Belated Oleanders

Dear group--
I've been catching up after a three week absence and can't resist contributing to the now exhausted oleanders thread:
--When I was growing up in  postwar urban Greece, oleanders provided the only summer color available.  The scarce water supply was saved for vegetables and fruit-trees and most ornamental shrubs and trees had been burnt for firewood during the Occupation. I suppose the popular belief that oleander smoke was poisonous contributed to their salvation.
Result:  I hated them as common, ugly, sticky, bitter, gray,etc.  I longed for the lush bright greens and and subtle pastels I read about in my English books.  I laugh now to remember the fervent horticultural xenophilia of a ten-year old.
--Over the years I have come to love them, not only with nostalgia for what they represent but true appreciation of their beauty both individually and within our landscape.
--In recent years, and with the help of Olivier Filippi, I've been experimenting with many different kinds, sizes, colors from many parts of the Med.  It hasn't been easy.  Many of the imports are horribly susceptible to red spider-mite and seem to require more attention and water than our local ones.  Still, things improve with every passing summer and the results are very rewarding.
--I second Irini Ramphou's praise of Olivier's work.  Welcome Irini--write to me!
--The last point I want to make is in praise of the oleander's companion plant in the dry riverbeds of Greek mountains: the Chaste Tree, Vitex agnus-castus.  It's a shrub whose dainty gray foliage and mauve spires complement the oleanders in  rather Jekyll-like natural compositions.  It is has a sage-like fragrance and requires no care at all, no summer water thrives on salt air, and can be trained into a decent-sized tree.
regards
Cali Doxiadis
 
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