Indigenous Trees for Small Gardens

I get quite a bit of traffic on this site from people searching for indigenous trees for small gardens. I think its an indicator of the fact that people are moving from larger gardens to smaller more manageable gardens. Its also a great sign that people are moving towards planting indigenous trees. I'm also encouraged by the fact that people are taking the time to research before visiting nurseries or just planting trees that are unsuitable, or will get too big for the space available.

Ochna serrulata

The advantages of using indigenous as opposed to exotic trees, is that you'll be creating the natural habitat for all kinds of birds, bats, butterflies and other creatures. Also, very often indigenous trees are less prone to disease, and require less water.

I've placed the spotlight on a few trees that would be great in a small garden in previous posts. Some of my favourites are the Tabernaemontana or Toad Tree, and the Halleria lucida.

But there is an amazing variety of trees to choose from. These trees would be easy rivals to most exotic trees that are established first choice plants:

Aloe Barbarae - Tree Aloe - Majestic and statuesque

Brachylaena discolor - Silver Oak - Great coastal shrub/ small tree with silvery foliage

Cussonia species - Most Cabbage trees are great for small gardens, as they don't take up a lot of space, or create too much shade. Beware of the roots though!

Dichrostachys cinerea - not easy to find in most nurseries, but worth the search.

Dombeya species - there are several Dombeyas that are perfect for small gardens.

Heteropyxis natalensis - Fragrant and pretty.

Millettia grandis - attractive purple flowers and reddish pods.

Ochna serrulata - is covered in bright yellow flowers, and then red and black fruits. Is slow growing though. (Photo above)

Olea species - great for a mediterranean style garden, very neat looking, can be easily trimmed to shape.

Trema orientalis - commonly called a Pigeonwood because birds love the berries and use it to nest in. Very fast growing, but relatively short-lived. A little untidy though.

Turraea floribunda - attracts an abundance of birds and insects to its beautiful flowers.

Xylotheca kraussiana - Slow, but worth the wait...

I will expand on some of these trees in posts to follow, but check out Plantzafrica for details on each of them in the meantime. You can also check out other posts on indigenous plants for South Africa.

Indigenous Beauties - Bird attracting garden

My team and I are busy with the tidying of the garden of a beautiful old Durban home. It has a well established indigenous garden, with some exceptional plants.

Halleria lucida - Tree Fuschia

The Tree Fuschia is a great plant for attracting birds. Sunbirds in particular love the nectar that they get from the tubular flowers that sprout profusely from the Halleria's stem. Fruit loving birds also love the green berries that appear in Spring.
Its an excellent plant when you're looking for fast growth, and it grows to a height of anything from about 3m to about 15m. It will grow in full sun or semi-shade, but will look better in a slightly sheltered spot.
It has been used medicinally for skin and ear problems.

Carissa bispinosa

The Carissa, or amatungulu is a very useful plant. It has attractive white flowers, which appear in Summer, followed by bright red fruit, which are high in vitamin C. The fruit are used to make a delicious jam.
It grows in Sun or Semi-shade, and does quite well on windswept dunes. It is often grown as an impenetrable hedge, as it is covered in painfully sharp forked spines.
It is relatively fast-growing once established, but takes a while to get going. It will reach about 3m in height if left, but looks better when cut back into a dense shrub.

Schotia brachypetala

The Schotia is also known as the Weeping Boer-boon (Farmers Bean) . It has been given this name because of the huge amounts of nectar that drip from the beautiful bright-red flowers, and because its pods are shaped like beans. Because of the dripping nectar, its best not to plant it too close to paved areas, or near parked cars. Nectar-loving birds are frequent visitors to this tree. Its relatively fast growing, and reaches about 15-20m high and wide.

Some of the other well-established bird-attracting plants were Aloes, Cussonia, Indigofera, Polygala, and a Toad Tree. One plant I couldn't identify, which had an amazing sweet scent was this little shrub (1.5-2m high):

Any ideas as to what it is?

Behind The Scenes - Rooftop Garden

Its always a good feeling being called in to continue with a garden that you've planted years before. Its good to know that your garden has been appreciated.

I was called recently, by a client that I did work for about 5 or 6 years back - they've done some renovating and re-done the paving around the pool and house. In keeping with the fresh start to their home, they wanted to re-look at the garden.

A lot of the garden had been damaged by the builders (as usual), some plants had gotten a bit out of hand, but in general the garden wasn't looking to bad. Although it must be said, that it is hard for the garden to look bad, when your views from it are so good!


This garden was a little tricky, in that being a roof garden, it had a very shallow space for roots. Also, because it was so exposed, wind would exacerbate the problems associated with shallow roots. Another design consideration, was that my clients wanted to display their sculptures that they had collected on their travels.

The solution, was to plant grasses and flax-type plants (e.g. Dietes, Dianella, Liriope), that would create different textures and colours. These would not only be wind-resistant, but would look at their best as they moved in the wind. They would also, not need a deep space for roots. In between we planted small perennials (e.g. Agapanthus, Kniphofia) that would flower and add touches of colour.
We created paved axis, along which the sculptures would become the focal points, with the city skyline as the backdrop.


While I was taking these photos, a pair of Egyptian Geese flew past, and decided that the pool was a great resting point.

Now to begin, the planning for the new-look for this roof-top garden...

Mongoose or Mongeese?

Actually, they're Mongooses... While dropping my wife off at work, we spotted a band of mongooses warming themselves in the sun. There are usually about 20 of them seen playing in the indigenous plants around the office development that she works at.

As part of the development plan for the area (using DMOSS as an example), there are quite strict guidelines for the planning of the spaces around the offices. The landscaping has been planned in such a way that there are corridors of indigenous vegetation throughout each of the office parks, through which small animals like mongoose, monkeys, birds and in some parks small buck can move.

As the natural habitat for these small creatures gets reduced through development, it will become more and more essential to plan the landscaping of the open spaces extremely carefully. In some cases where this has not been done, some animals that are found only in very small pockets have become quite threatened.
Fortunately though, as in the case of the black-headed dwarf chameleon, developers are becoming more aware of their responsibility to the environment (if sometimes only by the impact on their pockets.)

With half a dozen little babies following the adults around, at least these mongooses seem to be happy with the extra thought that has been put into their environment.

Indigenous Beauties - Rhagoda (Salt Bush)

Rhagoda histata

Salt Bush

I have to say I'm a sucker for grey foliage. I love the beautiful contrasts that it creates with most colours. It's a lot like a bridesmaid at a wedding - it's function is to show the main colours around it, at their best.

Rhagoda is that kind of selfless plant. It's common name is Salt bush, because it grows so well in salty coastal conditions.
It's foliage looks so soft and velvety that it makes you want to take a nap amongst its leaves, but it releases an unpleasant fishy smell when you brush your hand over it.

It has been largely ignored by most people, but is quite a rewarding plant. It grows best in full sun and in well-draining soil. It is fast growing, and will reach about 1m high.
It can be trimmed into a slightly unkempt low hedge, and should be done regularly to keep it neat.

How much does landscaping cost?

One of the most important elements in landscape design...is budget.

When I meet with clients in the initial stages of planning a garden to discuss their desires for the garden, they will often have a good idea of what plants they really don't like, what views they would like to improve on or hide, and what they hope to do with their new garden.

But very seldom do they seem to have a 'conscious' idea of what their budget for their dream garden would be.

I've used the word conscious, because I believe most people really do have a pretty good idea of what they can spend on the project.

But very often people only realise what their budget is, after hours of planning and designing have gone into a concept that may or may not be achievable with the available funds. This means that it is probably necessary to go back to the drawing board, quite literally in order to come up with a new design that suits the financial constraints.

When I ask for a budget, the answer is usually: "I have no idea how much landscaping costs, how much should I spend?" As a rough guide, for new houses and gardens, you should be setting aside 5-10% of your building costs for landscaping. This seems like a lot of money at first, but when you consider that when a garden is appropriate, and beautiful, it can add about 20% to the value of your home.

On the other side of the coin, what most people don't realise is that designing and building gardens can be one of the most variable costing exercises in any profession. That's not to say that you can't be exact. Its just that you can have a beautiful garden on almost any budget.

I know that sometimes, people are also reluctant to let on how much they can spend in case they are over-charged, but when you consider that designing is a time-based exercise, its best to give good clear guidelines (budgetary, aesthetic and practical) to keep the time and therefore costs down.

Obviously, when you reduce the budget there will always be some trade-offs though. The aspects of a garden that generally-speaking either cost more or have less room for negotiation are things like:

1. Instant gardens - the more mature a plant is, the more it costs.
   
2. Hard materials like paving, and edging have fixed costs that can't be negotiated unless buying in quantity.
3. Features, such as walls, structures, fountains, statues etc. often have fairly standard associated costs.
4. Specialist advice or consultation can be quite costly too.

A good design hinges on good information. In order to plan, and estimate correctly, you need to have as much information as possible. Try to collect pictures from books or magazines of gardens or designs that you enjoy. Look for gardens around your neighbourhood that you appreciate. All of this information will help to speed up the design process, and prevent mis-communication.

The truth is though, that most often, you'll find that any designer or landscaper with a good reputation sees what they do as an expression of art. They are often less concerned about money than they are about creating something that can be both enjoyed and admired.

More of my thoughts on budgets here...

The Corner Cafe Hearts Street Trees

This tree gets a new heart despite its decayed heartwood

Durban is quite well known for its abundant well established street trees. The Flamboyant (By name and description) creates an incredible display in Summer with its masses of red flowers. Its flowers take over from where the more serene purple blooms of the Jacaranda end. At the moment the Tabebuia are blooming in splashes of pink and yellow that seem to fall to the floor around the trees like a matching carpet. Other trees that stand out are Tibouchina and Spathodea, while the ever green Trichelia (Essenwoods/Natal Mahogany) and the canopy-forming Albizia (Flatcrown) are some of the few indigenous trees used to line our streets.

Unfortunately, some of these trees that were planted about half a century ago, are starting to reach the end of their lives. There have been a few cases lately of cars being flattened by their huge branches, as the heartwood has rotted away, or white ants have taken what strength is left in their limbs.

So it warmed my cockles to see a tree that had been recently felled because its core had decayed, being given new life by The Corner Cafe. A huge big heart was sculpted out of one of its now well shortened branches by the members of the Tree Amigos - a tree felling company from Durban.