The galloping gardener
22/03/2007
Impatient to get your garden growing? MT’s gardening guru Carole Davies offers some handy tips on what plants are fastest off the mark.
Time seems to go by so quickly these days that sometimes I’m sure I can feel a breeze from its passing.
It seems like I’ve just turned my computer off after dashing out February’s ramblings and here I am in front of the screen again wondering what to write about for March. But in the garden, occasionally time does seem to stand still. The wait for nature to do her work and fill up your latest border can be interminable. And I know that I’m not the only gardener to wear the knotted hanky of impatience.
In all my years working at a nursery the question I was most asked by customers was: “how fast will it grow?” Well, there’s never an easy answer to that one. Peak growth rate means that the plant has to have optimum growing conditions and even the fastest growing plants can lag behind if they aren’t given the right position and feed. But everyone who came to my nursery wanted the same thing - an instant garden. It often seems we are in so much of a hurry that we are unable to sit back and actually wait for something.
If you want specimens that make good growth there are plants that will oblige. But remember, when we gardeners say “quick growing” we are talking in years. Here are just a few speed merchants for you to consider.
A plant mostly used in hedging, but can also be used as a border shrub is the ubiquitous Prunus Laurocerasus (Laurel). It is a good glossy-leaved evergreen that, once established, will grow 45 to 60 cms per year. If you need speedy low growing ground cover, the Vinca (periwinkle) family is one of the fastest around. Vinca major is a rampant speed demon that likes dappled to heavy shade - making them excellent for use under trees. They produce blue flowers in early spring.
For a bit of quick height, Eucalyptus “gunnii” will oblige - given the right growing conditions. It has superstar looks with its glaucous blue leaves and strikingly marked bark and will grow into a very large tree if left unchecked. Regular pruning is advised unless you have a very big garden. I planted a lovely little specimen in springtime one year and by the end of September it had gained one metre - seriously. It had good drainage, was well watered and the ground prepared with an organic fertiliser prior to planting. It was happy and it showed it.
Of course a packet of annual seeds will quickly cover a bare patch for the summer months. Annuals are not meant to come back year after year but some old favourites self-seed effortlessly. One of the most prolific is Nigella – “Love in a Mist” - which flowers in early summer and goes on until the first frosts. And in my garden at least, seeds everywhere and comes back without fail every year.
If you are so impatient that you can’t even wait for the speed kings mentioned above, you can always buy big. Some nurseries specialise in larger container grown shrubs with well-developed root systems. But they won’t be too happy about being moved from the safety of their container. You need to be careful here and protect your, often considerable, investment. Most container plants will suffer some distress and have a setback that may result in leaf drop, before they rally and start growing.
Just imagine settling down into your favourite armchair and ‘er (or ‘im) indoors says “It's time to get a new chair”. See how you’d like it!