By Bob Bayes
http://www.qualitygardens.biz/
qualitygardens2004@yahoo.co.uk
A slight change to this month’s article. I will take a look at three wild plants that also make good garden plants. Being that they grow wild in the Cretan landscape means that they are very well suited to cope with local conditions and require no additional watering (once established) to keep them alive through the summer.
Oleander (Nerium oleander, Pikrodafni)
Already firmly established as a favourite garden plant it is commonly seen lining ma
ny roadsides. Usually in it’s common pink form but also in white or red. Double flowered cultivars are available, as well as cultivars with variegated leaves.They can be left to grow into a very large (5m high) shrub but will withstand very severe pruning to maintain shape. This makes them extremely useful for growing as an informal hedge or screen. As they flower on new shoots, this does not affect flowering. Oleander can also be trained to form a small tree.
Health warning: All parts of the oleander are poisonous!
Methods of P
oisoning: Ingestion of flowers, seeds, leaves, bark, roots and smoke from burning wood, contact with sap from plant, pollen from flowers.Symptoms of Poisoning: Skin irritation, decreased or irregular pulse rate, abdominal cramps, vomiting, diarrhoea (sometimes bloody), dilated pupils, dizziness, persistent headache, fatigue, drowsiness, loss of visual acuity (blurred or aberrant colour vision), convulsions, respiratory failure, coma and death possible.
Obviously care should be taken if you intend to use this plant near to where children play. Also beware of breathing in bonfire smoke and burns on the skin from the sticky sap when pruning.
Although I don’t know of any animals deliberately eating oleander you should be aware that many garden chemicals can make noxious plants appear to be palatable, i.e. they may mistakenly eat them. And fallen leaves blowing into animal drinking bowls may be potentially fatal.
Spanish Broom (Spartium junceum, Sparto)
Another
large shrub growing to 3m high it is commonly seen in the submontane zone and is particularly noticeable now as it is in full bloom. The flowering season is May to June.
I have not seen this in a garden setting here on Crete but it is a common garden plant in the U.K where it flowers later and then throughout the summer.
The flowers are strongly scented and are followed by pea like pods. Since these will cause severe vomiting if eaten, care should be taken if used near where children play. Removal of dead flowers will prevent seed production and may encourage a second flush of flowers.
As a general rule, brooms do not respond well to heavy pruning into old wood but they will respond to a trim in the autumn.
The rush like stems have, traditionally been used in basket weaving which gives rise to another common name – Weaver’s Broom.
Cretan Ebony (Ebenus cretica, Arhodoxilo)
One of th
e estimated 210 species or subspecies of plant that are endemic to Crete. That means they are not found in the wild anywhere else in the world.
This is a smaller shrub and is commonly seen on rocky slopes – just before the airport on the National road.
The mass of soft pink flower spikes are seen from March to June and it should be clipped after flowering to keep it in shape.
It deserves to be more widely used as it is ideal for dry stony banks or mixed borders.
Another common name for this plant is Shrubby Sanfoin.
Please remember that it is illegal to remove plants from the wild.
