Sandra Gordon Grevillea

Sandra Gordon Grevillea (Grevillea 'Sandra Gordon') is a fast growing native screen that does its best work in the middle of winter. It reaches about 5m tall and 3.5m wide, carrying large golden toothbrush flowers that honeyeaters strip daily. Planted 2.5m apart it closes into a tall informal screen inside two to three seasons.

Why you'll love it

• It flowers when nothing else does. Big golden yellow to orange toothbrush flowers through winter, when a garden usually has nothing to show.
• Birds arrive in the first season. Honeyeaters and lorikeets work the flowers hard, the fastest way to bring wildlife into a new garden.
• Genuinely fast. A vigorous hybrid of Grevillea pteridifolia and Grevillea sessilis, it puts on real height while a slower screen is still finding its feet.
• Poor soil is not a problem. It handles thin, infertile ground and goes drought tolerant once established.

Where it works best

Screening and privacy. Plant 2.5m apart in a single row. The canopies meet without shading each other into a thin base, and you have useful height in the second year.

Windbreaks. A staggered double row at 2.5m spacing filters wind rather than blocking it. The fine divided foliage lets wind through instead of catching it, which is why it holds up on exposed sites.

Feature planting and coastal gardens. A single plant makes a striking small tree with the lower limbs lifted. Coastal blocks suit it set back from direct salt spray.

Growing Sandra Gordon Grevillea in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun. Anything less and it grows open and flowers poorly. It suits tropical, subtropical and warm temperate gardens and takes light frost only, so hard frosting inland, tableland and cold southern districts should choose a hardier native screen.

Soil. Free draining is the one requirement, and poor sandy or gravelly ground suits it. On clay, plant high on a raised mound. Never use standard garden fertiliser: grevilleas are sensitive to phosphorus, so reach for a low phosphorus native product.

Water and feed. Deep soak twice a week through the first summer, then taper right off as the roots go down. After two seasons it is genuinely drought tolerant. One light native feed after flowering is all it asks.

Pruning. This matters more than with most screens. Tip prune from the day you plant, then cut back by a third after each flowering. Left alone it grows leggy, and old bare wood does not reshoot reliably.

What to expect when it arrives

It is grown in two sizes. Tube stock is young, single stemmed and the value choice for a long boundary, since grevilleas establish fast enough that a bigger plant's head start is smaller than you would think. The 200mm pot, sold as a pack of six, gives branched plants and enough of them to run a screen straight away.

Plants are packed to travel upright, and some leaf drop after transit is normal rather than a fault. Expect a quiet few weeks, then strong growth once the weather warms. Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Read the complete grevillea care guide
• Compare varieties in the full grevillea range
• See other screening plants in the 4m to 8m range
• Build the garden around it with bird attracting plants

Common questions

How far apart do I plant it for a screen?

Two and a half metres apart in a single row. That reflects its 3.5m mature width and leaves each plant enough light to stay furnished low down.

Can I keep it smaller than 5m?

Yes, with discipline. Cutting back by a third after each flowering holds it around 3m. What you cannot do is neglect it for years then cut into bare wood, which reshoots poorly.

What fertiliser should I use?

A low phosphorus native fertiliser, applied lightly after flowering. Standard complete fertilisers and most manures carry enough phosphorus to damage grevillea roots.