What my garden is to me.

My garden is just like a room of my house. Large plants such as trees and shrubs represent the main pieces of furniture. All the larger trees in my garden were already there when we moved into the house, so I had to arrange smaller plants around them. It was similar to deciding how to arrange furniture around a fireplace that was already there.

Inside the house we arranged incidentals like a coffee table and placed decorative items on the walls so that the decor says who we are and what we like. In my 'garden room' I arranged smaller plants such as flowering bulbs, annuals, and ground covers to reflect my personality and place my creative stamp on the outside appearance of the house.

The garden itself is divided into 'rooms'. We have an average size house block which is not really large, but garden 'rooms' give an impression of more space. Each area leads into another different kind of area.

I sit under the pergola to eat lunch and enjoy my pot plants; there is a 'lawn room' in the back yard, surrounded by shrubs and flowering plants; we have a 'kitchen room' where we grow vegetables, and there's a 'train room' where my husband runs his Gauge 1 railway.

The front yard is the 'front room' and it has taken the most work to beautify because of large gum trees that take most of the nutrients. But we are succeeding by trial and error to find plants that are tough, drought and heat resistant, and beautiful.

The front 'lawn' is the most frustrating area; I would appreciate any recommendations as to plants that replace lawn, require little nutrition, withstand drought and heat, will withstand light-to-moderate daily traffic and look good. It's a big ask, I know, and it makes choosing new floor coverings for inside the house look easy. Any suggestions?