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Goodbye Melbourne - Hello Cairns


Miccles

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Hi all,

Firstly, Happy New Year to everyone out there. I hope 2013 is safe,happy and successful for you.

Tomorrow marks a new beginning for me. After living in Melbourne, Victoria for 22 years, I am relocating to Cairns, Queensland.

I will be starting the big drive tomorrow. Approx 3400km (2100 miles) directly north. From 38 Deg South, up to 16 Deg South. I will spread the drive out over 5 days, including one rest day on the Sunshine Coast in the middle of the trip.

Whilst I am obviously excited about being able to move to the tropics, and grow some stunning palms, there is also a hint of sadness at what I am leaving behind. Needless to say, the car is going to filled with potted palms, which until now, have spent their life in my sheltered pergola - too tender to plant outside in Melbourne's climate. Various Dypsis, Licuala and Pritchardias amongst others are all coming with me.

I have put a lot of work into both the house and gardens in the 8 years I was here, hence my sadness.

The following are two sets of "before and after" shots.

Street view. Before and after.

post-953-0-06593500-1357022872_thumb.jpg

post-953-0-22763400-1357022891_thumb.jpg

  • Upvote 3

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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And a comparison of the backyard.

Tropics- here I come! Safe travels to all.

Regards

Michael

post-953-0-46427000-1357023015_thumb.jpg

post-953-0-62606200-1357023028_thumb.jpg

  • Upvote 1

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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excellent Micheal

I can only imagine the garden you will create up there .

Have you bought a place up there yet or still looking ?

Old Beach ,Hobart
Tasmania ,Australia. 42 " south
Cool Maritime climate

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WOW!!! great before and afters. Oh, you'll be loving it up there. I'd have to restrain myself from planting Lipstick's everywhere. Best part of all, there's no AFL team in Cairns. Haha.

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Coffee stop in Tully if you like ..

Michael in palm paradise,

Tully, wet tropics in Australia, over 4 meters of rain every year.

Home of the Golden Gumboot, its over 8m high , our record annual rainfall.

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Good luck with it all Miccles...good to follow your dreams! I'm sure you won't regret it, and your Melbourne garden will fade to a distant memory pretty quickly...

Daryl

Gold Coast, Queensland Latitude 28S. Mild, Humid Subtropical climate. Rainfall - not consistent enough!

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That is a really long way away. To us here in the States that is comparable to moving from Northern California to Miami (I think?). Good luck with your move. I'm curious if you ever think about all the critters (fauna) up at the top end that you would never even think about being in your garden down south? (spiders,snakes, crocs etc.?) Will you be living in town, or out on the edge....please tell us more about the new place.

David Simms zone 9a on Highway 30a

200 steps from the Gulf in NW Florida

30 ft. elevation and sandy soil

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I still miss my garden after 3 years, take it as pleasant memories.

Get up there now, before the wet really kicks in. Where are you moving to ? You have a place ?

Happy Gardening

Cheers,

Wal

Queensland, Australia.

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Hello all - thanks for your good wishes. Yes, I purchased a new house in Clifton Beach last October. Clifton Beach (as the name implies) is a beachside suburb about 20km north of Cairns itself, and about 50km south of Mossman.

AH2000: You're right, will be a few different critters up there to introduce myself to. There will be the Cane toads (of course), as well as pythons, some interesting looking spiders. The Coral sea can house some very nasty "stingers" (jellyfish) in the wet season. There are crocs in the area too.

Mind you, back in Victoria we always ran the risk of running into venomous spiders and some nasty snakes (tiger, red bellied black, eastern brown) during the hotter months. It's all part of the charm of living in Australia! :)

I am a country boy, so not apprehensive at all....looking forward to the possibilities.

My new location is loaded with mature golden cane, some Ptychosperma elegans, foxtails, royals and Queens (yes...Queens...... WHY ??!!!).

Needless to say, the tree removalists are coming around in the next week or so to take most of the golden cane and all the Queens, so I can plant Latania, Coccothrinax, Pritchardia etc etc. I really want to do the location justice as far as palms go.

Pics to follow soon !

Regards

Michael

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  • Upvote 1

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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Good luck!! Drive safely. You will enjoy it.... although I would prefer if you go 12deg north ;)

Ari & Scott

Darwin, NT, Australia

-12°32'53" 131°10'20"

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Good luck!! Drive safely. You will enjoy it.... although I would prefer if you go 12deg north ;)

12 degrees North.... hmmm.... that's Bangkok. You prefer I was in Bangkok ?? :winkie:

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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Godspeed. Keep us updated on your new garden in the tropics.

Meg

Palms of Victory I shall wear

Cape Coral (It's Just Paradise)
Florida
Zone 10A on the Isabelle Canal
Elevation: 15 feet

I'd like to be under the sea in an octopus' garden in the shade.

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Good luck with the transfer Michael! You get a new place to transform into your own little paradise--pretty exciting!

What happened to your "radially variegated" Chamaerops humilis? I hope wou were able to dig it out and bring it with you. That is a pretty unique palm.

Gene

Manila, Philippines

53 feet above sea level - inland

Hot and dry in summer, humid and sticky monsoon season, perfect weather Christmas time

http://freakofnaturezzz.blogspot.com/

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Good luck with the transfer Michael! You get a new place to transform into your own little paradise--pretty exciting!

What happened to your "radially variegated" Chamaerops humilis? I hope wou were able to dig it out and bring it with you. That is a pretty unique palm.

Hi Gene - nice to hear from you. No - unfortunately that special little C.humilis is staying put... I didn't think it would like the tropics !!

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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Wrapping the Spindle fronds with cling-wrap to save car space and minimise damage during transport/unloading.....

post-953-0-97199500-1357198615_thumb.jpg

  • Upvote 1

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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And the car is loaded !! (I believe there is a toothbrush, phone and wallet in the car somewhere..........) :hmm:

Regards

Michael

post-953-0-75195500-1357198700_thumb.jpg

  • Upvote 2

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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Hi Micheal, your newly adopted climate will be a real treat for you I would think!! Drive safely and look after those palms while in transit, hopefully you and your precious cargo all arrive safely!!!!! They might need a watering pitstop allong the way??

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I was really surprised how hot it was in Melbourne today (108F) since I have the same summer average high at 78-79F, but rarely go above 100F here.

Good luck in your New Paradise, no more chilly nights for you. :drool:

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great job packing the minivan! looking forward to watching your new garden take shape so keep us posted :)

the "prince of snarkness."

 

still "warning-free."

 

san diego,california,left coast.

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Ummmm having transported...green plant items long distances...(in a circle mind you).. in a tight holding area.. no water NEEDED! more like an "airing out" at rest breaks.

Zone 10a at best after 2007 AND 2013, on SW facing hill, 1 1/2 miles from coast in Oceanside, CA. 30-98 degrees, and 45-80deg. about 95% of the time.

"The great workman of nature is time."   ,  "Genius is nothing but a great aptitude for patience."

-George-Louis Leclerc de Buffon-

I do some experiments and learning in my garden with palms so you don't have to experience the pain! Look at my old threads to find various observations and tips!

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Hi all - made it!! Now THAT was a drive..... The potted stuff survived the drive remarkably well. The weather here is warm and very humid, but the rains are scheduled to kick in later this week, which will be awesome to see. The tree frogs are making a hell of a racket at night, which hopefully is a good sign.

As the house had been empty for 6 months or so, there is lot of work to do - gardens included. Ripped out a lot of weedy rubbish from one garden bed and transformed it.

Pic 1: Garden bed before the transformation.

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  • Upvote 1

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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And AFTER:

Palms include :- Areca vestiara, Phoenicophorium borsigianum, Pritchardia minor, Ptychosperma microcarpum, Bentinckia nicobarica, Arenga hookeriana, Schippia concolor, Euterpe edulis orange crownshaft, and the local Liculara ramsayii. The bed was finished off with some heliconias, broms, aglaonema and crotons. The large cardboard cycad was already in place.

Regards

Michael.

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  • Upvote 1

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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Michael, Im glad to hear you went a bought Palms from Mark Daish , did you get some Lic elegans off him? he has SO many :) Cairns eh..Thats a great move Michael..much quicker flight to Jakarta as well..Enjoy living Beautiful Far Nth Qld..Pete :)

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Michael, Im glad to hear you went a bought Palms from Mark Daish , did you get some Lic elegans off him? he has SO many :) Cairns eh..Thats a great move Michael..much quicker flight to Jakarta as well..Enjoy living Beautiful Far Nth Qld..Pete :)

G'day Pete, yes - I had the good fortune of meeting Mark a few days ago - really nice guy. Stunning palms, including massive Dypsis, in an amazing setting. How he finds time to manage it all is totally beyond me. I did get a really nice sized L.elegans off him which will go in the ground as soon as the multitude of golden canes are taken out of my place (this Friday). All the Cairns growers speak highly of you Pete, and all have wished you continued good health!

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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Michael, Im glad to hear you went a bought Palms from Mark Daish , did you get some Lic elegans off him? he has SO many :) Cairns eh..Thats a great move Michael..much quicker flight to Jakarta as well..Enjoy living Beautiful Far Nth Qld..Pete :)

G'day Pete, yes - I had the good fortune of meeting Mark a few days ago - really nice guy. Stunning palms, including massive Dypsis, in an amazing setting. How he finds time to manage it all is totally beyond me. I did get a really nice sized L.elegans off him which will go in the ground as soon as the multitude of golden canes are taken out of my place (this Friday). All the Cairns growers speak highly of you Pete, and all have wished you continued good health!

Thanks Michael, yes Mark is a "Top fella'.. all the best and a palm i didnt mention you got from Mark ( I think) was Lanonia dasyantha which you where chasing many months ago, your in Tropical Paradise now Michael...Enjoy..Pete :)

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Met a local last night........he was barking away madly (but he isn't a dog...........). He is a white lipped green tree frog (Litoria infrafrenata), the largest tree frog in the world. I guess I could describe the noisy call as similar to someone hammering a nail into timber. He was calling out for a bit of female company, but appeared to have no luck.... poor fella. Wasn't scared of me or my camera.

He would have been about as big as a fist, and his skin colour was simply amazing.

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  • Upvote 2

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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Welcome to paradise - enjoy you stay! :)

Kurt

Living the dream in the Rainforest - Average annual rainfall over 4000 mm a year!!!

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Getting 20 clumps of mature golden cane removed today....... so then I can plant what I want to plant. Replacements have been purchased already, patiently waiting.....

post-953-0-65699200-1358457369_thumb.jpg

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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I'm really happy for you

I lived in Cairns before moving to Sydney, (alsobefore I got the palm bug - go figure). I can tell you Cane Toads aren't a huge problem there; you'll see them occasionally at night but they are pretty small (not like the horrible things you see on TV).

A word of advice - don't put in a water feature! They might be all the rage down south, but in Cairns you will just breed toads and mosquitos.

After a while in Cairns you will realise the people only grow 1% of all the beautiful things they could grow there...

If you are into Cordylines (or as I call them, Hawaiian Tis) just visit the garbage tip - huge branches of every colour available everywhere - no need to buy them.

Cairns is a lovely place my only complaint is a) not enough sun B) no day light savings to enjoy the garden after work.

You have made a great decision. I can understand how frustrating it must have been all those years living in a climate that didn't allow you to do your passion well.

I would like to move back but I have a hard time convincing the other half to go : (

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Thanks for posting Laisla87. Much good advice there, and yes, and I am thoroughly enjoying it so far. Finally belted down rain last night....I got 80mm in approx 24 hrs, with a couple of hundred mm forcast for the week ahead. I wish I could send some down south to the places that really need it for the bushfires though. You are right about most peoples yards....... it's 80% golden cane.... with a dash of carpies, Ptychosperma, royals, triangle, bizzies and the ocassional chinese fan....... makes me just shake my head in disbelief.

Regards

Michael.

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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WOW Micheal you sure don't muck around ! Looks like a great place is there much yard beyond the pool area ?

Enough room for a Dypsis robusta - would look awesome up there !

Troy

Old Beach ,Hobart
Tasmania ,Australia. 42 " south
Cool Maritime climate

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Hi Troy,

Yes, trying to get things done, but the wet has set in, making it difficult. The raised garden bed behind the pool is about 2 metre in depth, which will enable me to plant out a lot of things :)

I have a D.robusta ready to go, as well as an orange crush and other big-leaf dypsis to give me the "Jurassic" look, which I love.

Am enjoying the seasonal rains!

Regards

Michael

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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Livistona rotundifolia after a trimming of dead fronds and a clean up of the trunk..... good as new! :)

post-953-0-04495300-1358748072_thumb.jpg

  • Upvote 1

Just north of Cairns, Australia....16 Deg S.
Tropical climate: from 19C to 34C.

Spending a lot of time in Manila, Philippines... 15 Deg N.
Tropical climate: from 24C to 35C.

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Michael,

I see the rain started big time. I was in Cairns in late December it was very dry...... I bet the Barron falls are going gangbusters right now.

Your place appears to have a good structural basis to make a brilliant palm garden around that pool.

Best wishes. FNQ is great.

chris.oz

Bayside Melbourne 38 deg S. Winter Minimum 0 C over past 6 years

Yippee, the drought is over.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Met a local last night........he was barking away madly (but he isn't a dog...........). He is a white lipped green tree frog (Litoria infrafrenata), the largest tree frog in the world. I guess I could describe the noisy call as similar to someone hammering a nail into timber. He was calling out for a bit of female company, but appeared to have no luck.... poor fella. Wasn't scared of me or my camera.

He would have been about as big as a fist, and his skin colour was simply amazing.

Hi Michael,

I was up your way recently as you know...... I went to the Flecker gardens and was absolutely amazed. Its not so much just a palm arboretum, its a truly great tropical garden.

Green tree frogs have suffered in the last 20 years and I hear tell they are coming back from the brink. When my familiy had a holiday house on Magnetic island in the 60s, 70s and 80s, the green tree frogs were very common, even though Magnetic is in a rain shadow area. They could be found hiding in toilet bowls, cups in the sink, and one dropped out of the fernery roof into my mothers ample bosom ..... boy did she scream!

Viva the green tree frog and the geckoes.

chris.oz

Bayside Melbourne 38 deg S. Winter Minimum 0 C over past 6 years

Yippee, the drought is over.

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Enjoyed hearing about your trip to your new house. The place looks so lush and you've already done a lot to make it a home already. Great photo of your wildlife as well. So vibrant in color. Getting any sleep yet? New sounds can throw you off for a while. Chris.oz's story about the frog and his mum really had me LOL at the thought of it and the surprise.

We vacationed a few days in both Melbourne and Cairns. Both great areas. Liked them each a lot for different reasons. Such a wonderful opportunity for new experiences. Best of luck in the new home.

Zone 9b (formerly listed as Zone 9a); Sunset 14

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