The oleander, an air of vacation

During a vacation in Brittany or in the Mediterranean basin, who hasn't fallen in love with the splendid flowering of the oleander? Bringing back a cutting is very tempting, but you will have to know how to acclimatize this frileuse to see it grow.

The oleander, a perfume from elsewhere...

As a shrub or as a tree with a real trunk, the oleander is one of those plants that inspire vacations. Crossed with the liking of the strolls on the littorals where the climate remains soft all the year, this shrub evokes the joys of idleness and the evenings spent under its delicate scents. Because in addition to being beautiful, the oleander distils a sweet fragrance mixing almond and vanilla.

At the roadside, it takes the place of the usual plane trees and other trees of alignment in some villages of the extreme South. Another advantage is that it blooms continuously from June to October, which makes it an outstanding ornamental subject.

In Mediterranean gardens, it is used to compose hedges to nicely underline a fence or to shelter from prying eyes around a swimming pool. Pruned as a tree, it is an unparalleled ornamental subject on a lawn.

It embellishes the backgrounds of beds with its beauty and blends in with rhododendrons and azaleas to relay their blooms in Breton gardens. The temptation is therefore great to cut it or to buy a subject in a garden center or at a plant festival...

An oleander in the North ?

The oleander (Nerium oleander) is native to the Mediterranean basin where it grows spontaneously at the foot of waterways. This is why a newly planted subject will need regular watering, especially in hot regions, contrary to what may be said here and there! Once well installed, it supports the heat and the dryness without concern.

The oleander is a cold plant that does not tolerate frost except very occasionally, for a short time and of low amplitude. Its planting in the open ground in the North and in mountainous regions is therefore not recommended. It is preferable to plant it in pots in order to be able to overwinter it in a greenhouse, veranda or winter garden as soon as the first frosts arrive.

The typical species with single pink flowers resists a little better to the cold than the cultivars with very double flowers. The yellow (very rare) and salmon colors are much more fragile and therefore to be avoided in the coldest regions under penalty of disappointment.

To obtain an opulent bloom, place your oleander in full sun and in the warmest place of your garden or balcony.  Water it very often, especially in summer.

Prune the oleander with moderation because it produces its flowers on the previous year's wood. However, if you want to contain it, prune it just after flowering, keeping some branches intact.

The sarcococca, a shrub with very fragrant flowers in winter

The scent of the sarcococca

The sarcococca is an Asian evergreen shrub that reminds us of the box tree (they both belong to the same family Buxaceae). Its beautiful dark green and shiny foliage, made of small lanceolate leaves, is therefore decorative all year long. But this is not its only interest. The sarcococca also blooms in winter, producing apetal flowers with very developed white stamens and a very pleasant perfume that spreads all around it, on a perimeter of 1,50 to 2 m, even when it is cold. It is therefore interesting to install it near the entrance door.

Where to plant this shrub ?

The sarcococca is best planted in a semi-shaded area, especially south of the Loire where it has difficulty withstanding the hot sun. However, in Normandy, Brittany or in regions where summers are more temperate, it is possible to plant it under a full sun exposure.

To know: the sarcococca is quite resistant to dryness.

How to care for the sarcococca ?

The sarcococca is an easy plant to live with. On the one hand, because it has no known pests or diseases. On the other hand, it has a cespitose port; that is to say that over the years, it will emit new shoots from the base. The clump will thus widen little by little, forming a beautiful rounded shrub without the need to prune it.

The hardiness of the sarcococca

The sarcococca resists without problem to cold temperatures close to -15°C. It can therefore be planted in any season. However, if the plantation is done in spring or summer, it is necessary to think of watering it.

The plantation of the sarcococcus

The sarcococca appreciates rather rich soil (on sandy soil, it tends to yellow). After planting, mulch the soil to keep it fresh. Use an organic mulch (RCW, lawn clippings, straw) which, as it decomposes, will nourish the soil and the plant.

The multiplication of the sarcococca

After a few years of cultivation, the shrub produces fruits, pretty round drupes, first blood-red, then black, which, falling on the ground, will sow themselves to give birth to new small sarcococcas that can be transplanted or given to your friends!

Proper planting distances for trees and shrubs

We rarely ask ourselves the question of the development of a plant when it is planted. Whether planted alone near a building or in a hedge, trees and shrubs must have enough space to grow and not cause any damage.

Trees with large development

Would you like to adorn the front of that old wall with the silhouette of a majestic tree? Be careful, some species will undoubtedly lend themselves to this, but others should be avoided. Let's take the simple image of an iceberg: the emerged surface represents only a part of the existing... For trees it is the same thing! Some of them develop a root system so important that it represents twice the volume of the foliage!

Generally speaking, plan to plant large trees such as oaks, plane trees, pines or cedars at a minimum distance of 10 meters from any concrete construction. Only trellised pear or apple trees and, of course, climbing plants will be able to adorn your old wall in complete safety.

Similarly, certain trees that produce suckers should be avoided near buildings, such as mahonia, locust trees or even certain poplars whose roots can slip under the structures.

Let's not forget either that a large tree weakened by a storm can become dangerous and that falling branches are not rare. Some trees are more susceptible than others. So never plant a walnut, a poplar, a eucalyptus or an ash tree, not far from a veranda or a roof.

The same goes for drains and septic tanks, which should always be kept away from future plantings because the roots looking for water could very well make them explode.

Medium-sized trees

The planting distance will be a little shorter for medium-sized trees such as the plane tree, the hornbeam or the Judas tree. For these plants, leave a space of 5 meters from a building. Beware of the fig tree, which under its harmless appearance, has intrusive roots that play on any masonry element with disconcerting efficiency.

Don't imagine that you can stop tree roots with anti-rhizome barriers like those used to control bamboo! Much deeper and more intrusive, tree roots will be totally insensitive to them. It is therefore better to respect the right distances.

Ornamental shrubs

Forsythia, lilac, seringat, buddleia and other weigleias are very appreciated for their decorative flowers. For them to grow well, leave a distance of 1.20m on all sides around the shrub so that it can benefit from both the light and the ventilation necessary for its good health. In beds, bush roses should be spaced 80 cm apart.

The heathers

The heathers of the genus Erica

The heathers of the genus Erica are :

• winter flowering heathers, such as Erica x darleyensis and Erica carnea ;
• summer flowering heathers with, for example, Erica vagans or Erica cinerea;
• shrubby heathers with Erica arborea, Erica Erigena (this is a heather that is not very common in gardens but which can grow up to 60 cm and flowers from autumn to winter) and Erica scoparia (the broom heather), including Erica scoparia ssp Azorica, with its luminous green foliage and spiral shape.
• The heathers of the genus Calluna
• The genus Calluna includes mainly summer flowering heathers with different colors of foliage and flowers. The height of the callunas is variable; while some reach 50 cm high, others, carpeting, do not exceed 15 cm.

The heathers of the genus Daboecia

The leafy heathers belong to the genus Daboecia. Daboecia x scotica 'Silverwells' is a small heather (15 cm) very floriferous which forms very big white bell-shaped flowers.

Cultivation needs of heathers

Generally, the heathers are happy in a peaty, light, fresh soil, with a rather acidic pH (around 6,5). However, Erica cinerea behaves as well in sandy soil, a little drier, just like the broom heather.

The maintenance of the heathers is simple: an annual pruning is carried out during the first two weeks of April. The heathers of the Calluna genus are simply cut back, under the flowering.

The multiplication of heathers

The heathers multiply by cuttings or by sowing.

Erica carnea multiplies naturally thanks to its horizontal branches which marcott when they develop on a light soil.

Companion plants for heathers

To accompany heathers in the garden, choose shrubs with spring flowers or colored foliage, such as Diervilla x splendens, a shrub with red autumn foliage, very resistant and which supports all exposures and all soils. It tends to form a clump that is wider (3 meters) than tall (2 meters). Planted in a group and accompanied in front by tree heathers, you will obtain a nice bed.

The camellias

The camellia, which is a shrub that can reach 5 to 6 meters in height, is rather a plant of undergrowth, which appreciates semi-shaded situations.

There are many species, the best known of which is Camellia japonica. Camellia sasanqua, Camellia x williamsii, Camellia reticulata and all the hybrids from these four original species arrived after the war.

Some varieties of camellias

Among the Camellia japonica :

• Camellia japonica 'Adolphe Audusson', the most widespread of the French camellias. The example shown is a stemmed camellia, but most camellias are shrubby, with branches present from the base of the trunk.
• Camellia japonica 'Abbé de Beaumont', a very old variety with large late pink flowers.
• Among the hybrids :
• Camellia 'Freedom Bell', a very long flowering camellia with a semi-double flower.
• Planting advice
• The camellia is a heathland plant that grows on rather acid soils. In Brittany, where soils are generally acid, fill the first half of the planting hole with original soil, and the second half with a mixture of 1/3 heather soil and 2/3 original soil.
• In rather calcareous grounds, it is necessary to fill the holes of plantation with soil of heather, only.
• The exposure is also an important element to take into account during the plantation. The camellia is a mid-shade plant, so it should be placed if possible in the north, or east, so that it is in the shade in summer and that, in winter, it thaws slowly.

Camellia maintenance

Although it grows slowly, the camellia may need to be pruned after a few years, which it does very well.

However, it is important to be able to prune it before it starts to grow again in spring. If you prune too late, when the vegetation has restarted, the coming flowering will be inhibited.

Camellia diseases and pests

Camellias can be victims of mealy bugs and fumagine. If their presence has an obvious aesthetic impact, it does not affect the health of the camellia.

To eliminate mealy bugs, spray white oil under the leaves; this is where they are found. Take action as soon as you see a little black on the leaves.

Camellia, a plant of patience

The camellia needs a certain number of years of cultivation to reach an interesting volume. A plant that can be found on sale is between 5 and 10 years old, or even more (up to 15 years).

Decorative flowering dogwoods

With these dogwoods we will speak rather of inflorescences than of flowers in the botanical sense of the term because the flowers themselves are insignificant. It is the whole formed by the flowers and the bracts which is ornamental on the dogwoods.

On the dogwoods with decorative flowers, the inflorescences appear in spring or in summer, which allows, by varying the species, to extend the flowering period. All dogwoods then bear fruits that are more or less attractive and sometimes even edible.

• The strawberry dogwood (Cornus capitata) owes its name to its large spherical fruits that look like strawberries in the fall. This bushy shrub can reach a height of 12 m for as much spread, so it is to be reserved for large gardens!

Native to China and the Himalayas, it is covered with creamy white or yellowish bracts in summer.

• The flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) is a shrub that can reach 8 m in height. Its conical habit is one of its assets, completed by its white inflorescences in 'Cherokee Princess' or 'White Cloud', bright pink in 'Cherokee Chief', 'Welchii' or 'Rubra' or yellow in 'Hohman's Gold'. The leaves of this beautiful shrub turn crimson red in the fall, which adds to its charm.
• Cornus Kousa, is not to be outdone in terms of flowering, since this shrub with a conical shape and a cracked trunk is covered with white inflorescences in June on the typical species, but which can be yellowish on 'China girl' or bright pink on the variety 'Satomii'. This species includes many cultivars with variegated foliage, which does not spoil anything!
• Cornus nuttallii also has a conical habit and can reach up to 12 m in height. It is covered with beautiful white inflorescences, sometimes tinged with pink in spring. The variety 'Colrigo Giant' has large creamy white inflorescences resembling buttercup flowers.
• Cornus Porlock is prized for its spreading habit. This imposing tree can reach 10 m in height and 5 m in spread and presents white bracts turning to salmon pink in May.

Planting decorative dogwoods

The planting of flowering dogwoods is a little more delicate than that of other species because some of them require an acid, fertile, humusy and very well drained soil. This is the case of Cornus capitata, Cornus florida and Cornus nuttallii. Beware of Cornus Canadensis which only tolerates very acid and humid soils!