow. Just have to be careful not to compress the plastic casing of it is all.
Dave
So good to be back after three weeks overseas and see my plants thriving! I pushed hard to get them all in before summer, and it’s so rewarding to come home to healthy growth everywhere — flowers blooming, leaves stretching, and not a single loss yet (fingers crossed) @Dave-1
It’s amazing how a bit of patience, prep, and care pays off
#GardeningJoy #PlantParent #HomeSweetHome #GrowthSeason
