THE PROBLEM SOLVER
Stefan says: Good question. You ask: is a wall shrub a shrub that can be grown by a wall, or one that must be grown by a wall? Why should it be grown in this way and, in any event, what is the difference between a wall shrub and a climber?
I’m not sure there are many hard and fast rules in the wall shrub business. It’s true that a wall shrub is any shrub that will grow well when planted close to a wall. This may be because it has a spreading habit that can readily be trained in two dimensions, or it may be that it needs the shelter from the wind and cold that only a wall can provide. Some wall shrubs will naturally spread to cover a wall with very little need for training, whereas others will require constant and regular attention if they are really to give their best.
In all cases, however, such a shrub must have a root system that will not cause damage to the fabric or foundations of the wall itself. By and large, wall shrubs will also function better if they are reasonably tolerant of the dry and often impoverished soil that is present close to the base of a wall. It’s also a great help that they are fairly tolerant of aphids and mildew, the pest and disease problems that are so common in the warm, sheltered wall environment. So where do wall shrubs end and climbers begin? For me, a climber must have some means of support without which they would flop into a tangled heap. Wall shrubs may be better pegged or tied against a wall in order to keep them neat and tidy, but they will stand perfectly freely without.
Perhaps the most common and, in many ways, the most successful of wall shrubs is pyracantha. There are few plants happier against a wall, although it’s important to select the kinds that are most readily trained in two dimensions. Try the orange-yellow berried variety ‘Teton’.
Is now the right time to feed my lawn?
Stefan says: Yes, just as the new growth is getting under way. But be sure to choose t
