Trailing options for street front planting...
When you have a strip of plantable space out front of your home, knowing what to plant can feel overwhelming.
A wander up and down your street will give you a good feel for how your neighbours have approached things and is also a great way to get a sense of what is likely to grow well (and what isn't - usually plenty of examples there too!)
Hedging is a great option for many owners as it creates a clean, uniform street frontage. Griselinia, Michelia, Bay Laurel etc can all work a treat. But it's not for everyone. And it does require some hedge trimming care to keep things looking sharp.
But what if a straight hedge isn't fitting the brief?
Good news! There are some awesome trailing options which create a more relaxed street frontage, generally require very little ongoing care and often provide a gorgeous texture, splashes of flowers and even maybe a scent for all to enjoy.
Here are a few of our favourite options - for this list, only the most unfussy have survived - rest assured these guys all are hardy, spreading, will grow in most soils and happy to see the sun....
1. Trailing Rosemary (pictured) - excellent if you have a slightly raised street front so the Rosemary spills abundantly over the border. It does love a sunny spot so can handle super hot summers. The flowers are fantastic for attracting bees to your garden and your street will be sorted for roast dinner seasoning.
(Random Fact - a sprig of dried rosemary will help repel moths from clothes cupboards. Huh.)
2. Coprosma Kirkii Variegata - if you want to go native. Tiny leaves with a cream margin creating a light grey visual appearance. Looks superb against a dark fence.
3. Californian Lilac - masses of small blue Pom Pom flowers cover shrub in summer. Super hardy, a bit quirky and loves the sun (being Californian)
4. Moroccan Glory Vine - a little ripper in terms of being a weed suppresser with stunning blue grey foliage and purple blue flowers right through summer (pictured below)
5. Grace Ward Lithodora Diffusa - low growing dense ground cover with dark green leaves. Masses of small rich blue flowers throughout spring. Delicate looking but tough tough tough!
6. Thyme - more specifically Thymus Coccineus. Low growing ground cover with tiny leaves and masses of tiny magenta-pink flowers in season. The street show stopper.
7. Star Jasmine - because no list would be complete without this legend. Can be mass planted along a wall and while it will form dense deep green growth you can easily encourage tendrils to flow over the wall or alternatively keep it clipped and flowering abundantly in season. Smells amazing.
So there's some options to get started.
Remember there is a plant style to suit everyone so if you want a second opinion, just send us an email and we'll give you our thoughts (which you are then welcome to ignore).
Kate and the team x