Plants and landscape The tour begins at the car park, designed
as a ‘garden with cars in it', with garden beds between the
parking bays planted with paperbark (Melaleuca) trees to provide
shade. The range of paperbarks from across Australia shows the
diversity of this extraordinary group of plants, while displays
of the Bottlebrush, Callistemon, show the variety of colours
that can be grown. Along the main entry path native conifers,
Callitris, are planted as a formal, evergreen hedge, and a stand
of Allocasuarina littoralis, an indigenous form of sheoak, is
planted as a massed display on either side of the pathway. The
prostrate form of Banksia integrifolia covers the embankment.
Red Sand Garden The journey through the Australian Garden starts
with the Sand Garden where the expanse of red sand contrasts
with grey foliage. On the northern hill, mass plantings of
Acacia binervia and the Spinifex sericeus are used to stabilise
the sandhills. The lower slopes are covered by a carpet of
muntries (Kunzea pomifera)