http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/ The latest Blog feeds from www.diydesigns.co.nz en-us Wed, 29 Apr 2026 13:18:53 +1200 Rocketspark http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/post/79103/drought-tolerant-gardens-are-you-watering-wisely/ Drought-tolerant gardens have been a popular choice for many  years and, if your isn't, summer is a good time to think about how you can reduce your water usage in garden. Heading for the succulent section of your local garden centre and planting Xerophytic desert plants might seem like the answer to a hot dry summer, but these don’t suit all climates or garden aesthetics, and with the other extremes of wet weather experienced in recent months, a lot of gardeners have found tha... Wed, 04 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +1300 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/#post79103 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/post/124846/rosa-white-carpet-carpet-rose-diy-designs/ The wonderful thing about groundcover roses is that they are highly disease-resistant, simple to grow, and they flower almost year round. They're easy to maintain AND there's no need for any fancy pruning. Just cut back hard in early spring to promote prolific flowering. Unfortunately, in a time when everyone wants low-maintenance plants, carpet roses often get dismissed as too 'boring'. I say, there's no such thing as a boring plant - just boring plant design! Sadly, carpet roses... Mon, 26 Feb 2024 13:42:03 +1300 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/#post124846 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/post/124845/lomandra-white-sands-mat-rush-diy-designs/ A beautiful, easy-care plant for creating impact in your planting schemes. Not all grasses give year-round impact the same way Lomandra 'White Sands' does. Maybe because this Australian native is, in fact, a rush not a grass. That means it copes with both damp and dry conditions. It's also tolerant of both full sun and shady conditions. Whether mixed with flowering plants, shrubs, or planted massed in large groups  Lomandra 'White Sands' is always a standout plant. It's perfe... Mon, 26 Feb 2024 13:38:46 +1300 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/#post124845 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/post/124842/ohiopogon-nana-dwarf-mondo-grass-diy-designs/ Dwarf mondo grass is a tough little plant that pops up in many garden designs. It’s ideal for using between pavers instead of pebbles. The most commonly grown dwarf mondo in New Zealand is Ophiopogon 'Nana', which matures at around 100mm high. When you plant mondo it’s best to plant lots of small plants planted closely together, rather than a few bigger plants scattered about. Some professionals plant them around 10cm apart, using a staggering 200 plants per m2 😱.But don’t call the... Mon, 26 Feb 2024 13:33:42 +1300 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/#post124842 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/post/124839/ophiopogon-nigrescens-black-mondo/ Despite its small stature, 'black mondo grass' is a great plant for adding drama to a planting scheme. The narrow strap-like leaves give a grassy effect, and the unrivaled black colour makes a great contrast to other garden plants.Often used as an edging plant, 'black mondo grass' will also spread to form a dense, weed-supressing groundcover, maturing at around 200mm high. Best surface coverage is achieved when multiple small mondo plants are planted closely together, at around 100mm apart.... Mon, 26 Feb 2024 13:29:52 +1300 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/#post124839 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/post/124837/nandina-lemon-and-lime-heavenly-bamboo-diy-designs/ 🙊Shh, don't tell everyone, but I think this might just be the perfect small garden plant 🎉for all you low-maintenance, time-poor and novice gardeners.Nandina 'Lemon and Lime' is the green form of the common 'heavenly bamboo' plant (most people know the common old red types, and not everyone's a fan of those ).Growing to a nice, neat size of just 1m x1m size, Nandina 'Lemon and Lime is lush & leafy & reliable in both sun and semi-shade. Did I mention it's evergreen, so it'll even lo... Mon, 26 Feb 2024 13:25:46 +1300 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/#post124837 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/post/124836/best-white-camellias-for-hedges-diy-designs/ Camellia Sasanqua 'Setugekka' (Sasanqua Camelia)Camellia Sasanqua 'Early Pearly' (Sasanqua Camelia)Camellia Sasanqua 'Silver Dollar (Sasanqua Camelia)Also beautiful as standalone shrubs , these 3 white camellias are the ones that I suggest first for my garden design clients when they want a white flowering camellia hedge 🌳🌳🌳.Camellia's make excellent hedges for a few reasons including...✅They're evergreen (ie they keep their foliage all year) so they will give your garden year-ro... Mon, 26 Feb 2024 13:14:40 +1300 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/#post124836 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/post/124835/acorus-gramineus-ogon-golden-variegated-sweet-flag-diy-designs/ PLANTS FOR FREE!!Well, almost.....These small grass-like plants are super easy to grow and great value for money as the little tufts will spread naturally over time to form a dense ground cover. It’s like getting free plants!Fantastic, because like most small plants, you’ll get the best design impact if you grow them in groups or large drifts.💫Sweet flag is an excellent plant for foliage contrast and an interesting alternative to the small limey lomandras like ‘Little Con’,... Mon, 26 Feb 2024 13:09:49 +1300 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/#post124835 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/post/124834/escallonia-apple-blossom-redclaw-diy-designs/ 🌱Talk about underrated!Here's a tough little hedge plant that should be giving poor old over-used Griselinia littoralis a run for its money 💫I say a tough 'little' plant but there are a a range of escallonia cultivars, so estimated mature sizes vary immensely, but it's a plant that can be kept clipped to size as a hedge 🌲🌲🌲.✂ Escallonias should be pruned after flowering (which is in early summer) has finished.No, it's not a NZ native plant, BUT it does offer diversity and it's a... Mon, 26 Feb 2024 13:03:01 +1300 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/#post124834 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/post/124833/ajuga-reptans-jungle-beauty-bugle-flower-diy-designs/ 🌱This lovely little blue flowering feature plant is.... Ajuga reptans 'Jungle Beauty'. It's not the typical planting choice for between pavers, but sometimes it's good to mix it up 😁'Ajuga' aka 'bugle flower ' is a spring flowering groundcover ideal for shade and semi-shaded positions. It's pretty easy to grow, though it doesn't like 'wet feet'💦👣.Maturing at a petite 250mm high, one plant can spread 1–2 metres plus wide, as it spreads by rooting. However, for a fast cover, it'... Mon, 26 Feb 2024 12:59:14 +1300 http://www.diydesigns.co.nz/blog/#post124833