what to plant

[nishtha]

My backyard is a mess and growing weeds everywhere 

We are on a slope so want to plant something that will help with soil erosion too.

My plan is to clear a section, put weedmat, cut a whole for the plants and plant something immediately.

I am after small shrubs and ground covers.

So far I like 

Nandina blush

Creeping juniper 

This section will get sun when the sun is out.

Something non flowering please 

Any

thoughts?

[Noelle]

I would add into the mix coast rosemary (Westringia) and perhaps a banksia or two, such as Birthday Candles. They do produce nectar but a few bees won't cause any harm. Perhaps some fruiting trees too, like lemon, lime, feijoa, fig and guava which are all suited to your climate and location. The slope will reduce the risk of frost damage

[Dave-1]

Afternoon again @nishtha 

I have a shrub (was being thrown out and I picked up from the side of the rd) that grows prolifically and has beautiful purple flowers, it gets bees, so many bees its not funny.... They are all Blue Banded bees! I havnt worked out why, when I had hives the bees didnt even look at one another and the blue banded ones keep on going My two hives collapsed 😕 but these guys are rocking. The root system looks liek it will handle very pore and clay type soil and binds it together. So if you are interestI can take a photo as I dont know the name of it. The flowers smell like plum pudding so I call it my plum pudding tree

Dave

[JacobZ]

Hi @nishtha,

Once your plants are in place, you can also use a layer of mulch around 100mm thick to suppress weeds.

It would change the look of things slightly, but if weed suppression is your main concern, it is certainly worth considering.

Jacob

[nishtha]

I am allergic to certain types of bee stings

Wanna stay clear of bees!

[nishtha]

I have two main concerns 

Weed suppression 

And soil erosion on slopes 

once I placed the weedmat - it will help with weed suppression but then I need the plants to step in and help with soil erosion 

[Dave-1]

Evening @nishtha 

Oh I get the alergy to Bees 😕 I have one as well. Its the reason I dont have bees I swell up. With Blue banded bees they dont sting Thats why I mentioned them

The 100mm Mulch that @JacobZ has mentioned is the way I would go as well. Even without the weedmat (but id still do it in your case), no light that gets through the dense mulch the less likely weeds will germinate  

With the mulch it will help with erosion especially as you plant out the area, you dont need to do it all at once. You could mulch the area to start and then gradually add the plants you want.

Dave

[nishtha]

Not concerned about the look changing with the mulch.. that's fine.

But I was advised earlier that mulch would be washed down if plants or rocks are not there.. is that correct?

I was thinking of leaving the mulch till the very end for that reason 

My plan is

whippy snippy the weeds down

Spray

Put some cardboard to help suppress the weeds

Put weedmat mat.

Cut holes for plants

Plant the plants.

Do edging 

Once it's all settled

Add mulch

Let me know what you think 

[JacobZ]

Hi @nishtha,

That sounds like a good plan of attack.

I think you're good to get started and can let us know if you have any further questions along the way.

I'm excited to see how things go.

Jacob

[Dave-1]

Evening @nishtha 

I dont think the 100mm mulch would wash down too easily but get your concern  

Strol 0.5m² SurePave Plastic Pavers will show you a range of options you could install the gridwork at the steepest part of the slope when you get to that point. I was checking the products out the other day when I was thinking of gravel and pathways but think they would work well to hold mulch. You can get bulk tree mulch from tree lopping companies if you ask them they may drop off a bunch for a fee. Remember that it will be fresh mulch and you may not know the trees it came from.

Dave