This time last year the weather wasn't much different than what it is now - wet, cold, stormy and fairly depressing. The garden was in its dormancy period and optimism had flown north for the winter.

Yet there were still some highlights from my garden as well as posts that were included that are worth mentioning again. So here's a quick recap of July 2006.

• One of my bromeliads began flowering its head off
• I took my children camping overnight and fell in love with some gorgeous Acacia dealbata
• We spent a day with the family in Perth's Kings Park Botanic Gardens. These gardens are absolutely stunning with their efforts to beautify the landscape with native Australian species.
• Tips on choosing appropriate plants for a xeriscape garden
• A few thoughts on why we choose the colours we do in our gardens.
• How to grow and care for your impatiens
• And, 10 backyard landscaping ideas you could do in a weekend became one of the most visited posts on this blog.