Recently I have been asked to suggest a shrub for a low growing hedge for a partly shaded area. This is not for our area but further west in a hotter climate. I know the person involved well and that flowers are a priority but the main thing will be that it is easy to care for and must look tidy!
What is there at present takes a lot of time to keep tidy and is not doing particularly well with some of the plants needing to be replaced.
This is an inherited garden and there has been a considerable amount of work on the renovation. Some paulownia trees had to be removed as they were becoming invasive and causing problems with a lovely stone fence and around a pool. They are particularly hard to eradicate as every little bit of the roots will sprout when cut! I remember someone suggesting they would be good to grow in a cultivation paddock. Not a good plan as when the paddock would be ploughed the roots would be nicked and hey presto! a new sucker would be growing with the crop!
They are a great quick-growing paddock tree providing shade and beautiful blossoms, but they do self-seed very readily and without stock about to graze the new plants they can become a real problem. The foliage is very high in protein and great stock feed, whether fresh or dry, but not ideal around a house.
As I don’t purport to be any sort of expert in gardening, I have done a lot of looking and reading, and will definitely be doing a lot of asking the experts for their suggestions!
One of the plants I have found that may be suitable is a variety of Westringia called “Grey Box”.
It will grow in part shade, most soil types, is frost and drought tolerant, only about 50cm wide and high, and a naturally rounded shape. It can be trimmed to form a hedge or left to grow naturally. It is covered in lovely small white flowers from September to May with the silver-grey foliage looking great all year.
Another plant from the same family is Westringia “Mundi”. It is more of a ground cover, so low growing, and is regarded as the lowest care form available. It is very versatile and also has small white flowers.
There are so many varieties that there seems to be one for every situation and colour scheme provided you like various blues, mauves or white, with green or silvery-grey foliage.
Westringias are known as native rosemary, but there are many varieties and there seems to be one for most situations and environments, from the coast to well out into the western areas of the eastern states. There are also some that are native to Western Australia.
Traditional rosemary is also an option and I have one flourishing in a very shaded area against a fence with a high hedge on the other side that cuts all morning sun from that side of my house. The hedge wasn’t always there and there are a number of things that have to be shifted because of it as they now do not get enough sun. This area probably gets less than 2 hours of sunshine each day, but the rosemary is really thriving. It is the traditional blue flowering variety. To keep it tidy in my friend’s garden, as a hedge, would require some care so would not be ideal.
I’ve also recently seen a row of mature lemon trees trimmed as a large hedge in the industrial area. They look great and the perfume from the flowers is wonderful outside R and K Takeaway on McEvoy Street.
With all this rain, weeds are flourishing! I said in a previous column that some tomatoes I had thrown onto a garden in January had all grown. They still are growing and when I looked the other day there are a lot of tomatoes on them and some ripening! I actually picked quite a number and enjoyed them. As yet the plants have not succumbed to the cold, so I may have tomatoes for a while and green ones at least, for pickles.
This year seems to be racing away with many things happening. Preparing for Jumpers and Jazz in July is well underway with the signs up around town.
The Horticultural Society is busy organising the Gardening Extravaganza to be held once again on the Wednesday and Thursday of the Festival in St Mary’s Hall in Wood Street. As usual, there will be a number of gardening-related stalls for you to browse and of course, sweets and treats to be enjoyed with a cuppa throughout the day. A range of tasty soups and fresh bread will be available for a nourishing lunch.
So put this event on your agenda for the 26th and 27th of July and I’ll see you there!
