planing salvia hot lips and plant suggestion

okedoke

I bought a few salvia hot lips in the garden centre yesterday, planning on planting them out now but reading about them it seems they are not reliably frost hardy. Would i be better keeping them in the shed (at the window/in the sun) until spring or planting them out now. They would be planted in a south facing bed, reasonably sheltered in Cork.

Also - I'm planting this bed



with various perennials. The gap between the tree on the left and where the wall is a block higher on the right is right between my and the neighbours patio areas. I'd like to plant something to provide some screening to both of us. Ideally this would be c. 5/6 tall, not too dense and would grow to that height fairly quickly but be easy to control at that height. Any suggestions?

Thanks

rob1air

Hi,

Beautiful plant Salvia hot lips you should look into some other Salvia's they are great perennials and some flower all summer long. I have an idea for your gap for privacy. Calamagrostis Karl Foerster it is a grass and would make a decent screen and provide a lovely backdrop to your Salvia. There is a period from when you cut it back to the ground in Feb/March til about late May/Early June when the grass reshoots that it wont be tall enough to cover the wall. The rest of the season it will be tall and upright and just glorious. Pop in a few verbena boniaris with the grasses then your salvia and at the front something like Geranium blushing turtle or rozanne and you will have colour all summer long. Plenty of other ideas but hope this will give you an option.

Regards,
Darren

okedoke

Hi Robfair - thanks for that suggestion. I hadn't thought of a grass there but its a good idea. I googled the grass you mention and it apparently grows to 1.5m max - will have a look at the height again that may be high enough. The fact that it would be cut back every year is fine as I would only want screening during the summer anyway.

rob1air

Your more then welcome and I use Calamagrostis in most of my planting schemes for clients and it grows bit taller then 150cm more like 170cm. Some of the Molinia and Miscanthus grasses will certainly reach over 170cm so there are plenty of options available the nice thing about Calamagrostis is that it is a cold season grass so starts growing early in the season so you get a screen early in the year.

okedoke

Thanks Rob - very useful. Would it grow to its full height from year 1?

rob1air

It depends on the pot size that you purchase and when you plant it. If you can get one in a 3ltr pot and plant in March it should or get close to full height and you should plant more then one they can be planted close together. The verbena with them looks amazing and they get nearly 2m tall too not much coverage but you wont be able to stop looking at it.

Ladder22

Hi Rob,

Do you know how "Karl Foerster" would do against a north facing wall? It would just get an hour or two early morning sun.

Thanks

rob1air

It will take a small amount of shade but as you described it that would be classed as full shade and I would not recommend planting calamagrostis. Most of the shade loving grasses like carex are not tall and your probably looking to hide the wall. I would suggest doing a quick Google search for tall perennials for shade.

Regards Darren

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Salvia makes a great herbal tea.