Friday, February 5, 2010

Silvery bushes

Happy Fertilizer Friday. It has been raining the past two days, so I had to find some photos from my archive. Today’s post is on two silvery plants that I love.

Fabulous as a contrast plant for the garden…

The silvery plant in the photo is called Cushion Bush (Leucophyta brownii), an Australian native plant. The foliage makes the cushion bush a great contrast shrub for the garden. It likes a sunny position and good drainage. A drought and salt tolerant plant, it requires low maintenance and is suitable for coastal gardens. The plant caught my eye when I saw it along the beach, growing amongst succulents. 

Cushion Bush and succulents © Evelyn Howard 2010  
Cushion Bush and succulents by the beach 

I have bought a little Cushion Bush plant, and I’m still thinking how best to work with it. Temporarily, it’s planted with my kalanchoe (below) and a few other succulents.

Kalanchoe and Cushion Bush © Evelyn Howard 2010
Kalanchoe and Cushion Bush

 

Hardy, pretty and smells sweet

Another lovely silvery plant is the Powis Castle. It would make a good companion plant for succulents. They need  little water, full sun and well-drained soil. The Powis Castle can be planted by the sea. And a plus for me is that they smell nice.

I had three, now I have none unfortunately. I made the mistake of throwing them away when they got windblown and grew crooked. What was I thinking! Actually I wasn’t and that was the problem. I might get one when I go to the garden centre… This photo was taken a few months ago.

Powis Castle © Evelyn Howard 2010
Powis Castle

 

TootsieTime

 

Have a fantastic weekend.

Please visit Fertilizer Friday to see what’s happening in other gardens.

16 comments:

Julie said...

how pretty these both are, evelyn!!! i really like the cushion bush!!! so fun, and i really like that they have similar requirements to the sux!!!

Port Places said...

I love cushion bush but it goes woody in the second year.
Beautiful pictures

Darla said...

Very interesting plants...come by and see if you can name my nameless succulent..

Hortist said...

Evekyn, your cushion bush is amazing. You are doing pretty well, please keep it up. Have a nice day :)

Amy said...

I like that cushion bush. It is unusual and the color is a nice contrast. I don't think I can get that here, though :) I like your recent artwork. :)

Catherine@AGardenerinProgress said...

The Cushion bush is really pretty, what a cute name. Powis Castle does have great foliage. Great silvery recommendations.

Unknown said...

Evelyn I love your Cushion Bush and your Powis Castle and they both give great contrast to the greens in the garden. I really love the little balls on the Cushion Bush.

Maureen said...

The cushion bush is very pretty - I've never seen one. About the only silvery plant that I see here (new england) is dusty miller and it does add beautiful contrast in the garden.

Anonymous said...

I have to look for some cushion bush. most of the Australian natives seem to do well in the bay area, and these would add some good contrast to our planters.
-- Matti

Noel Morata said...

aloha,

how exciting the silver plants are just coming into being and spring is in the air i love the cushion bush. happy fertilizer friday and the weekend to you

Troy said...

I really like plants that smell good, but I have allergies, so a lot of pollen makes me all sneezy. That was one of the reasons I started planting herbs, so I could enjoy the smell, without the sneeze.

The Powis Castle sounds like it would be a good plant for me.

SandyCarlson said...

So very, very beautiful!

Tootsie said...

I love the way the silver foliage makes the colorful ones just POP!
thanks for linking in today again! I love seeing what you share!

Diane AZ said...

These are all new plants to me. I like the contrast of the silver with green. My favorite is the Powis Castle.

Brenda Pruitt said...

I have had Powis Castle many times, and I don't have any now either! But your suggestion of planting it with succulents is something I shall remember. For succulents I have come to love over the past few years. And I adore having the silver contrast of plants like Powis Castle glowing in the moonlight.
Brenda

Melanie J Watts said...

I would love to visit your garden, too bad you live so far away :) the cushion bush looks amazing, growing among those succulents, such a pretty contrast.

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