Hi,
living in western australia and out back back patio backs right up to the
hardie fence about 6/9 inches of light coming in, when sun overhead.

We use this area as a family/eating room in the summer and have a six inch
border in breadth running around the bottom about 15 metres. As we use
this area Dec/Mar we are looking for a bit of color, easy maintenance
/propbably native, we have reticulation.

Being an novice with no ideas, would like to have something nice that
attracts attention and conversation. The area is completely fly screened.
I worry as there is not a great deal of sun.

Any ideas appreciated.
Roo

Roo wrote:
Hi,
living in western australia and out back back patio backs right up to the
hardie fence about 6/9 inches of light coming in, when sun overhead.

We use this area as a family/eating room in the summer and have a six inch
border in breadth running around the bottom about 15 metres. As we use
this area Dec/Mar we are looking for a bit of color, easy maintenance
/propbably native, we have reticulation.

Being an novice with no ideas, would like to have something nice that
attracts attention and conversation. The area is completely fly screened.
I worry as there is not a great deal of sun.

Any ideas appreciated.
Roo


I'm not clear whether you're asking about colourful pot plants to strew
about (love that word!) or a treeish/shrubbish sort of thing to shade
the area.

I've got a beautiful _Buckinghamia celcissima_ (Ivory Curl Flower)
growing alongside a south-facing deck. It has spectacular ivory flower
spikes in the spring, dark green soft foliage and is only a smallish
tree, so great for shade. The flower spikes do drop off once they're
spent, but I s'pose that's true of anything, really...

Here's an URL that shows the tree and a link to the flower close-up:

HTH,

--
Trish {|:-} Newcastle, NSW, Australia

In article ,
"Roo" wrote:

We use this area as a family/eating room in the summer and have a six inch
border in breadth running around the bottom about 15 metres. As we use
this area Dec/Mar we are looking for a bit of color, easy maintenance
/propbably native, we have reticulation.

With only 6 inch wide beds, you won't get anything very shrubby in. A climber
will head for the light straight away, but if you have a pergola overhead
consider passionfruit, grape vines, wonga wonga vine of bower of beauty.

For something low, you could consider ferns, or impatiens (busy lizzie). Both
will do well with moisture and low light.

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

"Life is like a cigarette -- smoke it to the butt." -- Harvie Krumpet