Teucrium Fruticans

Teucrium Fruticans is best suited in a position that gets

• Full sun

Teucrium Fruticans is

• Drought resistant once established
• Wind Tolerant
• Frost Tolerant
• Coastal Friendly
• Flowering
• Attracts pollinators
• Fast-growing
• Cold hardy
• Evergreen

Teucrium Fruticans will thrive in soil that is

• Free draining

Plant Teucrium fruticans in full sun.

Plenty of sunlight helps produce:

Dense growth

Strong silver foliage colour

Better flowering

A more compact habit

It can tolerate some light shade, but plants grown in too much shade can become more open and leggy.

For Canterbury, Teucrium is particularly useful in warm, sunny and relatively dry positions where more moisture-demanding shrubs struggle.

Water regularly while plants establish their root systems.

Don't confuse drought tolerant with doesn't need watering when first planted.

Deep watering during establishment will help create a much tougher mature shrub.
Once established, Teucrium has excellent drought tolerance.

Water during prolonged severe drought if plants begin showing signs of stress, but established plants generally cope well with dry summer conditions.

Overwatering established plants can be more problematic than allowing the soil to dry moderately between waterings.

Apply mulch around newly planted shrubs to help retain moisture and suppress weeds.

In very wet or heavy soils, avoid piling thick moisture-retentive mulch directly around the crown.

Keep mulch slightly away from the main stems.

Gravel mulch can work particularly well around Teucrium in Mediterranean-style planting.

Teucrium is not a particularly demanding feeder.

In ordinary garden soil, very little supplementary fertiliser should be required.

If growth is poor, apply a balanced slow-release fertiliser in spring.

Avoid excessive nitrogen.

Too much fertiliser can produce soft, lanky growth and reduce the naturally compact, silvery appearance we're trying to encourage.

Teucrium responds very well to pruning.

For informal shrubs, prune to:

Remove dead or damaged growth

Maintain a balanced shape

Reduce excessive size

Encourage fresh bushy growth

For hedges, trim regularly during the growing season to maintain the desired height and width.

Light, frequent pruning encourages much denser foliage than infrequent severe pruning.

Older shrubs can become woody and open if they're never pruned.

If a plant has become too large or untidy, it can generally be reduced and encouraged to produce fresh growth.

However, it's better to maintain the shrub regularly from a younger age rather than waiting until you've got two metres of woody shrub and deciding today is the day.

When undertaking heavier pruning, avoid doing it immediately before severe winter weather.

Teucrium fruticans has reasonable frost tolerance once established, although severe frost can damage soft new growth and young plants.

In colder Canterbury gardens, choose a sunny position with good drainage and avoid severe frost hollows where possible.

Young plants may benefit from some protection during their first winter.

If frost damages the tips, wait until the worst winter weather has passed before trimming affected growth.

Established plants will generally recover as temperatures warm.


Here's somewhere Teucrium actually earns some points.

Once established, its small leaves, drought tolerance and Mediterranean heritage make it considerably better equipped for hot, dry conditions than many broad-leaved shrubs.

It can cope well with Canterbury's summer heat and drying winds, provided it has developed a good root system.

Water properly during establishment.

After that, it becomes a considerably less demanding customer.


Teucrium is also an excellent choice for coastal planting.

Its tolerance of:

Wind

Salt-laden air

Dry soil

Strong sunlight

makes it useful in exposed seaside gardens.

Combine it with other Mediterranean and coastal plants for a low-maintenance planting scheme.


Teucrium can also be grown in a large container.

Its silver foliage works particularly well in:

Sunny courtyards

Entrance areas

Mediterranean-style patios

Contemporary landscapes

Choose a container with excellent drainage and use free-draining potting mix.

Container-grown plants will require more regular watering than those growing in the ground.