HELP!! Non-Oz gardener! What grows under gums?

21 years ago

Hello all

Have been lurking on mainly US forums although I live in Spain, Europe, as climate here is very untypical of most of Europe - basically edge of mediterranean but sub-desert.

Really hope you experts can help with info about euc. Did a search on the entire Oz site to find out about problems of planting under gum trees (I think ours are "ribbon gum" but not entirely sure.) I couldnÂ´t find anything but I think that is maybe because the answers are so obvious to all of you that it is not even an item for discussion! We have about 5 gum trees on one part of our plot (where I am trying to grow things) and another three on the boundary line (and here I have given up entirely!) Locals here said that I would get nothing to grow under these trees but, like a fool, I decided to think that this was an old wiveÂ´s tale. I found a piece on the internet from a very reliable looking (Australian) source - canÂ´t quite remember what, but it was intended for serious agriculturalists - and it said that plenty would grow under these trees and that they did not exude toxins (as people thought) but just created so much litter (bark, leaves, seeds, etc) that they smothered many things. So I thought - "Hey, I can just make sure I keep these beds reasonably clean and tidy....". Ha! The two raised beds that we created in the vicinity of the gums are now known as "The Beds Of Death" as nothing will grow there except things like aptenia cordifolia (which I defy anyone to kill) and lampranthus. Even the lantana (non-invasive here) that I put in a couple of weeks ago, is having a hard time of it. When I go to dig dying plants out for replacement (which is often) I find the raised beds absolutely full of fine, matted roots. What I really need to know from you experts is this; am I dealing with a lack of water problem (the gum trees soaking up, like a sponge, any available water in our hot dry climate or is it indeed because of something secreted by the trees? IÂ´d be very, very grateful for your advice. What do YOU grow under these trees? Or are you too wise to have any in your gardens???

Thanks very much for your time.

Almeria

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Comments (5)

User
21 years ago
I grow lots under my Gum trees, a couple have a Bougainvillea climbing under them, I wont let it go no higher than say 8ft or 2.4 mts, another one has Ferns, Agapanthus, a native orchid, and a climber called Stephanotis Floribunda with a white flower.

Other side of the driveway has a Gum tree with a Allamander climber, it has yellow trumpet flowers, beneath them are more Agapanthus and Gazania,there are also two red/purple coloured Cordyline.

But my favourite Gum under it, it has a White Wisteria, Federation Daisy, Bromeliad, Canna lilys Jonquill,Fressia Begonia, ferns, it is big wide tree, There are also hanging baskets on the lower branches with Zygocactus.

But you have got to water them I gave up on the raised garden beds under the trees, same trouble too many roots so now they are just planted in the soil around the base of the trees and they have about 6ins or 15cms of mulch on them. I live in Brisbane the Capital of Queensland it is sub tropical a bit dry the past few years so a lot of hand watering is needed, So Good Luck with your Gardening.

MM.
alisonoz_gw
21 years ago
Yes toxins are really not the problem in my experience just that they are thirsty and will suck every bit of nutrient and water out of the soil leaving you with fewer alternatives for sub-planting. Other trees don't quite cope with the competition but I've found shaller-rooted things like azalias do OK. Epiphytes and orchids are fine and bulbs. Strangely some of my best ixoras are there and seem to like the afternoon shade maybe they have adapted. Bromeliads love the filtered light, anything that you can happily grow in pots will be OK
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Dawn, you're more than welcome! You were one of the people who helped me have success with my first veggie garden a few years back (2009) & I'm honestly just in awe of your knowledge & experience. As far as I know from reading the threads of the forum, we live the closest to each other & if it wouldn't seem like a strange thing to offer, I'd love to come help you in your garden if you ever needed help. You seem to really know your stuff & be very interested in your plants, planted & native to your property alike, which I think is awesome. I'm always checking out interesting plants in my yard & in the woods around here on the refuge. I can only hope one day to be the expert that you certainly are. :) I had never seen the Lunas before, but they are very beautiful. My son finds them fascinating & my dogs try to catch them, LOL. I'm pleased to know there is an upside to the spikey balls from hell, besides the fall foliage show. The one in our new yard must be very old, it's so huge that I can't wrap my arms around the trunk & the roots wouldn't be that far exposed if it wasn't, I don't think. It's roots run the entire length of my house. I ran into some when I was hoeing out the side & back flowerbeds & was like "Wow, that's an impressive root system." I think that commelina would be an ideal cover for the shallow soil & I certainly know that it would grow tall enough to cover up those roots. My mom's goes crazy every year & she's already griping about it's height. Usually, she has her yard guys weedwhack it down several times a summer. I told her to let me do it this year & take the cuttings. I'm kinda wanting it to be semi-invasive, because the section I want it to take over is beneath that tree & also the other side of my front yard in the shade of the tree, which is all infested with sticker grass. I had ambitious plans to dig it all out by hand b/c I'd heard that's really the only way to get rid of it...until I realized that about 500,000 of them were scattered all over the whole yard & digging them up is no easy task. They have underground spreaders that break easily & each new place I broke has, within a week, sent up new spikes. Grrr. I've read that stickers don't do well at all with competition, so hopefully the commelina will outcompete & do what I want it to do. I figured I'd try it, anyway. What have I got to lose? It's all free, so no waste of money. This post was edited by faerybutterflye on Wed, May 1, 13 at 9:50
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Almeria
Original Author
21 years ago
Wow! Thanks for such helpful and encouraging advice. You both mention some plants that I really like ...so I guess there is hope! Mistymorn - it had never occurred to me that the raised beds would make the problem worse....but I can now see why. DonÂ´t know if I will be able to start again - itÂ´s not so much a raised bed as a wall retaining a sloping bank (that two of the eucs are on) and which I then back filled with loads of (now root-filled!) soil. But I love the idea of trying agapanthus etc. I love stephanotis. Would never have dreamt of trying it in this location! Alison - IÂ´m off to look up Ixoras; theyÂ´re a new one on me! IÂ´glad to know that it is (just!) a problem of watering/feeding and not one of toxins leaching into the soil.
Thanks again to both of you for your kind advice.
Granville44
21 years ago
The bougainvilleas grow well because they don't actually like much water (I've killed one with kindness!).

Ground covers like Running Postman are handy too.
Barb
Almeria
Original Author
21 years ago
Barb - Just looked to see what Running Postman actually is (have never heard of it before!) I think it looks great and just the ticket - I but only located any info about it on Australian forums. Shall keep searching until I find someone who supplies plants/seeds in Europe.
Thanks for the great suggestion
Best wishes
Almeria

HELP!! Non-Oz gardener! What grows under gums?

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