Posts Tagged ‘bark’

FRAGRANT GARDENS

Tuesday, December 1st, 2009

By planting herbs, shrubs, creepers and trees in your garden that exude heady aromas – by means of essential oils – you will enhance the dimensionality of your garden.  Perfumed plants emanate aroma via their flowers, leaves, wood, bark or fruit.

Shrubs, such as lavenders, abelias, buddleias, azaleas and gardenias are perfect fragrant plants to incorporate into your overall garden layout. 

Fragrant creepers include star jasmine (jasminum multiflorum) and most other jasmine species, Rosa species, such as rambling roses, Wisteria species, and Chilean jasmine (mandevilla laxa).

The indigenous white gardenia (gardenia thunbergia) and September bells (rothmannia globosa) are perfect fragranced garden plants to add to your garden.

Indigenous trees, which radiate heady scents, include the monkey thorn (acacia galpinii), camel thorn (acacia erioloba), fever tree (acacia xanthoploea) and the sweet thorn (acacia karroo).

Most scented plants prefer direct sun in hot and dry weather, with good drainage.

Just keep in mind that you should try your utmost to select indigenous plants, and that you need to consider the toxicity of plants, if you have children or pets.

The landscaping experts at Kingfisher Landscaping design and implement exceptional and beautiful gardens in a professional manner and can provide the home owner with any exterior decorative feature.  We pride ourselves in providing our clients with excellent, efficient and comprehensive service.  We offer all the products and services associated with creating a peaceful, and aesthetically pleasing outdoor living space which will complement the style of your home and in which you can relax.

TREE #2 OF 2009 – TREE FUCHSIA (HALLERIA LUCIDA)

Wednesday, November 25th, 2009

The tree fuchsia (halleria lucida) has been appointed as one of the two rare trees of the year for 2009, by the Department of Water and Environmental Affairs.

This beautiful tree, with its lush, wide-spreading canopy has shiny, bright green leaves and is an indigenous evergreen tree.  Birds love to gather in this tree, so it will be ideal to plant in your garden, if you want to attract birds.  Insects also enjoy feasting on the flowers, which are very rich in nectar. 

It has elegantly drooping branches and normally has more than one stem.  Bright orange, red or yellow tube-shaped flowers – which grow on the stems and in clusters of leaves – bloom in summer and from early spring this decorative tree carries round black berries, which are clustered together.  The bark of the tree fuschia is a dull grey to brown in colour and has vertical grooves.

These trees occur naturally in coastal areas, near water and on stony mountains or hills.  The tree fuchsia can grow between 12 and 20 meters high in ideal conditions, and up to 5 meters in less favourable conditions, such as in exposed areas.  They require a lot of water.

Historically, the wood was used for tools, spear shafts and for the construction of wagon poles, as the wood is strong and hard.  Traditional medicinal uses included treatment of ear aches, by infusing the dried leaves in water. 

The landscaping experts at Kingfisher Landscaping design and implement exceptional and beautiful gardens in a professional manner and can provide the home owner with any exterior decorative feature.  We pride ourselves in providing our clients with excellent, efficient and comprehensive service.  We offer all the products and services associated with creating a peaceful, and aesthetically pleasing outdoor living space which will complement the style of your home and in which you can relax.

TREE ALOES AS POT PLANTS

Tuesday, August 4th, 2009

Tree Aloes (aloe bainesii) – Africa’s largest aloes – have a striking, sleek appearance and are also perfect to be used as pot plants.  On has to make sure that the proposed pot has a base with a large circumference, to prevent the whole ensemble from toppling over, once the aloe grows larger and becomes top heavy.  The creative and practical experts at our in-house décor company, Badec Bros Deco, will design and manufacture the perfect Cubedec pot for your tree aloe.

These aloes can grow up to 15 meters in height.  The forked branches will in time spread out into a dense crown, contrasting beautifully with the smooth, grey bark of the stem. 

Pretty cylindrical, orange-pink flowers will bring life to your garden or veranda during winter (June and July), making this sculptural plant an ideal focal point for any outdoor living space.  The leaves are dark green in colour and are long and narrow, with graceful curving.

Pot – or container – gardening is a very low-maintenance way of creating a garden and is also ideal for small areas.  Another advantage to pot gardening is that you can bring the outdoors indoors.

The landscaping experts at Kingfisher Landscaping design and implement exceptional and beautiful gardens in a professional manner.  We pride ourselves in providing our clients with excellent, efficient and comprehensive service.  We offer all the products and services associated with creating a peaceful, and aesthetically pleasing outdoor living space which will complement the style of your home and in which you can relax.