Sick oleanders

19 years ago

I have a group of 4 oleanders -2 red, 2 white - none of which flower very well and 2 look positively ill. They have never really looked good so

a)any suggestions as to why - other plants (Indian hawthorns, tree dahlias, bottlebrush, wedding bush and viburnum) growing nearby are fine

b)suggestions for something to replace them - they were planted to provide a bit of screening, the position is west facing with a small peppermint tree to the north

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Comments (3)

annabel__WA
19 years ago
Maybe they are overwatered and fertilised. Down Rockingham industrial way there are Oleanders on the fences which do very well and are obviously never watered.
leyle
Original Author
19 years ago
They certainly aren't overfed, and I doubt that they are overwatered either - they are right on the edge of a sprinkler's reach. That's why I planted them in this position.
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trancegemini_wa
19 years ago
hi, once they are established they will thrive on neglect, mine get no watering at all, just rain in winter, theyre no where near any sprinklers, and fertiliser, zip, zilch, nothing :), they seem to like it that way. they should do well in a west facing position if theyre getting lots of sun. One thing I noticed with mine though, is that one of them only had a short flowering period while the other flowered all through summer, I figured it was just because they were different varieties (one is fragrant, and the other isnt), but after we removed a nearby tree to the one that only flowered a bit, it has been flowering all summer long for the first time, so the nearby trees you mentioned might be causing a bit too much root competition for them. if you want to replace them with something, the showy honey myrtle (melaleuca) make great screens and will stand up to the heat (theyll need some water for the first couple of years though), and they do grow to about the same height as the oleander.

Sick oleanders

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annabel__WA

leyle
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Sick oleanders

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annabel__WA

leyleOriginal Author

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leyle
Original Author