Re: Hebe salicifolia

Tim Longville wrote:
As Moira said, Tough and if happy or even barely surviving then inclined to be mildly invasive via self-sown seedlings. It will easily grow to almost tree-size in favourable conditions so whether it's ultimately desirable as a hedging plant is perhaps doubtful. OTOH, certainly here in the UK, even in quite cold districts it will stand - and benefits from - hard cutting back. So if you've got the energy and commitment to keep on whacking at it...!
Moira said that it's short-lived in the wild. It certainly isn't 'in captivity' here. I've a plant which came with us to this garden 20 years ago and is still going strong. And though Moira is sniffy about it - and though it certainly isn't either the most glamorous, the most shapely or the best-behaved hebe in the world - it has been much admired here over the years. As a result, many of those self-sown seedlings have bumped up our profits on Garden Open days! So it has its uses...
Tim

I am sure captive longevity and good looks are largely linked with having someone to trim it occasionall and keep the growth compact and youthful. Many of the larger-leaved Hebes seem to need this rejuvenation to ensure long survival.

I am sorry if I seemed disparaging of its charms, but there are many more beautiful Hebes around, both species and hybrids, some of which also have a naturally more compact habit and look good for longer. As to cold tolerence, all species I know of seem to survive our winters here, even the rather fussy H.speciosa which likes warm dry seaside places and may suffer from leafspots and mildew in damp inland situations, but colder areas might certainly be too much for some species (mostly the large leaved types, mnay small-leaved species are naturally alpines anyway)..

Moira

--
Tony & Moira Ryan,
Wainuiomata, North Island, NZ.     Pictures of our garden at:-
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/cherie1/Garden/TonyandMoira/index.htm
NEW PICTURES ADDED 4/Feb/2004

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