foundation shrub that's drought tolerant and easy

14 years ago

I moved into a lovely bungalow that has/had eight beautiful 6 feet tall camellias along the north side of the house, providing privacy and green. Alas, three of them have died, one after the other. I suspect oak root fungus. What should I plant in the bare spot left by these shrubs? I'm hoping it will be very easy, since I'm a poor gardener. Eventually I'd like to redo my whole yard (it's quite large) to have more California native plants and less "grass" (it's mostly crabgrass, oak leaves, and pine needles now), so putting in foundation shrubs that fit with that eventual dream would be great.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (8)

omniphasic
14 years ago
I'd strongly recommend Gold Dust Plant.This is an excellent
plant for a shady spot and low maintenance.Aucuba will do best if you plant it in mid Autumn in your zone,and purchase large ones because they tend to grow quicker than smaller ones."Mr. Goldstrike" is a really beautiful variety
with even more gold in them.Perfect for adding color to shadier positions.
bahia
14 years ago
If you prefer to use natives, why not consider planting Carpenteria californica, or one of the native Ribes such as Ribes sanguineum, Ribes aureum or Rhamnus californica 'Eve Case'. All of these would like the conditions of a north facing wall while being fairly drought tolerant. The Ribes are not evergreen, however they do have lovely showy blooms very early in the year, often as early as December, even.
Related Discussions
Drought Tolerant Shade Shrub - Hedge (Southern Maryland)
Q
Comments (1)
every county has a soil conservation district office ... in spring.. and sometimes in fall .. they off native ... small... stock.... for wind break purposes ... another word for a wind break.. is a sight break ... e.g. they sell pines in my area.. 25 for $16 .... at about one foot tall .... so you might be able to cover a lot of ground ... for not a lot of money.. with stock that is chosen for your county ... the lists usually offer trees.. conifers.. and shrubs .... thats were i would start ... let us know what they suggest .... ken ps: no matter what you decide to do .... go diverse .. a nice mixture of many different types of things for your project ...
...See More
Shrubs for Fence, Sun and Drought tolerant
Q
Comments (5)
Dwarf yaupon holly (Ilex vomitoria) is readily available, fairly inexpensive in 1 gal size, takes full Texas sun, reasonably drought/pest tolerant, tops out around 3 ft, and would remain a pretty dense windbreak year round. The main downside is lack of seasonal variation. It will be rock solid reliable, but could become a rather boring border in the quantity you're needing. It will also take 4+ years to approach 3 ft from a 1 gal start. If not in a rush, you might experiment with autumn sage (salvia greggii). Though not as dense as the yaupon, it should be nearly evergreen in your zone. Height falls in the 2-4 ft range depending upon the cultivar. It grows quickly and is fairly easy to propagate from cuttings, so you could get all the plants you need within a season or two from a single parent. Red flowering is probably most common, but many others are available. Size and shape do seem to vary a bit by cultivar/color, so may need to experiment if you want to mix them up and get the look you are after. Weaknesses are low tolerance for wet feet and brittle branches. Brittleness is offset by rapid growth, but could be a problem if there are pets that like to check out the fence.
...See More
Shade-tolerant, drought-tolerant attractive shrubs?
Q
Comments (18)
Your lucky that it is 12". . you have some soil to work with. I have hired a friend with a jack hammer to cut in large shrubs. It made all the difference. He dug that large hole in 10 minutes. I suggest the salvia regla. It will love your soil. Blooms in spring and fall and if happy can get 6' tall. I had one go 8' but now it got trimmed back because it is by a path. I am out now in the uplands west of Austin and rocky limy bedrocky is what I have . My shade is thin shade from not very tall live oaks. I grow salvia madrensis, evergreen sumac, aromatic sumac, salvia gregii in the shade.
...See More
Help with a drought-tolerant Japanese-style garden
Q
Comments (3)
Hmmm....that's a bit of a challenge :-) Most Japanese gardens are focused around water - ponds and other water features - so drought tolerance is not a typical issue. Rhododendrons, azaleas, pieris and camellias - the standard bearers of flowering shrubs in a Japanese garden - and trees like Japanese maples or flowering cherries are not exactly considered to be very drought tolerant so these would be pretty far down on my list. I'd look at pines or other conifers. Japanese barberry (Berberis thunbergii) and other barberries could work, Nandina domestica, Japanese holly (Ilex crenata) and boxwood are other good droughty choices. And if you need a larger growing tree, I'd consider Ginkgo. Epimediums make a good flowering groundcover for dry areas. Depending on how large the area is, I might focus more on rocks and pebbles to create the Asian feel and just accent with a few drought tolerant plants - like Pinus parvifolia 'Fukuzumi' or a dwarf mugo pine. And remember that even listed drought tolerant plants are not immediately drought tolerant. They will need routine watering until properly established in the landscape, usually at least a couple of growing seasons.
...See More
trpool
14 years ago
Oooh, one of my favorite natives is an island bush snapdragon (galvezia). Evergreen, nice, red flowers that the hummers love, and a cinch to grow. Doesn't seem to be super picky about soil like some natives can be. Don't overwater it, though. I understand they can get up to 4 feet or so--mine are still small, but they seem to be virtually no care!

A great non-native that you can literally throw in the ground and forget about is a cape plumbago. You usually see the blue ones which can get quite big--I like the "Escapade white" a smaller white version. You don't have to deadhead this (evergreen) plant or water it once it's established and it will still reward you with flowers for many, many months. You might want to trim it a little for shape, if you want to keep it within certain bounds, but I think they look just fine doing their thing.

I'm in zone 24, too.
trpool
14 years ago
Never mind. I didn't see your space is on the north--these plants need more sun. I'd delete my previous message--but apparently one can't.

My bad.
bahia
14 years ago
Actually the Galvezia can do well in shade, I have one that gets no irrigation and is quite shaded with only dappled sun and it still blooms heavily.
iris_gal
14 years ago
What a shame to lose them. Nothing replaces camellias! My favorite shrub for shade. To me the companions that look well with camellias are azaelas & ferns.

I read about oak root fungus after seeing your post and the bad news was the fungus lives on in the roots left behind from the infected plant. If that is what killed your shrubs, the others will probably die also.

None of the plants I thought of were listed as being resistant to the fungus. And some would not look well with camellias IMO. But here are some I like for semi-shade.

Brunfelsia

Coprosma repens - love this shrub, leaves glossier than I've ever seen, handsome. Might look well with camellias.

Fatsia japonica aka Aralia sieboldii - not so popular now, bold leaves. Might look well with camellias.

Hosta - not really a foundation shrub but nice with ferns, azaelas & camellias in shade

Hydrangea - shade type; not particularly pretty with camellias IMO

Viburnum davidii - shorter shrub; V. foetens - hard to find, taller

If the shade is a 'light' one, Murraya paniculata is a pretty shrub.
wanda
14 years ago
I second (or third) the Carpenteria. It's a nice evergreen shrub that makes a good substitute for Camellias, even down to the large white blossoms although they bloom later in the season (June).
You might also consider one of the coffeeberrys (Rhamnus), such as 'San Bruno Mound' or 'Eve Case'.
Toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia) will also grow in a partly shady area and offers year round beauty, with white summer flowers and bright red winter berries that the birds adore.

All are CA natives.

Wanda
calistoga_al ca 15 usda 9
14 years ago
I am interested in what caused the death of your Camellias. I have four on the north side of my house as foundation plantings that are fifty years old. They were above the roof when we needed to replace the roof and gutters five years ago. I cut them all down to four feet from which they produced new foliage and are beautiful now. This property was native mixed oak and fir and was cleared to build the house. Oak root fungus is rampant through out the soil. As long as I don't plant susceptible plants that need summer water it is not a problem. I wonder if your Camellia problem started as a result of summer watering? Al

foundation shrub that's drought tolerant and easy

Comments (8)

omniphasic

bahia

Related Discussions

trpool

trpool

bahia

iris_gal

wanda

calistoga_al ca 15 usda 9

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US