Narrow gardens and courtyards need plants that grow up rather than out. Fastigiate natives like Straight and Narrow™ Syzygium, SLIM™ Callistemon and Space Saver™ Melaleuca are Australian native hedges/shrubs that provide screening without consuming excess valuable horizontal space.
Callistemon viminalis ‘CV01’ PBR Trade Name Slim™
Narrow-growing tall bottlebrush; ideal for driveways and narrow beds. Can be trained as a tall screen or a single/multi-leader tree. Flood and drought tolerant, used in bioswales.
- Australian Plants Online: Tubestock; $6.20. https://www.australianplantsonline.com.au/callistemon-slim.html
- The Plant Hub: 50 mm tube; $6.50. https://theplanthub.com.au/products/slim-callistemon
Syzygium australe ‘SAN01’ PBR Trade Name Straight and Narrow™
Ultra-slim Lilly Pilly hedge cultivar with dense foliage and narrow form; ideal for tight spaces
- The Plant Hub: 50 mm tube; $8.50. https://theplanthub.com.au/products/straight-and-narrow
Melaleuca armillaris ‘MELA01’ PBR Trade Name Space Saver™
Narrow upright bracelet honey-myrtle with aromatic foliage; perfect for screens in tight spaces
- Australian Plants Online: Tubestock; $7.90. https://www.australianplantsonline.com.au/melaleuca-space-saver.html
Design Ideas
- Courtyard screens: Plant tall shrubs in large pots along fences. Its height and slender form create a green wall in small spaces with concrete rather than soil.
- Boundary hedging: Alternate a bottlebrush with a lilly pilly for a mixed hedge that offers both flowers and texture.
- Layered privacy: Combine a row of a taller shrub in the back with a front planting of Lomandra or Dianella to soften the base.
- Feature trees: Sometimes you don’t need a long hedge to block a view. Sometimes you just need a narrow, tall individual tree to block a particular sightline.
Fastigiate natives give privacy without sacrificing precious space, making them perfect for online buyers with compact gardens. When you buy plants