What shrub or flowers should we plant at the front of window?

[d23]

Hi there,

I'm looking for some thoughts/advice - we are struggling to flower agapanthus snowball in the front of the house per the below. Seems no matter what we do, we can't avoid the yellowing leaves/stems which are looking horrible. We've had to replace a few through summer also. I think the location in front of the window and heat from the paving is a big contributor and not sure agapanthus are for us after this.

I'm wondering if there are some thoughts on what we could plant here post summer that is a perennial and hardy - we are trying to get some colour. We already have some red robin, buxus, ficus so looking for something different in this location. 

The location gets the early morning sun through to about 3pm in summer - it does get hot.

Any thoughts of what may thrive and look good in this location? Thanks

[MitchellMc]

I suspect it could be a bit too hot for agapanthus in that location @d23. They do enjoy a bit of shade. How often do you have your irrigation system running in summer? Under the mulch layer, what does the soil look like and does it retain any moisture?

Australian natives can do well in full sun locations and dry environments. You might also like to read through this recent discussion: Suggestions wanted to improve garden feature by @kingj. There are several recommendations for plants that are heat tolerant.

Check out these informative guides on How to protect your plants from summer heat and How to determine soil health from our experienced horticulturalists @Adam_W and @Noelle.

I'm keen to hear about the soil quality and frequency of watering. 

Mitchell

[d23]

Thanks Mitchell

I've been watering it often through the summer - the soil is Jeffries veg and garden which is new. I did do a PH chem test of the soil and it did show being in high 8's, but have brought this down recently with sulfur.

Thanks for the different idea's!

[MitchellMc]

Hi @d23,

How often are these waterings? Twice a day, once a day, every other day, twice a week or once a week? How long do you water for during these waterings? A quick spritz, 30 seconds on each plant, a few minutes on each plant or until the soil is saturated 5cm down? To nail down the issue here, we need to know some specifics.

It's great that you are trying to fix the pH, and they'll thrive in any soil pH between 5.5 and 7.5. However, I think that if the soil were the issue, the plants would have struggled to grow at all. These look like once healthy plants that have been scorched by the sun or damaged by radiated heat from the surrounding pavers.

Let me mention our knowledgeable horticulturalists @Noelle and @Adam_W to see if they have any thoughts.

Mitchell

[d23]

Hi Mitchell,

I've been watering daily when hot weeks through Dec and every 3 days after depending if the top 2 inches of soil are dry id do more.

I did have a spare one around the corner in shady that was very deep green leaves which when transplanted it took 3 days to start losing that green in this area and now also similar to the others turned yellow.

I'm thinking it's been a combo heat scorching and ph high.

Here's a picture just now, this is 3 weeks post adding sulfur. 

I'm rethinking about adding some height in this location such as two cylinder pots om the left and right side and then some colour in-between like desert flame post summer

[Noelle]

@MitchellMc seems to have identified several of the problems.  The area looks like a heat and sun trap that will scorch anything with a soft or fleshy leaf (like agapanthus). Even if the plants were watered every day, it's doubtful they would survive her without some protection either from taller shrubs or even a temporary shade cloth cover until they're well established.

Grey or silver leaved plants like lavenders or native coastal rosemary (Westringia) would be better options but they will still need plenty of water until they've acclimatised and are growing strongly.