OZ Natives for winter shade.

18 years ago

Hello. I'm looking for various natives to 1 mtr max to plant on the south side of my house.I'm on a hill & the south side is 2.5 mtrs above ground at floor level.5 mtrs at gutter so as you can imagine a fair area is shaded all winter but full sun all summer. I need to cover a huge area with bird attracting natives. Growing to a max of 1 mtr. Can anybody give me some names of suitable plants that will grow in gravel/loam soil 2 klm from ocean in Yallingup area South West Western Aust. I'm keen for low growing ground covers especially, various colour flowers.

Thanks.

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Comments (7)

mistymorn
18 years ago
Hi and Happy Birthday to you have a terrific day..Over here in Brisbane I grow lots of Grevillea and Callistemons in the shade but not on a hill. I never water them, the soil is terrible and in the flowering time they are breathtaking. I prune every branch after flowering, so that they are always bushy, which is a few times during the year for the Grevillea as it is native to the area and always flowering..Hope this helps......Cheers...MM.
artiew
18 years ago
Some of the dwarf Melaleuca and Leptospermum species seem to take a lot of abuse (low light to full sun, windy position etc), and I believe that Westringia Fruticosa is also very hardy in exposed positions. Most plants need to fruit and/or flower to attract birds, and that usually requires some exposure to sunlight at specific times of the year - I can only suggest that you read up on particular species and ensure that its flowering period coincides with the angle of the sun on that side of your home at that time of year. Personally, I love nothing more than Winter-flowering plants - really give the garden a lift when its most needed, and Winter is a tough time for many of our bird species.

Good luck,

Artie
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Not trying to get into the wintersow vs. not wintersow debate here but....... The only time it makes sense to wintersow is when you are sowing seeds needing cold stratification and I know some of the ones you listed do not need it. I sowed the Asceplsis incarnata in early August and plan to put them in the ground under mulch all winter. I am winter sowing some native shrub seeds needing a couple months of cold strat. in pots outdoors and three others that are perennials that specifically need it. There are no hard fast rules to this. To each his own. I rather enjoy sowing indoors in winter and have had very good results and it gives me an uplift in winter to do that. I have had good head starts on healthy plants this way and have sowed many SW shrubs, perennials, ornamental grasses, cactus, etc. I always have something indoors in winter I am sowing. I usually start them in October or November in a large sunny S. exposure window and grow them very cool in the coldest dark months sort of in a wait pattern, then let them get warm again in late Feb when the sun comes stronger. I use lights sometimes if necessary but usually they just sit there in the cold. I am not a wintersower to the degree popularized to a hobby level of lots of containers with holes, lids etc craze with every seed I get being done that way. I just use regular pots in the shade under the carport for the seeds specifically needing a cold period. For penstemons its good, they come up when its still very cold. Some seeds needing cold I direct sow. Sometimes I experiment and try all different ways to see what does best with a backup supply to resow in spring. Look up your different varieties and see what they need and go from there. I have sowed seeds as early as October and had established plugs to put into the ground come spring. Other times I put the late summer sown seedlings in the ground in late fall and cover them with leaf mulch and had good well rooted starts that way in spring. Look at nature, she does that all the time with seeds that have fallen. Mostly, make it fun for yourself and do what you want. Save extra seeds for insurance, or try multiple ways and experiment. Do a test in a damp paper towel with a few seeds to see if they sprout in a few days. Often that will tell you want you need to know.
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pos02
18 years ago
I have a similar problem. the guy in the nursery told me that you need to plant for the sun. Most plants are quite dormant in winter, so the shade will not affect them. You may need to tip prune a bit more to keep them bushy however. Correas grow quite well here, as well as some of the tropical plants. I have a native ginger and a Davidson Plum, with pitosporums growing wild and birds nest ferns underneath.
justcorreas
18 years ago
Western Australia weather may tend to be a bit hot for Correas, but I'd still give them a try on the southern side of your house as they are very versatile and come in a myriad of colours and sizes. Correas are at their best in winter and shade won't bother them too much.
I'd possibly give Correa pulchella varieties a try along with the grey foliage Correa alba var pannosa. For bigger coverage try a hybrid with Correa alba as one of the parents.

Ideal bird attracting plants - flower shapes and colours can be seen on my web page.
vonlang
Original Author
18 years ago
Thanks all for your kind help and suggestions.Have a nice Easter break.
Vonlang.
nathanhurst
18 years ago
plectranthus, especially argentifolium, grow well in dry shade (once estabilished). Thomasia quercifolia does well too.
gregaryb
18 years ago
Goodenia ovata does quite well in shade and many Pomaderris species can be only be grown in shade - they end up looking quite ratty in full sun. Don't know whether or not you will get these species in WA or if they will even do well in your soils.

I would not expect these species pose a weed problem over there but I can't be certain of that of course.

OZ Natives for winter shade.

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mistymorn

artiew

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OZ Natives for winter shade.

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mistymorn

artiew

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