THE BLANK SLATE GARDEN
A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO STARTING A PERTH GARDEN FROM NOTHING
A$19 - instant pdf download
A practical guide to starting a Perth garden from nothing.
Starting a Perth garden from nothing is both exciting and completely paralysing. Where do the beds go? How do you get rid of the lawn? What goes in first?
This practical guide walks you through how to sketch your layout, decide where to place garden beds, trees and paths, deal with whatever lawn you're starting with, and get your irrigation right from the beginning.
If you have zero time to think, let alone garden, it also gives realistic guidance and options for a ‘bare minimum’ approach, so you can get your garden underway even with young kids/a hectic job/general life chaos.
There’s no complicated design theory, this is just a clear, step-by-step process for turning an empty block into a garden that grows with you.
Instant PDF download. Perth-specific.
Important note:
After your purchase, you will receive a secure link to download the ebook. The link is valid for 24 hours, so be sure to download it directly following your purchase. If you do not receive the download link, check your junk mail.
You've got a blank block. Maybe it's builder's rubble and dead couch grass. Maybe it's just… nothing.
Every time you walk outside and look at it, you feel a mixture of excitement and complete paralysis.
You know it could be wonderful, if only you knew where to start.
This guide is the where-to-start.
“Designing a garden doesn’t have to be intense or overwhelming. It really can look like wandering quietly around the space, listening to the birds, and daydreaming a little”
why is starting a garden so damn hard??
Starting a garden from scratch looks simple from the outside - you plant things, they grow…but it gets surprisingly complicated once you're standing in your empty yard trying to figure out which direction is north and why all the hydrangeas you bought a week ago are already dead.
Where do the beds go?
Should you keep your lawn, rip it up or kill it slowly with black plastic?
Do you need irrigation, or can you get away without it?
What style of garden do you even want?
Most people spend months doing nothing because they don't know where to begin. Meanwhile the dead lawn gets deader and the garden dream slips further away.
The truth is, you don’t have to build a complete garden all at once. You just need to know the right first moves - the ones that have the biggest payoff and that you won’t regret in five years’ time. That’s exactly what this guide is about.
(and in case you’re wondering, here is a photo of my garden now…)
What's inside:
🌿 The ten minute garden plan Designing a garden doesn't have to be intense or overwhelming. I'll show you how to start shaping your garden in a single afternoon (no experience required).
🌿 How to audit your irrigation Perth gardens need water. I'll walk you through what to check, what to upgrade, and what to do if you have no irrigation at all.
🌿 Where to place your beds Why perimeter beds are the foundation of almost every good garden, how deep to make them, and the two mistakes most people make when starting to landscape their gardens.
🌿 How to deal with your lawn How to identify whether you have couch or buffalo grass, why it matters, and the most effective ways to remove each. Also: why you should never, ever use weed mat.
🌿 Edging: the most overlooked design hack The single thing that makes a garden look structured and intentional, and the edging materials that get more beautiful as they age.
🌿 If you're short on time: just plant trees Why trees transform a garden faster and more profoundly than anything else (and my top ten trees for Perth gardens).
🌿 Three ways to shape your layout How to add paths, place beds in obvious spots, and divide your garden into rooms, without needing a landscape designer or a complete plan.
🌿 How to fill your beds Layering plants for structure and lower maintenance, how to avoid a chaotic garden, and why choosing plants that actually want to be in Perth changes everything.
🌿 A note on Perth soil Why wetting agents and liquid fertilisers don't fix sandy soil, and what does. Plus a pointer to my soil guide for those who want to go deeper.
A practical guide to starting a Perth garden from nothing.
Starting a Perth garden from nothing is both exciting and completely paralysing. Where do the beds go? How do you get rid of the lawn? What goes in first?
This practical guide walks you through how to sketch your layout, decide where to place garden beds, trees and paths, deal with whatever lawn you're starting with, and get your irrigation right from the beginning.
If you have zero time to think, let alone garden, it also gives realistic guidance and options for a ‘bare minimum’ approach, so you can get your garden underway even with young kids/a hectic job/general life chaos.
There’s no complicated design theory, this is just a clear, step-by-step process for turning an empty block into a garden that grows with you.
Instant PDF download. Perth-specific.
Important note:
After your purchase, you will receive a secure link to download the ebook. The link is valid for 24 hours, so be sure to download it directly following your purchase. If you do not receive the download link, check your junk mail.
“If this guide achieves only one thing, and that one thing is stopping you from buying weed mat, it will be worth it”
By the time you finish this guide, you'll have a clear plan for your garden.
You'll know where your beds are going, how you're handling your lawn, and what needs to happen first.
That paralysed feeling you get every time you walk outside? poof! gone.
About casey
I'm a Perth gardener, writer and cookbook author who has spent the last ten years turning a sandy, empty patch of dead grass into a flower-filled, bug-filled, slightly wild garden that I love.
I've written a Sunday Times gardening column, published three cookbooks, and run sold-out garden workshops across Perth.
I know this city's soil, its climate and its particular gardening challenges. And I write about all of it without the jargon, without the pressure to be perfect, and without telling you to buy a single thing that won't actually help*
*always fully in support of you buying an excessive number of plants, though ;)
The Blank Slate Garden
A$19 — instant PDF download
No waiting, no postage. Download it, open it, and start planning your garden today.
A practical guide to starting a Perth garden from nothing.
Starting a Perth garden from nothing is both exciting and completely paralysing. Where do the beds go? How do you get rid of the lawn? What goes in first?
This practical guide walks you through how to sketch your layout, decide where to place garden beds, trees and paths, deal with whatever lawn you're starting with, and get your irrigation right from the beginning.
If you have zero time to think, let alone garden, it also gives realistic guidance and options for a ‘bare minimum’ approach, so you can get your garden underway even with young kids/a hectic job/general life chaos.
There’s no complicated design theory, this is just a clear, step-by-step process for turning an empty block into a garden that grows with you.
Instant PDF download. Perth-specific.
Important note:
After your purchase, you will receive a secure link to download the ebook. The link is valid for 24 hours, so be sure to download it directly following your purchase. If you do not receive the download link, check your junk mail.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
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Yes, completely. The advice is written for Perth's climate, Perth's soil and Perth's conditions. It won't tell you things that only apply in Melbourne or the UK.
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A PDF you can read on your phone, tablet or computer, or print out if you prefer something in your hands.
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Probably not, honestly. This guide is specifically for people starting from nothing. If you already have a garden underway, my soil guide or design course are likely a better fit.
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You'll get an automatic download link the moment you purchase, straight to your inbox.
A practical guide to starting a Perth garden from nothing.
Starting a Perth garden from nothing is both exciting and completely paralysing. Where do the beds go? How do you get rid of the lawn? What goes in first?
This practical guide walks you through how to sketch your layout, decide where to place garden beds, trees and paths, deal with whatever lawn you're starting with, and get your irrigation right from the beginning.
If you have zero time to think, let alone garden, it also gives realistic guidance and options for a ‘bare minimum’ approach, so you can get your garden underway even with young kids/a hectic job/general life chaos.
There’s no complicated design theory, this is just a clear, step-by-step process for turning an empty block into a garden that grows with you.
Instant PDF download. Perth-specific.
Important note:
After your purchase, you will receive a secure link to download the ebook. The link is valid for 24 hours, so be sure to download it directly following your purchase. If you do not receive the download link, check your junk mail.
RELATED PRODUCTS
If you've ever watched Gardening Australia and wondered what on earth you're doing wrong - why your plants grow spindly and pale, why water runs straight off your beds - the answer is almost always the same.
Soil. They just have good soil. And you just have bad soil.
Perth soil is sandy, hydrophobic and nutritionally poor. The products the garden industry sells you to fix it (liquid fertilisers, power feeds, soil wetters) are a bandaid. They don't fix anything.
This 30-page guide shows you what actually does work: clay, compost, animal manure and mulch, added in the right order. Written specifically for Perth's conditions, not the east coast or the UK.
Over 350 Perth gardeners have already used it to build healthier soil, stronger plants and more productive gardens.
What's included:
30-page PDF guide - instant download
12-minute video walkthrough of a real Perth garden bed being improved from scratch
You'll learn:
Why Perth soil behaves the way it does
What to add and in what order to build soil structure properly
How to maintain healthy soil through summer without constant intervention
Why wetting agents and liquid fertilisers don't move the needle (and what does)
After purchase you'll receive an automatic download link to your inbox. If it doesn't arrive, check your junk folder. Make sure to download your file within 24 hours.
Perth garden centres (lovely as they are) will sell you hydrangeas, camellias and hostas with a smile. They're beautiful plants - I love them. I also hate them, because they always (always!!) die on me. These plants dislike almost everything about Perth, and keeping them alive is a frustrating uphill battle.
That’s not what gardening is supposed to be!
After more than a decade gardening in hot, sandy and dry Perth, I've found the plants that actually want to be here. The ones that are tough, genuinely beautiful, and combine endlessly in ways that make a garden feel like it was designed rather than cobbled together.
This is that list.
The Perth Plant Palette is a 120-page guide to 36 of my favourite Perth-proof plants, organised into a capsule wardrobe you can mix, layer and repeat throughout your garden.
What's inside:
36 detailed plant profiles across six categories: trees, larger perennials, annuals, climbers, edibles and bulbs. Each plant has a full entry covering why I love it, how to use it in your design, growing notes for Perth's conditions, and pairing suggestions so you know exactly what to plant beside it.
Six garden recipes: Shady Grotto, Edible Garden, Jungle/Tropical, Cottage Garden, Mediterranean/Dry Garden and Potted/Courtyard, each with a full plant list and step-by-step layering guide so you can apply a ready-made planting template to your own space.
Original photography throughout, a Perth-specific Pinterest board, and a design approach that treats your garden like a capsule wardrobe: a considered, curated collection of plants that work together beautifully, rather than a random assortment of things that looked good at the nursery but suddenly made no sense once you got them home.
This guide is for you if:
You're tired of plants dying on you and want a reliable starting point
You want your garden to look thoughtfully planted, rather than chaotic or accidental
You're starting from scratch and have no idea what to plant where
You've been gardening in Perth for years but you’re bored and want some new plant inspiration
What you won't find here: generic advice written for England, the US, or east-coast Australian gardens, plants that need coddling, or a list so long it's paralysing. This is deliberately edited - that's the whole point :)
A$49 — instant PDF download. Perth-specific. 120 pages.
After purchase you'll receive an automatic download link to your inbox. Check your junk folder if it doesn't arrive, and download the pdf within 24 hours.
There is nothing as beautiful as a garden filled with flowers. But many gardens often go through dry spells, where not a single thing seems to be in bloom.
It’s easy to grow a gorgeous, colourful garden in spring, but a lot of Perth gardeners don’t realise that your garden can also look incredible through summer, autumn and winter, too. You just need to have good tactics. This book will teach you how.
In this comprehensive insider’s blueprint to a flower-filled garden, I take you through all of the strategies I use in my own garden to maximise colour all year round.
You’ll find:
Design advice for combining structural perennial plants with bright bursts of annual colour and bulbs that pop up in every season.
A comprehensive index of plant descriptions of every flowering plant that I love to grow (over 100 plants). Most importantly these are flowering plants that I find grow easily and successfully in a Perth climate.
Advice on how to grow and care for every plant described in the book, including optimal growing conditions and planting times.
Four pinwheels that show exactly what plants flower and when. This will help you see at a glance exactly what plants to add to your garden to fill any colourless dry spells you’re dealing with
Photos (all taken from my own garden), showcasing the most beautiful blooming plants I grow, with examples of how you can combine them in your own garden beds
Tips for caring for a flower garden and maximising the health of your plants
I wrote this book because I think a world full of flowers is simply a more cheerful and more beautiful place.
I know first-hand how wonderful it is to step outside and revel in the beauty of your garden in every season, and I wanted to help other Perth gardeners overcome the struggles I faced when I first started building a resilient garden filled with year-round colour.
This 71-page guidebook is my longest gardening book to date. In fact, it isn’t really a guidebook; it’s an insiders blueprint to growing a garden that fills you with joy - and your home with freshly cut flowers - every day of the year.
I do hope you love it!
Happy gardening,
xx Casey