Plant Finder

Tall shrub which if grown against support, like a wall, will climb. Leaves are glossy, green in colour and have small leaflets attached. Flowers are average sized, bright yellow in colour and are produced either singly or in small clusters. These flowers are borne in spring and summer. Jasminium mesnyi can grow to about 3m tall (sometimes more) and 2m wide.

This is a woody climber. Leaves are about 15cm long each divided into 3 leaflets which are leathery, green and heart shaped at the base. Flowers are produced from late winter to late spring or early summer. The flowers are a purple-black colour witha yellow tinge. Kennedia nigricans can grow to about 6m tall.

This is known as a vigorous climber from eastern Australia but it can either be a climber or a spreading groundcover. The leaves are dark green in groups of three, about 16cm long and the flowers are dark red in colour.This plant is a nectar and insect food source for birds.

This is a deciduous tree growing to 8m in height with attractive peeling bark and colourful autumn foliage. There are a number of varieties of this outstanding small tree. Its white, pink, or crimson flowers form over late summer. Pruning through biennial pollarding can assist in managing height and flowers.

Growing up to 5m tall and 6m wide, this plant is often used as a landscape screening or background tree. It features pink hibiscus shaped flowers on glossy green foliage, becoming denser with age. The seed capsules have fine sharp hairs irritating to skin and are not suitable for public spaces.

The Bay Tree is a large feature tree prized for its long life span and ability to be clipped into shapes for topiary. Whilst initially slow-growing, if left unclipped it will grow as a columnar evergreen tree up to 10m tall. Any clipped leaves can be used in the kitchen for cooking or fragrance as both fresh and dry leaves have a distinct scent.

French Lavender is a spreading shrub to 1m tall and 1.5m wide. Its leaves are dark green, straight, and about 4cm long. Its flowers are fragranced, purple in colour, and are borne on spikes which are produced in mid and late summer. Lavendula dentata or Lavendula stoechas are more likely to survive in humid subtropical climate.

This is a tough perennial from the Canary Islands that grows up to 80cm in height. The Sea Lavender has large, basal leaves and mauve and white long-lasting flowers borne on wiry stems. Tolerant of only the mildest frosts, it is excellent for coastal gardens and is best in dry, well-drained locations. Limoniums are often sold in florists as Statice.

Tufted, tuberous, evergreen perrenial. Leaves are arching, linear, grass-like and form dense clumps. Flowers are small, spherical and only slightly open. (Flowering is usually in autumn.) These are clustered in short dense spikes and are followed by the production of black berries. Liriope giganteum grows to about 30cm tall and 45cm wide.

This is a tough and durable species, widely used in urban landscape plantings as a strappy bed filler. It produces a soft rhizome at its base and an upright clump of green foliage. Once established it will tolerate a wide range of conditions, including dry shade and waterlogged soils. This plant is an egg laying site for butterflies and a habitat plant for frogs.

Spreading deciduous tree from southern USA. Bark is dark orange. Leaves are oval-shaped, dark green in colour turning yellow before they fall. Flowers are tiny, yellow in colour and are borne in summer. Following the flowering is the production of large, wrinkled fruits. NB: leaves and fruits let out a sticky milky substance which can mildly irritate the skin. Maclura pomifera grows to about 15m high and 13m wide. This tree is drought tolerant.

This shrub from New South Wales grows to 4m and produces red bottlebrush flowers from late spring to summer. Best used for lower shrub screening, it is also highly attractive to native birds when in flower and for nesting.

This shrub is initially erect but eventually spreads. Stems are branching and bark is peeling. The leaves are green in colour, narrow and quite small (3cm long). Flowers are lavender-pink to rose-pink, and are borne from spring to summer. Melaleuca nesophila can grow to about 7m tall and about 4m wide. This plant is drought tolerant.

This tree is found in regions that are prone to fire, it is quite drought tolerant. The bark is peeling, light tan in colour and forms as very thin sheets. Leaves are green in colour and average sized. Creamy white flowers are borne from summer to autumn. Melaleuca styphelioides grows to about 12m tall. This tree is drought tolerant.

Both attractive and tough, this small tree is often used as as street tree and will grow well in arid areas. This tree is fast growing, spreading, has many branches and is deciduous. It grows up to 10m in height and 5m wide with handsome fine and lush green foliage. Its flowers are lilac, star-shaped, fragranced and about 2cm across. They are borne from spring to early summer. Following the flowering, small, poisonous spherical yellow fruit is formed.

This 3X3 m tall shrub from South Africa is erect at first, but eventually spreads. The leaves are long and bold and smell unpleasant if crushed. Striking flower rods are brown to deep red in colour and are borne from late spring to midsummer. This a tough plant with considerable weed potential. It is drought tolerant.

This is a spreading medium sized shrub. The foliage hangs from thin branches. Leaves are long, narrow and green in colour. Flowers are white or sometimes pink in colour and are produced on the stems in spring and early summer. (Note: The flowers have a heavy scent). Myoporum florabundum grows to about 3m high and 3m wide.

This is a ground-cover plant with fleshy green leaves and white flowers in summer, both frost and drought tolerant. This plant has trailing stems to about 1m or more and the leaves are green or grey in colour. Its flowers are white and are borne in summer. Myoporum parvifolium grows to about 1m in height and the width is unlimited. The plant can be effectively hedged and formally shaped.

This is a fast tough, growing plant from the Mediterranean that grows up to 4m high. The leaves are long and deep green in colour. Flowers are fragranced and range from white to pink to deep pink and are borne from late summer onwards. These flowers are produced in clusters and vary in colour, some have pink petals and a darker centre, others have white petals with a cream centre etc. Every part of this plant is poisonous.

No Mediterranean Garden would be complete without an Olive tree. Slow, but long-lasting, Olives form a small open, multi-trunked tree. Needing good drainage and full sun there are many different varieties available. Seedless varieties, such as ‘Swan Hill’ or ‘Tolleys upright’ should be used in areas where Olives are an environmental weed.