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Seaside
Plants
1 July
2003
 It
would be silly to say there are no problems
for those who garden close to the coast. North
and East winds can play havoc with evergreens.
Salt spray on plant foliage is a real problem.
Looking on the bright side there is less risk
of frost, allowing tender plants to be successfully
grown.
There is an amazing range of plants that will
not only succeed but will cause envy with inland
gardeners. Soil types vary but they are usually
light and free draining. They will benefit from
heavy applications of compost or old, well rotted,
farmyard manure. Surface mulching in early spring
with gravel or bark mulch will help retain moisture
during summer.
A wind break of wind and salt tolerant trees
and shrubs will provide protection for the rest
of the garden. The secret of success is to choose
plants that will serve their purpose without
blocking the sea view.
 Where
there is space for large trees a mixture of
sycamore, hawthorn, poplar, holly and rowan
tree will offer good shelter. Arbutus unedo,
the strawberry tree is tough and ornamental
with white flowers and
strawberry -like fruit, both appearing in autumn.
The cabbage palm, Cordyline australis, makes
a fine specimen but naturally loses its leaves
as they age leaving a tree with a bare trunk.
Underplant the tree screen with New Zealand
flax, Phormium tenax and bushy species of cotoneaster
to bulk up the filtering factor.
Evergreen shrubs include Choisya ternata and
the variety ‘Aztec Pearl’ both with
white flowers in early summer and aromatic foliage.
Escallonias are available in a range of summer
flowers from white
through pink to deep red. They make a wonderful
flowering hedge for seaside gardens. Eleagnus
ebbingei and E.pungens ‘Maculata’
will grow anywhere above the high tide mark.
Hippophae rhamnoides will tolerate sandy soil
and salt spray. The leaves are grey-green with
masses of orange-yellow berries throughout the
winter.
Olearias, lavenders, hydrangea and fuchsia all
love the seaside. Tamarix with its lovely pink
flowers looks tender but loves the frost free
conditions. Junipers, pines and bamboo provides
you with lots of alternatives so make sure your
seaside garden is fit for a holiday.
For more informatino on Seaside plants visit
our seaside
garden section
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