Points to consider in plant selection

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32612, 21 May 1971, Page 11

Points to consider in plant selection

There arc many desirable plants which deserve a place in the garden but it is not possible to include more than a few for various reasons, the size of the section usually being the major limiting factor. There are several ways in deciding what to include, the biggest initial aid in this being the drawing of a layout plan. Plants can then be selected to meet the various requirements such as autumn colour, specimen plant or live Not all plants are suitable for a particular area or situation and where there is a lade of familiarity with the subject recourse to book and catalogue should be made. From such sources hardiness, habit of growth, ultimate size, position required, soil preferences, colour of flowers, deciduous or evergreen and so on, can be ascertained. Hardiness is often difficult to determine. Catalogues can only generalise about it, as do the gardening books which deal specifically with New Zealand conditions. The question of hardiness varies from district to district and even from garden to garden; it is a question more important locally to those living on the flat than those situated in the more favoured hill areas. Often there is a statement that a plant is “frost tender when young,” and “not hardy until well established” which does cause some confusion. This is usually the case with plants which are native to warmer regions, those which must acclimatise, which may require a canopy of hardened growth to protect their more

sdelicate new growth, and s some of those which undergo : transitional stages of foliage s growth from juvenile to t adult, as, for instance with s many of the eucalypts. ! Again, even hardy plants cannot 'be expected to i survive severe cold if they > have been grown in very s sheltered conditions and are ■ then thrust out without ■ being hardened off. In many i instances protection in the i initial years of establishment ■ can allow a less than hardy plant to flourish in a lesss than-suitable place, provided . the cold is not excessive or i prolonged. A north-facing wall is the warmest part of almost any garden and a surprising range of half hardy and tender plants can be grown against it. Irrespective of where a tender plant is to be put it is best to wait until the danger of frosts is past before planting. A very common pitfall is over-close planting. Admittedly group planting can be most effective but this is too easily overdone. When initially purchased a plant i may look insignificantly, small, but it will grow and; can become an embarrass-, ment if its final size is not known.

Careful selection becomes an even more important issue in the smaller sections used today. Here space must be utilised both carefully and effectively if it is desired to make the most of a limited area. A very good example of bad selection is the choice of numerous tall-growing trees for a confined and/or restricted area.

An argument often put forward is that initial overplanting can be condoned for the more rapid effect that it imparts, and because once specimens have outgrown their position they can be pulled out Yes, this is feasible enough where an experienced person is in charge of the situation. But what usually happens is that either this is never done or it is done at a stage when plants have already become stunted or mis-shapen through over-crowding. Yet another consideration is the fact that it is not always so easy to pull out a big specimen as it was planting it Still, if gaps are a source of worry or annoyance there are many short-lived but nevertheless attractive plants which can be used.

Apart from having a knowledge of a plant’s ultimate dimensions and hardiness, it pays to ascertain what position suits it best—

whether sun or shade, partial or full. A plant may be tolerant of very dry conditions, require protection from wind or intolerant of alkaline soils. There are some subjects which will grow almost anywhere and others which are just not worth planting unless their exact requirements are met.

Colour combinations, whether it be for leaf, foliage, flower, berry, bark or a combination, are a feature of planning the planting scheme which can greatly enhance or detract from an area. Try

to maintain interest throughout the year and avoid concentration in one season. A notable example is in over selection of spring-flowering plants, many of which have very little to offer for the rest of the year. Selection of fruiting subjects should be equally if not more seriously contemplated, and a choice should perhaps only be made if they are going to receive correct and proper attention so that they can fulfil their purpose, i Apart from the cultural as- ' pect, thought must be given to their ultimate size, polli- , nation requirements and a , reasonable continuity of supt ply. There are dwarfing root i stocks available for some kinds and varieties of fruit and also some multiple varieties on one stock which are well worth consideration where space is limited.

The points raised above do not purport to be an exhaustive treatment of the issue of plant selection, nor have they been raided to make the whole thing seem an intricate and specialised procedure. The aim has been merely to create a greater

awareness of the benefits of selectivity. Simplicity, correctly executed, can often create an impact such as no amount of involved designing can ever achieve. Anyone who disbelieves this need only examine some of the illustrations of true Japanese gardens.