Shrubs

Shrubs are the working layer of a garden, the plants that do the actual jobs: screening the neighbours, edging the path, filling the gap between trees and groundcovers, and holding the design together in winter when perennials disappear. Choose this layer well and everything else becomes decoration.

Start by matching the shrub to the job rather than the picture on the label. For formal hedging you want naturally dense, small leafed varieties that tolerate regular clipping, typically maintained between 1m and 2m. For privacy screening, faster growers in the 2m to 4m band do the work, and it pays to check growth rate as well as final height, since a screen you need in two years rules out the slow growers. For garden beds, a reliable ratio is roughly 70 percent evergreen structure to 30 percent deciduous or seasonal performers, which keeps the garden furnished year round while still giving it seasonal change.

• Space hedging shrubs at 2 to 3 plants per metre for a dense screen within a couple of seasons
• Check mature width, not just height, since a 1.5m wide shrub planted 40cm from a path will be pruned forever
• Tip prune young shrubs every few months in their first two years to build density you cannot add later
• In frost prone areas, plant evergreen shrubs in early autumn so roots establish before winter

If you are pricing up a long boundary, our hedge calculator works out exactly how many plants you need for your spacing and length, and buying the same varieties as tubestock can cut the cost of a big run dramatically. For specific choices, the westringia care guide covers the toughest native for coastal and low water gardens, while the viburnum care guide covers one of the fastest dense screens available in Australia. Orders are freighted fresh from the nursery to every state.