Return to the Australian Native Plants Forum
| Post a Follow-Up
Lilly Pilly questions
| | |
Posted by Gum_Tree QLD Aust (My Page) on Mon, Dec 26, 05 at 19:01
| Hi,
I live on the Gold Coast and am looking for a suitable Lilly Pilly to be privacy screen on the South side along a wooden fence, it needs to be 3.5m to 4m tall and growing naturally as narrow as possible, the hedge will get a full days sun. My local nurseries suggested three Lilly Pilly's:
Aussie Southern,
Hinterland Gold,
Elite.
However, there is hardly any information on the tags and nobody can really answer my questions which are:
How tall/wide to they naturally get?
What kinds of birds are attracted to them?
Are any of them particularly prone to psyllid?
Are the flowers ok for someone with allergies?
Does the dropped fruit sprout more Lilly Pilly's that you have to pull out?
Does the dropped fruit rot and smell bad and does it attract ants, fruit flies or any other insects as it decomposes?
If anyone could help out answering any of my questions and or suggesting any other Lilly Pilly's (or any other alternatives) they think might be suitable that would be great!
Thanks,
Gum Tree |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Lilly Pilly questions
| | |
| Hello Gum Tree, Unless they are cultivars of Acmena smithii var. minor, they will most likely be prone to psyllid attack. I have this species with a cultivar name of "Hot Flush" that would probably be suitable for you. Mine have small white fruit and I have not had to weed out any of these, nor have they caused any nuisance such as you have itemised. I have mulch underneath, and I DO get stacks of "Golden Rain" tree volunteers from the row planted by the Council as street trees across the road. So the "Hot Flush" is obviously not going to be a weedy tree. Cheers, Frank |
RE: Lilly Pilly questions
| | |
| Syzygium oleosum, blue lilly pilly would be ideal, fast growing, 3-4m. Try Landcare for plants as I don't think you will get them in nurseries. |
RE: Lilly Pilly questions
| | |
I have to agree with Jane.
I bought tibouchinas from these guys. They were fantastic with advice and incredibly helpful. I highly reccommend them.
I didnt even have to go to whoopedewhoop to see them, they sent them COD! http://www.loganrivertreefarm.com.au/Plants.html |
RE: Lilly Pilly questions
| | |
| Hi All, Personally, I'd avoid the Acmena species in the full Qld sun - I find that their small leaves get absolutely fried in the afternoon. I've been forced to relocate all of my Acmena Smithii to shaded areas, and I lost a beautiful Hemilampra to the Rocky sun about 12 months ago. Aussie Southern and Aussie Northern do a much better job in our climate. Elites are also a good choice, as is Oleosum - we dont have a problem getting any of these from nurseries in Rocky. Cheers, Artie |
RE: Lilly Pilly questions
| | |
| Gum Tree, I live in the Toowoomba district and have Acmena in full sun. I have not had any problem with leaves burning - first I've heard of it. Artie's problem may arise because of the hotter, drier climate/drying winds in Rockhampton? Perhaps the Gold Coast's humidity would eliminate this problem. By all means try Syzygium oleosum. Staff at a local nursery here advised me that this species tends to be more resistant to psyllids, though not immune, and pointed me to a tree on its property. I think it still had some. Did your nursery's staff say anything about salt-laden winds and ask how close you were to the beach? Cheers,
Frank |
RE: Lilly Pilly questions
| | |
| Hi everyone thanks for all your replies. I went into several nurseries and looked at all the different available varieties, in the end I couldn't resist the Hinterland Gold, I'm getting 21 (300ml pots) delivered today. I decided I'll just give them a regular prune to hopefully prevent psyllids. I am going to plant these along my eastern side. I also bought 7 grevilleas to plant along the southern fence for the birds. I'll keep you up to date and let you know how the Hinterland Gold goes. Thanks again for all your advice. Gum Tree |
RE: Lilly Pilly questions
| | |
| Good choice, gum tree - Hinterland Gold is a beauty. Between my last garden and the current effort, I planted roughly 60 lillipillies of various denominations, and Hinterland Gold has a nice habit and is a very pretty shade of green, IMO. |
RE: Lilly Pilly questions
| | |
| Like Frank S I live in Toowoomba and haven't had any problem with Acmena (smithii) in full sun. The air couldn't have been any drier than it was here this September! We did have rain before the worst of the heat, though. |
RE: Lilly Pilly questions
| | |
| Those of you in Toowoomba are probably in more danger of losing plants to frost than heat ! (yes, I have been to Toowoomba in summer - spent 3 years with the Army at Oakey - but Rocky is a whole other spectrum of long, hot days). |
RE: Lilly Pilly questions
| | |
| Right on both counts Artie ;-) But my point was that the Gold Coast would probably also be a lot more amenable to Acmena smithii than Rocky would. We had around 40 degree days at Christmas time without rain and some of my plants were wilting (not having been watered because of the drought) but the Acmena smithii trees I have withstood that, without a problem. Cheers,
Frank |
RE: Lilly Pilly questions
| | |
Hi
Does anyone know which Lilly Pilly this one is?
Thanks |
Here is a link that might be useful: Lilly Pilly
RE: Lilly Pilly questions
| | |
| I am looking to plant Lilly Pillies along a back fence to block out a huge house that looks down in our backyard. Very intrusive. the property is in Sorrento which is beachside Mornington Peninsula It has been suggested that I plant Hinterland gold or Waterhousea Any comments / advice would be appreciated |
|
|
|
|
