Step through a Darwin wonderland

A walk through Kay Foley’s Darwin garden feels more like snorkelling through a coral reef. Layers of colourful leaves in all shapes and sizes, hanging, jutting and swaying in the breeze, create this magical feel that’s vivid and alive.
But Kay’s garden holds some secrets that are key to its success. Since retiring, Kay and husband Mike have devoted much of their time to the garden. Nearly all of their hundreds of plants are in pots, jam-packed, beautifully arranged, and easy to move around and reconfigure. A potted garden is also easy on the body, Kay says, as she and Mike don’t need to dig into hard soil.

Every year we have a cyclone clean-up in Darwin and people leave things they don’t need on the verge for the council to collect, which is an absolute bounty for us. Kay Foley

A lot of the plants have come from plant swaps and gifted cuttings, while others were rescued from the roadside. And it’s not only plants that the pair rescue: the hooks, trellises, benches, rocks and stakes have all been salvaged too.

“Every year we have a cyclone clean-up in Darwin and people leave things they don’t need on the verge for the council to collect, which is an absolute bounty for us,” Kay says.
Potted succulents hang off metal bed frames while iridescent begonias sit on old security doors. Tillandsias dangle from trampoline bases that Mike has cut and bent into arches. Salvaging not only helps cut costs, it saves these materials from ending up in landfill.
See more of this eco-friendly, budget-conscious garden, read about Kay’s favourite plants in our September issue, it’s on sale now! You can also see it on Friday September 25 at 7.30pm on ABC TV and on iview.

Image: Graham Cowan