Yuruga Native Plant Nursery, at Walkamin on the Atherton Tableland ( far north Queensland), has the most sensible garden watering advice I’ve read. Watering plants thoroughly but as infrequently as possible would seem like common sense, to encourage healthy root growth (and thus, drought and wind-tolerate plants) and avoid wasting water.
Unfortunately with shrinking backyards, busy lifestyles and shrinking numbers of farmers (and the increasing city/bush chasm), basic plant-growing knowledge (whether food or decorative) is an increasingly scarce commodity. It’s amazing how many people will either water plants every day (which during the tropical wet season, also encourages leaf pests and diseases, such as fungal diseases) or water infrequently, but only in small amounts and/or in inappropriate locations (eg a single little dripper close to the tree trunk). Not to mention those who put sprinklers on between 8am and 5pm, when the vast majority of the water is wasted – although this is a rarity in Townsville, as permanent water restrictions are in force.
Yuruga is Australia’s largest native plant nursery. The website has some fabulous lists of plants, such as lists of bush tucker plants, plants for bird food (flowers & fruit) and butterflies (eg Australia’s largest butterfly, the Cairns Birdwing; the emblem of the northern tropics, the bright blue Ulysses; and Australia’s largest moth, the massive Hercules Moth – with a wingspan of up to 27cm).