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Old 04-03-2007, 10:37 AM posted to aus.gardens
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Default hedge question please

Between the side of our house and ours/neighbours side fence we have a
walkway 5 feet wide. Side of house faces north.

Beside the paling fence I have approx 18 inches of soil with various untidy
plants. What I would like to know is what I can plant there to replace what
I have and doesn't need much looking after, e.g. a narrow hedge that I can
keep trimmed, but need it to grow 5-6 feet high, no higher as I cannot reach
further up.

My problem also is that I don't want something that will end up making the
walkway only 2 feet wide. Would something like Murraya Paniculata do for
there?

Thank you for any help given.

Katherine




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Old 05-03-2007, 08:55 AM posted to aus.gardens
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Default hedge question please

In article ,
"jones" wrote:

My problem also is that I don't want something that will end up making the
walkway only 2 feet wide. Would something like Murraya Paniculata do for
there?


Not if you live in Sydney or further north. It is a very aggressive plant
here -- I've seen one Murraya paniculata at least 6m high in Petersham. The
scent is quite cloying too IMHO -- do you *like* it?

I assume that the paling fence means the garden bed is shaded. I would choose
Heavenly Bamboo -- Nandina domestica. It's not a bamboo at all, but has a
similar leaf shape on a smaller scale. It's pretty with or without its
flowers and berries, without screaming "Look at moi!" all the time. Tough
too, without being weedy. Here are some pictures, but they don't do it
justice:
http://www.sbs.utexas.edu/bio406d/im..._domestica.htm

You could underplant with violets, or possibly mints, for a pleasant shaded
garden.

--
Chookie -- Sydney, Australia
(Replace "foulspambegone" with "optushome" to reply)

"Parenthood is like the modern stone washing process for denim jeans. You may
start out crisp, neat and tough, but you end up pale, limp and wrinkled."
Kerry Cue
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Old 06-03-2007, 06:50 AM posted to aus.gardens
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Default hedge question please

Thank you Chookie, not a bad idea of yours.

It will be a nice soft look from my kitchen window.

Now I think of it, maybe I don't want berries on it, as I wouldn't like the
berries to drop next door and have it sprouting there as well. They are
Asians (no offence), and may think it is the bad bamboo. I have on there,
honeysuckle growing and as it goes through the palings they seem to pull it
out.

They are good neighbours and would like to keep them, we may get awful ones
instead if they go :-)

Thanks for the help.
Regards
Katherine


"Chookie" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"jones" wrote:

My problem also is that I don't want something that will end up making
the
walkway only 2 feet wide. Would something like Murraya Paniculata do for
there?


Not if you live in Sydney or further north. It is a very aggressive plant
here -- I've seen one Murraya paniculata at least 6m high in Petersham.
The
scent is quite cloying too IMHO -- do you *like* it?

I assume that the paling fence means the garden bed is shaded. I would
choose
Heavenly Bamboo -- Nandina domestica. It's not a bamboo at all, but has a
similar leaf shape on a smaller scale. It's pretty with or without its
flowers and berries, without screaming "Look at moi!" all the time. Tough
too, without being weedy. Here are some pictures, but they don't do it
justice:
http://www.sbs.utexas.edu/bio406d/im..._domestica.htm

You could underplant with violets, or possibly mints, for a pleasant
shaded
garden.

--
Chookie -- Sydney, Australia
(Replace "foulspambegone" with "optushome" to reply)

"Parenthood is like the modern stone washing process for denim jeans. You
may
start out crisp, neat and tough, but you end up pale, limp and wrinkled."
Kerry Cue



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Old 06-03-2007, 07:04 AM posted to aus.gardens
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Default hedge question please

G'day Katherine

What about an edible hedge? I'm planning to espalier an orange and a
lemon tree both for privacy and fruit.

Bronwyn ;-)

jones wrote:
Thank you Chookie, not a bad idea of yours.

It will be a nice soft look from my kitchen window.

Now I think of it, maybe I don't want berries on it, as I wouldn't like the
berries to drop next door and have it sprouting there as well. They are
Asians (no offence), and may think it is the bad bamboo. I have on there,
honeysuckle growing and as it goes through the palings they seem to pull it
out.

They are good neighbours and would like to keep them, we may get awful ones
instead if they go :-)

Thanks for the help.
Regards
Katherine


"Chookie" wrote in message
...

In article ,
"jones" wrote:


My problem also is that I don't want something that will end up making
the
walkway only 2 feet wide. Would something like Murraya Paniculata do for
there?


Not if you live in Sydney or further north. It is a very aggressive plant
here -- I've seen one Murraya paniculata at least 6m high in Petersham.
The
scent is quite cloying too IMHO -- do you *like* it?

I assume that the paling fence means the garden bed is shaded. I would
choose
Heavenly Bamboo -- Nandina domestica. It's not a bamboo at all, but has a
similar leaf shape on a smaller scale. It's pretty with or without its
flowers and berries, without screaming "Look at moi!" all the time. Tough
too, without being weedy. Here are some pictures, but they don't do it
justice:
http://www.sbs.utexas.edu/bio406d/im..._domestica.htm

You could underplant with violets, or possibly mints, for a pleasant
shaded
garden.

--
Chookie -- Sydney, Australia
(Replace "foulspambegone" with "optushome" to reply)

"Parenthood is like the modern stone washing process for denim jeans. You
may
start out crisp, neat and tough, but you end up pale, limp and wrinkled."
Kerry Cue




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Old 06-03-2007, 01:06 PM posted to aus.gardens
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Posts: 301
Default hedge question please

In article ,
"jones" wrote:

Thank you Chookie, not a bad idea of yours.

It will be a nice soft look from my kitchen window.

Now I think of it, maybe I don't want berries on it, as I wouldn't like the
berries to drop next door and have it sprouting there as well. They are
Asians (no offence), and may think it is the bad bamboo. I have on there,
honeysuckle growing and as it goes through the palings they seem to pull it
out.


I don't think the seeds are fertile -- Nandina reproduces by suckering, but as
I said, it's not aggressive.

If I saw honeysuckle on my fence palings, I'd pull it out too! It's pretty
weedy in Sydney.

--
Chookie -- Sydney, Australia
(Replace "foulspambegone" with "optushome" to reply)

"Parenthood is like the modern stone washing process for denim jeans. You may
start out crisp, neat and tough, but you end up pale, limp and wrinkled."
Kerry Cue


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Old 06-03-2007, 09:22 PM posted to aus.gardens
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Posts: 2,358
Default hedge question please

"Chookie" wrote in message
"jones" wrote:

My problem also is that I don't want something that will end up making
the
walkway only 2 feet wide. Would something like Murraya Paniculata do for
there?


Not if you live in Sydney or further north. It is a very aggressive plant
here -- I've seen one Murraya paniculata at least 6m high in Petersham.


I would choose
Heavenly Bamboo -- Nandina domestica. It's not a bamboo at all, but has a
similar leaf shape on a smaller scale. Tough
too, without being weedy. Here are some pictures, but they don't do it
justice:


Chookie, I note that in this post and a later one you say that 'Nandina
domestica' is not weedy or aggressive.

I'd have to disagree strongly with that based on personal experience. It is
a garden thug and once established spreads strongly and it will certainly
spread under the fence into the next door neighbour's place. I've found it
can't be killed with anything that I've yet tried on it. It loved
glyphosate! but I couldn't give either of the clumps as strong or as
thorough a dose as I'd like to have as they are growing near other plants.
In one case it's growing up and around a very pretty mounding small piney
thing (which normally I hate, but this one looks like Mt Fuji). Whenb I hit
the Nandina with the glyphosate, I covered the piney thing but event hen I
nearly lost it and the Nandina just powered on. I am reduced to cutting
these things off at the base monthly and the sodding stuff still comes back
strongly.

To check whether my experience was because of living in a cold climate, I
did a very quick google and found that Don Burke says that it's downside is
that it is an environmental weed
http://www.burkesbackyard.com.au/200...nt_of_the_week

I had thought of Potato vine, which although it will grow like the clappers
and reduce the path to less than 2 ft, is tough, takes pruning very well and
in fact produces far more flowers if cut back hard. It could also be
trained up the fence on diagonal wires which would give a good frame to cut
back to and would result in a good look from soon after planting.


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Old 07-03-2007, 09:17 AM posted to aus.gardens
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Default hedge question please

In article ,
"FarmI" ask@itshall be given wrote:

Chookie, I note that in this post and a later one you say that 'Nandina
domestica' is not weedy or aggressive.

I'd have to disagree strongly with that based on personal experience. It is
a garden thug and once established spreads strongly and it will certainly
spread under the fence into the next door neighbour's place. I've found it
can't be killed with anything that I've yet tried on it.


Oops -- in that case, I take it back. I have grown it myself and found it
seemed quite slow and didn't sucker that readily, so perhaps it's slow the
first few years or something.

I had thought of Potato vine, which although it will grow like the clappers
and reduce the path to less than 2 ft, is tough, takes pruning very well and
in fact produces far more flowers if cut back hard. It could also be
trained up the fence on diagonal wires which would give a good frame to cut
back to and would result in a good look from soon after planting.


Ooh yes -- I like potato vine (blue rather than white). Pandorea would look
nice too, but it tends to flower on the sunny side of the fence.

--
Chookie -- Sydney, Australia
(Replace "foulspambegone" with "optushome" to reply)

"Parenthood is like the modern stone washing process for denim jeans. You may
start out crisp, neat and tough, but you end up pale, limp and wrinkled."
Kerry Cue
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Old 07-03-2007, 12:05 PM posted to aus.gardens
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Posts: 2,358
Default hedge question please

"Chookie" wrote in message
"FarmI" ask@itshall be given wrote:

Chookie, I note that in this post and a later one you say that 'Nandina
domestica' is not weedy or aggressive.

I'd have to disagree strongly with that based on personal experience. It
is
a garden thug and once established spreads strongly and it will certainly
spread under the fence into the next door neighbour's place. I've found
it
can't be killed with anything that I've yet tried on it.


Oops -- in that case, I take it back. I have grown it myself and found it
seemed quite slow and didn't sucker that readily, so perhaps it's slow the
first few years or something.


Could be. Mine must be at least 20 years old and the bane of my life.

I had thought of Potato vine, which although it will grow like the
clappers
and reduce the path to less than 2 ft, is tough, takes pruning very well
and
in fact produces far more flowers if cut back hard. It could also be
trained up the fence on diagonal wires which would give a good frame to
cut
back to and would result in a good look from soon after planting.


Ooh yes -- I like potato vine (blue rather than white).


I think both are drop dead gorgeous.

Pandorea would look
nice too, but it tends to flower on the sunny side of the fence.


Lovely - wish I could grow it here.


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Old 10-03-2007, 10:43 PM posted to aus.gardens
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Posts: 21
Default hedge question please


"Chookie" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"jones" wrote:

Thank you Chookie, not a bad idea of yours.

It will be a nice soft look from my kitchen window.

Now I think of it, maybe I don't want berries on it, as I wouldn't like

the
berries to drop next door and have it sprouting there as well. They are
Asians (no offence), and may think it is the bad bamboo. I have on

there,
honeysuckle growing and as it goes through the palings they seem to pull

it
out.


I don't think the seeds are fertile -- Nandina reproduces by suckering,

but as
I said, it's not aggressive.

If I saw honeysuckle on my fence palings, I'd pull it out too! It's

pretty
weedy in Sydney.


Ditto that .. good suggestion wrt the heavenly bamboo Chookie (despite the
fact its non-native ... tall, narrow and not a runner - fits the bill
quite well really.

At any rate as a neighbour, I personally would be more highly offended by
the Murraya - its an environmental weed and it does spread from the copious
number of berries it drops or which birds ingest and then drop. ... and drop
and drop.
http://www.weeds.org.au/cgi-bin/weed...ra=all&card=E3
3
They can also grow to be very large and you'd be pruning it back all the
time if you live anywhere north of about Sydney. Similar hedge species that
are environmental weeds include: duranta (aka sheena's gold - tops my
personal list of most hated garden plants); Indian hawthorne, privet and
purple joyweed.

Some native alternatives that make good hedges include: lillypillies (e.g.
Acmena smithii, Syzygium australe, S. luehmannii (probably all too large for
the OP) but there are dwarf varieties available.
Bottlebrush is another option e.g. Callistemon "Captain Cook" ... also
available as dwarf varieties.
Ti-tree (Melaleuca) may be OK. Floral smell may be overwhelming ... but not
any worse than murraya.
Native rosemary (Westringia) would be too short for the OP but can form a
nice hedge
Native boobialla (Myoporum) ... personally I just like the name
Maybe a dwarf variety of Acacia fimbriata (smell can be overwhelming
though)
Native gardenias (Randia) maybe even

Or on another tack, instead of the honeysuckle (I'd get rid of it too if I
were your neighbour), maybe a passionfruit vine where you get to share the
spoils..... easy care, screens the fence and can't really grow higher than
the fence (unless you add on a trellis), doesn't expand on your space much
and yummy fruit.

HTH
Amanda







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Old 10-03-2007, 10:58 PM posted to aus.gardens
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Default hedge question please


"FarmI" ask@itshall be given wrote in message
...
"Chookie" wrote in message
"jones" wrote:


Chookie, I note that in this post and a later one you say that 'Nandina
domestica' is not weedy or aggressive.

I'd have to disagree strongly with that based on personal experience. It

is
a garden thug and once established spreads strongly and it will certainly
spread under the fence into the next door neighbour's place. I've found

it
can't be killed with anything that I've yet tried on it. It loved
glyphosate! but I couldn't give either of the clumps as strong or as
thorough a dose as I'd like to have as they are growing near other plants.
In one case it's growing up and around a very pretty mounding small piney
thing (which normally I hate, but this one looks like Mt Fuji). Whenb I

hit
the Nandina with the glyphosate, I covered the piney thing but event hen I
nearly lost it and the Nandina just powered on. I am reduced to cutting
these things off at the base monthly and the sodding stuff still comes

back
strongly.

To check whether my experience was because of living in a cold climate, I
did a very quick google and found that Don Burke says that it's downside

is
that it is an environmental weed

http://www.burkesbackyard.com.au/200...den3/flowering
_plants_and_shrubs/nandina__plant_of_the_week


Ahh well - then this is why I'm not into exotics. I also recant , although
I remember my brother had some that seemed very placid and dormant ... and
that was in Brisbane.
That being said we have some bamboo here which is clumping variety (Bambusa
oldhamii) - quite tall and compact - too tall for the OP, but some of the
other clumping varieties may be OK.
Amanda





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Old 11-03-2007, 12:58 AM posted to aus.gardens
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Posts: 81
Default hedge question please

Thanks to you too FlowerGirl for the extra names to look into.

Katherine in Sydney

"FlowerGirl" wrote in message news:FDFIh.9519


Ditto that .. good suggestion wrt the heavenly bamboo Chookie (despite the
fact its non-native ... tall, narrow and not a runner - fits the bill
quite well really.

At any rate as a neighbour, I personally would be more highly offended by
the Murraya - its an environmental weed and it does spread from the
copious
number of berries it drops or which birds ingest and then drop. ... and
drop
and drop.
http://www.weeds.org.au/cgi-bin/weed...ra=all&card=E3
3
They can also grow to be very large and you'd be pruning it back all the
time if you live anywhere north of about Sydney. Similar hedge species
that
are environmental weeds include: duranta (aka sheena's gold - tops my
personal list of most hated garden plants); Indian hawthorne, privet and
purple joyweed.

Some native alternatives that make good hedges include: lillypillies (e.g.
Acmena smithii, Syzygium australe, S. luehmannii (probably all too large
for
the OP) but there are dwarf varieties available.
Bottlebrush is another option e.g. Callistemon "Captain Cook" ... also
available as dwarf varieties.
Ti-tree (Melaleuca) may be OK. Floral smell may be overwhelming ... but
not
any worse than murraya.
Native rosemary (Westringia) would be too short for the OP but can form a
nice hedge
Native boobialla (Myoporum) ... personally I just like the name
Maybe a dwarf variety of Acacia fimbriata (smell can be overwhelming
though)
Native gardenias (Randia) maybe even

Or on another tack, instead of the honeysuckle (I'd get rid of it too if I
were your neighbour), maybe a passionfruit vine where you get to share
the
spoils..... easy care, screens the fence and can't really grow higher than
the fence (unless you add on a trellis), doesn't expand on your space much
and yummy fruit.

HTH
Amanda









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