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geedavey

Narrow, tall full-sun plants

GeeDavey
20 years ago

I've got an 18 x 2.5 ft border in full, full sun. It can be kept moist if helpful.

I'd like to do a Tropicalesque theme. I opbviously don't have enough depth to do a deep, rain-forest look. I would like a good portion of the bed to go to 7-9 ft.

Obviously Canna is on my list. Bananna won't have enough space to open, so I'm going to put it in a container nearby.

Can you suggest others? Some of the Elephant ears look great. How will they manage with so little depth?

This is obviously an annual garden. I'll try to mulch them through the winter and this is in a protected spot, but I'm not going to invest a great deal of time caring for them.

Comments (10)

  • intimidator_3
    20 years ago

    How about trying some Gingers. My wife and I are also planning a tropical garden in our back yard. So far the only Gingers that we have are a Shell and a Crepe Ginger. Hopefully we have a nice micro-climate picked out for them, also something to consider in z7a like we are here in Knoxville.

    Doug,
    I3

  • GeeDavey
    Original Author
    20 years ago

    I found this Ginger (I think): Hedychium coccineum cv. Tara in the brent and beckys bulbs catalog. Looks interesting, nice foliage. I'm going to give it a try.

  • Boca_Joe(zone 7b) southern Delaware
    20 years ago

    hey waddya mean "not enough depth in the 18 x2.5' garden for a real tropical look??

    Thatis exactly the depth of my tropical line up which is the pride of my tropical island garden here in Maryland!!

    Don;'t sell yourself short, pack 'em in and enjoy. Taros, gingers, bananas, you name it!

    check it out!

    Boca Joe

    Here is a link that might be useful: Boca Joe's Tropicals

  • intimidator_3
    20 years ago

    Boca Joe,

    Just got done cruising around your photo gallery. Man, that is an awesome collection! We just began getting into tropicals around a year ago, and I just got done yesterday killing off a large area for our Tennessee tropics garden.

    One of the plants that we are going to try outdoors is Plumeria. We have some started indoors that we will hopefully transplant into that garden. Do you have your Plumerias in the ground or in pots? Since we are in the same zone, maybe you could help me out on how some things react in your z7 garden.

    Doug,
    I3

  • wilmington_islander
    20 years ago

    How about Spanish bayonet ( or dagger). A nice yucca!

  • GeeDavey
    Original Author
    20 years ago

    Ha, fair enough BocaJoe. 18 x 2.5 is enough space, but it does run along a porch and a path so there isn't a great deal of clearance on either side.

    Still, it can't hurt to try it for a year.

  • don_brown
    20 years ago

    Throw in some sugar-cane......or if you want a nice tall perennial, Miscanthus sacchariflorus, aka floridulus.

  • Phoenicophorium
    20 years ago

    Might of been said before, but Musa or bananas would work best. They grow fast and are great!

    Also a row of Trachycarpus, but they take forever to grow.

  • davissue_zone9
    19 years ago

    Maybe Rice Paper Plant- Tetrapanax papyiferus? Also Aralia fatsia can take sun if given plenty of water. Some of the larger Mahonias look tropical and are easy to grow, like M. lomariifolia or japonica.

  • jeff_w
    19 years ago

    Try the bananas, I grew them right next to a fence. They are the most tropical you can get in Maryland, and they wil have enough room. With mild protection, podocarpus macrophylla and loquat can be pruned and espaliered, respectively. Fatsia, bamboo, and a 7 gal or bigger palm (trachycarpus, needle, or sabal minor). Think about vines, too.

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