My Garden

Looking for a shade loving evergreen

Last post 01-05-2008 10:33 PM by Ariadne. 8 replies.

• 26/04/2008 01:32 PM

  ymv13 Location: Essex Joined on: 09 Oct 2005 Posts: 8

  Reply | Contact Hi I am looking for a shade loving, evergreen plant to go in a large wooden planter.  I need it to screen an ugly gap where my fence meets my neighbours fence.  (When they erected their fence they didn't position it in a straight line so the 2 fences do not meet correctly at the boundry)  This corner of the garden is surrounded by my neighbours trees, so get no direct sun light. Ideally would like someting that will grow to about 4 feet and not spread to wide. Can anyone suggest anything suitable? Many thanks Yve

• 26/04/2008 05:02 PM	In reply to
  digger Location: North East Lancashire Joined on: 18 Jul 2005 Posts: 3,305	Reply | Contact Hello ymv13, have you thought about planting an ivy plant? they take no looking after at all. digger

• 26/04/2008 05:54 PM

  In reply to

  Bog Myrtle Location: Southern Turkey Joined on: 07 Feb 2007 Posts: 346

  Reply | Contact Rosemary might do the trick ymv, although it likes sun, it's also quite happy to be in the shade of other trees. It grows to about the size you're looking for, can be easily kept trimmed if it starts to get too big, is evergreen, gives you flowers, and has the added advantage that it smells lovely, and attracts lots of butterflies & bees to your garden.  Or how about holly? Pretty berries and good for stoppng aybody trying to squeeze through between the fences. Euonymus would be another possibility, the yellow on the bicoloured leaves cheers up a dingy corner, makes it look sunny even when it isn't. Or mahonia, with the added advantage of flowers in season. Or of course any of the smaller conifers - Yew is nice, or one of the smaller chamaecyparis species - there are some pretty yellow ones, we have one or two in the garden, and they always look as though the sun is striking them, even in the darkest days of winter, which is great for cheering you up on dull days.

• 27/04/2008 01:26 PM	In reply to
  ymv13 Location: Essex Joined on: 09 Oct 2005 Posts: 8	Reply | Contact Thank you for the great suggestions.  Have had a lovely time in the garden centre this morning, comparing the different plants suggested and have settled for a well established Euonymus Japonicus "Bravo".  Cost me £45 but it is already a great size and will instantly fill the gap and give the ugly corner a welcome boost.  Just got to plant it into it's container now. Yve

• 27/04/2008 02:45 PM	In reply to
  Bog Myrtle Location: Southern Turkey Joined on: 07 Feb 2007 Posts: 346	Reply | Contact hi ymv, I hope your euonymus settles happily into its new home  (45 quid though, terrifying - has Britain really gotten so pricey??)

• 27/04/2008 03:53 PM	In reply to
  digger Location: North East Lancashire Joined on: 18 Jul 2005 Posts: 3,305	Reply | Contact maybe it's pricey down in Essex but up here in the sticks we can still buy a big Euonymus for 2 and sixpence. digger

• 27/04/2008 07:15 PM	In reply to
  Bog Myrtle Location: Southern Turkey Joined on: 07 Feb 2007 Posts: 346	Reply | Contact Digger, you're not old enough to remember 2/6d ! (unless of course they're stll using real money where you hail from?) ( Anyway, half a crown was a lot of money - I can remember Thomson & Morgan seeds being horrifyingly expensive (no change there then!), and having to save up my pocket money for weeks to buy a packet of 6 greenhouse foliage plant seeds for 2/6d )

• 27/04/2008 08:07 PM

  In reply to

  digger Location: North East Lancashire Joined on: 18 Jul 2005 Posts: 3,305

  Reply | Contact i remember being told about decimalisation at school, and my Mother who was tight used to put sixpence or a tanner to the oldies under the pillow from the "tooth fairy2 of course after decimalisation the sixpence was only worth tuppence ha'penny! but that didn't stop my mother from being tight. It didn't really mean bo diddley to me i remember my older brothers moaning about it though. digger

• 01/05/2008 10:33 PM	In reply to
  Ariadne Location: Contemplating on the compost heap Joined on: 05 Apr 2008 Posts: 75	Reply | Contact ............sixpence for a tooth?..........by 'eck, you know'd 'ow ter live, lad! We got a big penny for a whacking great gobstopper! & when I asked for a raise, I got my ear "thicked" for my cheek!! Sitting, spinning threads of stories & weaving the colourful strands of life.