Victoria Clare wrote in message . 240.10...
I think you want a box bush. Exactly like a green afro on a short stalk,
very easy to care for, and very stylish. buxus sempervirens or
Buxus sempervirens "Suffruticosa" are the latin names to look for.

Buckingham Nurseries have 20-30cm ones for a tenner:

http://www.buckingham-nurseries.co.u...uct_38767.html

or http://www.crocus.co.uk/ have slightly bigger ones if you have a bit
more cash to spare. They grow slowly: thus the price.

If the balcony is sunny, a nice bushy lavender might be good.

Lonicera Nitida looks pretty much like box, and is cheaper, but better to
buy from a garden centre as they don't grow so tidily, and a mail order one
might not have the 'ball' effect you want.


Victoria clare


Thank you Victoria. I looked at the Buckingham Nurseries page and yes,
a green balloon or 'Buxus sempervirens' is just the sort of plant I am
looking for, however I note that it has a cross against the
'exposed/windy' criterion. Do you think it would survive at the edge
of a 4th floor balcony in Central London? it does get quite windy up
here. I also looked at the crocus.co.uk site, but have not yet managed
to locate the maturer green balloon bushes that you talked about. Do
you have a link?

The balcony is south facing, so is sunny on occasion

I would consider lavender - do you know a place I could get mature
lavender?

I'm not particularly bothered by the 'ball effect' : more that I
thought a ball would be good at concealing. Maybe Lonicera Nitida
would suffice. Do you know any places that sell that (maturely) ?

Finally, any suggestions on the traling plant? I was even thinking ivy
might be quite good... it will be surrounded on one side by flowers
and the other by whatever shrub I buy... can you buy mature fronds of
ivy (as opposed to having to grow from scratch... remember, my aim is
to get something looking nice asap).

Sorry if I've fired so many questions at you - I just appreciate
advice from someone who obviously knows something about gardening.

Regards.

Jim