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Come for a stroll in my garden

© Gay Klok

Let me introduce myself, I am Gay Klok, Australian, home gardener and my husband is Kees, a Dutch-Australian, also a gardener and much bossed about by the first mentioned gardener. I live and garden in Tasmania, the beautiful island state of Australia. Our island is made up of mountains, lakes and rivers. It is said that there is no area in Tasmania where you can stand and not see either hills or water. The island would be in size about as large as the Netherlands with a population of approximately half a million. One third of the land mass is classified as either World Heritage or National Heritage.

Our temperate climate allows us to grow an enormous range of plants, from semi-tropical to cold climate flora. The first time my Dutch relatives came to visit us in our summer time, I was horrified to see them unpack their light tropical clothes. The next day, we marched them to town to buy some woollies. One brother complained bitterly, "The only thing we learned at school about Tasmania was that you had the most temperate climate in the world." I replied, "That's right, there is not much difference all year round!" This is not strictly true. We are the only state in Australia to generally have four seasons; the only trouble is that we may have Spring, Summer, Autumn [Fall] and Winter all in one day!

Kees and I nurture two large gardens, our town garden which surrounds a Colonial home, built circa 1817, one of the earliest residencies in Hobart, and our country property of 140 acres made up of old apple orchards, 30 acres of semi rain forest bush and some paddocks.

As we approached our wrinkly years, I dreamt of building a garden where I could indulge all my greedy, plantsperson's urges. The town garden, only 3/4 acre in size, was fast becoming overcrowded. The plants reproached me every day as they fought the battle of survival of the fittest. I also had a strong desire to build a water garden before I died. Ten years ago we bought the old country farmhouse [circa 1880 and never been touched] and began "Gay's big dream and little folly". Both gardens open their garden gates one weekend a year to the general public under the auspices of the Australian Open Garden scheme. Our plants do not grow with their roots in the air but our water does flown down the outlet in an opposite direction to America! Everything grows all year round, including the weeds. After leaves fall, the trees may have three weeks rest and then the buds start swelling again.

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