There are literally thousands of different types of Bromeliads available and for the residential gardener they offer a really cheap and easy way to fill in all the empty spots around the garden particularly in the shady areas under shrubs and trees. These plants don’t need to go into soil, you plant them in amongst piles of bark and finer mulch as they feed from the cup in the top of the plant rather than grow a lot of roots.
Hardy and easy to split up and spread around you can often swap them with friends and family rather than buying them
This month I thought I would ask Linda from Succulents online to contribute the post below. She is a great source of knowledge and ideas on how to get started on collecting a succulent garden.
Some of the easiest care plants I know of are succulents, and one of the easiest would have to be Graptosedum Glauca. It is so easy to look after, requires minimal maintenance and can quite often become a show piece in any garden. Graptosedum are a cross between Graptopetalum and Sedum, and as both varieties grow easily in most climates they come highly recommended for any novice gardener.
They will grow in semi shade to full sun, require very little water and the only maintenance they require is for the flower stems to be removed after flowering. The dainty yellow flowers appear in late spring to early summer, and are really quite insignificant. It is the leaf growth that makes the plant so attractive. During the winter months the leaves will change to a pinkish colour, giving the plant an almost iridescent hue. The plant pictured above has been grown in a large pot on top of an old tree stump and has been there for approximately eighteen months.
These hardy plants give a garden instant pop if you need a big plant in a hurry these are your best bet. They are everywhere around the suburbs and can get quite large in clumps so can be easily thinned out and given away to friends and family. Just bury the chunky stem in a small mound to support their weight facing into the light and they will quickly take root. soon you will have pups springing out of the base and can take these as cuttings.
This plant is at its most useful in a mass planted border. Likes shade but or dapple light so good filler in front of a larger shrub. Drought tolerant and can be divided from a large clump
Really tough once established, cheap and easy to propagate and spread around as a border or filler in between shrubs. A few variations to leaf and flower colour these are a great way to add colour in a sunny or semi shady spot.
Called heavenly bamboo this little clumping plant makes the list due to its hardy drought tolerance and flexibility in landscaping. It makes no mess is easy to keep under control adds colour and fills up small spaces between plantings or looks great as a mass border
