#Hymenosporum 'Luscious'

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New Post has been published on http://malleedesign.com.au/portfolio-kogarah-garden-design/

Portfolio: Kogarah Garden Design

This garden was planted just over 12 months ago and has thrived in a very tough dry year, establishing quickly under harsh conditions. The soil in Kogarah is sand, dry and depleted, two metres under the sand is the saline water table, challenging to say the least. Add to the mix coastal winds and loads of hard surfaces and the reflective heat…the plants in this garden needed to be hardy.

The clients wanted a garden with a tropical feel, lots of large foliage and glossy leaves, they also wanted low maintenance 😉

Given these conditions I am very proud of the plants that have survived here. In the image above you can see the feature tree is a Hibiscus tiliaceus Rubra, this is surrounded by Hymenosporum ‘Luscious’,Lomandra ‘Lime Spike’ and Scaveola ‘Mauve Clusters’. In the background on the right you can see a very happy Acacia ‘Limelight’ Grafted Standard in front of the deck. On the left is a low hedge of Tristaniopsis ‘Burgundy Blush’ which is a wonderfully tough waterwise plant with a naturally mounding dense habit. The rear garden is a tiny courtyard surrounded by built surfaces, I have used Tristaniopsis ‘Luscious’ as a feature screening tree and on either side as fence screening Hibiscus insularis. Most of the garden is in full sun and rarely watered, all of the plants selected also need very little pruning to maintain a compact and appealing habit. Love these plants!

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New Post has been published on https://malleedesign.com.au/trialling-banksia-sentinel/

Trialling Banksia 'Sentinel'

This is a favourite coastal hedging plant of mine which I have been including in my planting designs for the past 7 years or so….sorry, I’m finding it difficult to keep track of time 😉

I say it is on trial or has been on trial for a while as it does have a couple of things it dislikes and doesn’t work everywhere. Firstly, it absolutely hates being over watered, especially if the weather is warm, it doesn’t need extra moisture. It is part Banksia integrifolia which as a straight species tree can often turn up its toes if its feet get wet.

Secondly, it gets taller than the label specifies, almost double the size to be frank. This is not that unusual all plant tags need to be read with some scepticism, I don’t know why?

In the image above you can see a specimen which is around 4 metres tall and around 1 to 1.5 metres wide, making Banksia ‘Sentinel’ a wonderful tall screening plant. It can handle a front line coastal position like in this featured garden in Coledale, it also will take light frost and extended periods of drought.

It is a very useful plant to use in a native garden to add texture and colour. The undersides of the leaves are a bright silver and the new growth bronze and then light green. The upright branches prune well and contrast beautifully with more weeping foliaged plants.

I like to combine Banksia ‘Sentinel’ with lime greens or brighter silvers like in the images above with Acacia ‘Mini Cog’ and Eremophila Nivea Grafted.

It also looks lovely with the mounding habit and larger leaves of Hymenosporum ‘Luscious’ as seen above.

For me I would say the trial period is over, this useful Banksia has excelled in the many gardens in which I have specified it. I am about to plant a hedge of it in my own garden in a tight position with limited sun and if I ignore it enough I’m sure it will fulfil its role as a dense screen in a wind tunnel near the sea 👍🏼

Two more things to note, Banksia ‘Sentinel’ is not a particularly floriferous native, it should be grown for its foliage and it needs excellent drainage!

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New Post has been published on http://malleedesign.com.au/the-grevillea-that-ticks-all-the-boxes-grevillea-winter-delight/

The Grevillea that ticks all the boxes: Grevillea 'Winter Delight'

This low growing shrub is one of my favourite Grevilleas, it covers itself in pinky red flowers all through winter to attract the birds and the bees. It has a naturally dense habit which can only be improved with a little tip pruning now and again and yes, it has grey leaves, my favourite!

Grevillea ‘Winter Delight’ grows to around 0.5a metres high by 1 metre wide and has a low mounding habit which can easily be pruned to a more formal shape if required.

I like to combine it with other low growing shrubs of a similar size but with a contrasting leaf colour like Acacia ‘Mini Cog’ or Hymenosporum ‘Luscious’, this makes the grey really ‘pop’ 😉

Grevillea ‘Winter Delight’ enjoys a well drained soil in full sun to part shade but the more sun it receives the more it will reward you with flowers from Autumn through to Spring.

This Grevillea is frost resistant and can withstand long periods of dry, the only thing it really dislikes is excessive humidity and lost of rain in the Summer months.

This is a great shrub and fulfils many uses in a native garden, attracting wildlife, giving structural form and always providing visual interest even when not in flower. I can’t recommend it enough, hopefully you will find room for a Grevillea ‘Winter Delight’ in your garden!