"Klara"
wrote:


Our daughter's new house is some 2 feet above the pavement; the front
lawn starts atop a stone retaining wall. There is a strip of flower bed
on top of the wall, and then a lawn (about 4-5 m) to the house. The idea
would be to replace this bed with a sort of hedge, or maybe more of a
border, that would act as a kind of lace curtain. Obviously at night one
would have to draw the curtains, but she would like to be able to leave
them open during the day.

Sacha writes

While a mixed hedge is interesting, I wonder if it would be too demanding
for a beginner gardener? The plants might require different treatment, e.g.
pruning and make their start in gardening too complicated just now. As to
suggested plants Griselinia, Privet, Box, Holly, Berberis and possibly
Escallonia and Eleagnus might work. There's a very highly scented Eleagnus
umbellata we have here in our garden and that might work because it seems
that this bed has good drainage. The other thing that could be lovely is
Sarcococca hookeriana var. dignya. It flowers in winter with a lovely scent
and would be enjoyed by your daughter as well as the passers by! Then
there's good old Aucuba and Ceanothus, too. C. Dark Star is a really
stunning colour and would work if they don't get hard frosts. I used to
live in Haslemere and don't remember very hard frosts there but down the
road in Midhurst they got some stinkers!

Thanks, Sacha - some of those - particularly, I think, the Escallonia,
or, even more, the Eleagnus or the Sarcococca, sound just about right!
They are in Godalming, which is a mass of microclimates in the hilly
bit, where she was before. She is now in the flatter part with a level
garden (a rarity around there), but we're not sure yet what it is like.
It is certainly dry - our lawn is still mainly green, but theirs is pure
yellow. I'll give her your whole list of suggestions, then she can look
them up to get an idea what she wants to look at at the nursery.


--
Klara, Gatwick basin