Having trained and traded in the UK in Garden Design, I arrived in Perth in 2008.
Anyone who has moved long distances, let alone emigrated, will appreciate the turmoil that such a move can cause. It took me months to sort out accommodation, transport as well as all the technicalities of starting your own business....website, business cards, DL flyers, newspaper ads, tax number, business registration etc etc.
April 09 - I was pretty much ready to trade...ready for my first customer and just in time for Garden Week 09 in Perth, which is about as near as WA will get to the Chelsea Flower show....although it has more of a summer fete atmosphere really.
Garden Week provided some good publicity thru the newly formed WALDA (Landsacpe Design Assoc) stand. Members had also been given free stands in order to build show gardens. Almost the first time that this had happened. Unfortunately, I was too late to participate in the show gardens.
I had a couple of leads for design work from GW 09, but neither came to anything.
May - I was asked by a local Health Centre to design a planting plan as part of a planning application with the local council. It had to done by a qualified landscape designer or architect. I submitted a quote. I made it low coz I needed the money !
It went to someone else...who I later learnt had no design qualifications at all. This, I guess, could actually void any planning application made using plans by an unqualified person. I note that, 8 months on, nothing has been done to this garden.
First lesson - not everyone who calls themselves a garden or landscape designer has any design qualifications whatsoever. Some having qualifications and/or experience in horticulture. Some are contractors who SAY that they can design. Most of these people really don't have a clue about design. Very frustrating.
Rule 1 - Make sure your designer is qualified to do what he/she says they can do.
May to September - Many outdoor trades seem to go into hibernation at this time of year. I know one guy who goes on holiday every July and August, because nothing happens here. Consequently, despite having a website up and running and forking out hundreds of $s for advertising, I didn't have one enquiry! I was really beginning to despair by mid August. Money spent and nothing earned.
I volunteered to renovate a relative's garden. I really enjoyed it too. At that time of year the weather is just right and even when it rains it's usually only a brief shower. I even considered doing the job part time, when the design work wasn't happening. And garden renovation could easily lead to garden design work.
Only, I've now paid the price of doing long term manual work when I'm not used to it. One bad back and one wrecked shoulder and forking out $s to a physio to try to put it right. I'm still in pain 3 months after finishing the job, so bang goes THAT idea !!
September - I had 3 enquiries in a week! One has lead to a full design job, one is on hold until 2010 and one went nowhere !
Since then I have had a number of jobs, some in the more prestigious areas of Central Perth. None have been built yet. Many clients seem to want to do their own thing when it comes to building. Which is fine. They have paid for a detailed outline plan, a planting plan and plant list and, where appropriate, construction diagrams. They are free to do whatever they want with them...though I still hope to see the finished projects someday!
My first design project is due to be built in Feb 2010 and should be finished by Easter. It'll be the first completed project to go on my website.
Things I had to learn -
1. It's usually landscape design rather than garden design.
2. Due to WA quarantine laws, there is not the choice of plants available here that you could expect elsewhere in the world. Besides, not many plants could survive here anyway. 'Exotics' are mainly the standard "Mediterranean" plants such as strelitzia, plumbago, oleander, geraniums etc.
3. 'Hardy' does not necessarily mean frost hardy. It can mean wind and salt tolerant, to name but two.
4. The climate varies between long, hot dry summers and cool, VERY wet winters. When it rains here in the winter, it is positively monsoonal ! ....although I often have breakfast outside, even mid-winter (yes, I mean when it's not raining!). No frost at all along the coast and only a few days of frost inland...sometimes only 10 miles inland...and also up on the scarp. Salt laden winds near the coast in winter.
5. Non-Australian Natives are called 'exotics'.
6. WA has more plants native to that state than all the rest put together...so man is there alot of new flora to learn! I'm building my own database of WA Natives a...as well as all other plants available here.
7. Perth has 5 main soil types. Most of the soil here is limestone sand. It is highly alkaline. It has no nutrients and no water retaining qualities. It often forms a skin and water just runs off the surface. Go up onto the scarp and it's solid granite with very little top soil. You might as well be gardening on the moon !
8. The predominant building material here is limestone. Limestone bricks, limestone blocks, limestone paving, poured limestone (mixed crushed limestone and concrete). It's everywhere! And boy can it be bright when the sun comes out (which is most of the time). But it's one good quality, when it comes to paving, is that it doesn't get as hot as other materials.
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