The main one I have growing in a wall is visible on 7 minuets and 50seconds into this recent video clip from the garden. The stone wall is one I put together myself with the traditional filling of small stones and soil in between the the outer layer of bigger stones. It went in to replace a variegated alpine thyme plant which passed away after filling the spot nicely for a few years. I propagate it from cuttings and got it established in places in the garden with very little soil where it seems to do fine but it can get bigger in better conditions.
I couldn't see it @robairdmacraignil. I could only see broom and euphorbia, sorry. I don't think that's what the OP is doing though, ie planting into the top. I think its this type of thing
Thrift [Armeria] is another plant which will do well in the sunny bits .
That's very pretty @Silver surfer. In light of my forum name, I should probably get some of those
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I couldn't see it @robairdmacraignil. I could only see broom and euphorbia, sorry. I don't think that's what the OP is doing though, ie planting into the top. I think its this type of thing
Hi Fairygirl. Sorry you can't see the perennial wallflower in the video I gave a link to. It is surrounded by euphorbia and broom that are not growing in the wall and is only just starting to flower now so not at its best yet. I am not making it up that it is growing out of the low wall I have made in my garden and it is growing elsewhere with very little soil. I do believe it could grow out of a dry stone wall as I pictured it from the opening post. I did not picture something like the one constructed out of quarried stone in your picture. There is some variation in dry stone wall construction and the ones near here usually have some soil in them and often have hawthorn planted on top but I was not making the suggestion of perennial wallflower just to be planted in the top of the walls of the opening poster.
rather than a solid, constructed wall as in my previous pic, but I was describing the type of planting the OP would be looking to do. Nooks and crannies for small plants as an attractive feature
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Lithodora is one of my favourites. Not a natural wall lover though so it needs a good pocket of soil. It's the blue flower in the background in the pic below. Stone walls are tough on most plants but if you get good at growing cuttings as plugs you can keep replacing plants every couple of years. Mixing john innes with clay makes a good soil mix that doesn't wash out very easily. Use more clay to bung up any big holes.
If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
Looks good @wild edges I pushed plugs of clay into the wall [in that initial pic of mine] to make sure it stayed in place. The chicken wire also helped to keep it lodged in, where the holes were small, or a tricky shape. It's about finding a way to get a plant in, and then maintaining it until established. As you say, it's often necessary to have some back ups.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
rather than a solid, constructed wall as in my previous pic, but I was describing the type of planting the OP would be looking to do. Nooks and crannies for small plants as an attractive feature
Hi Fairygirl. That was my aim with my suggestions as well. I usually would have more young erysimum cuttings getting established but they are usually fairly small. The current one that I only started a few weeks back when I cut off a living branch by accident should be just starting to form roots and is about 5cm tall in a very small pot. In about a month it would be suitable in my opinion to fit in a nook or crannie in a dry stone wall and as I was saying above they don't grow as big when they are in a situation with not very much soil available.
Thank you all for your excellent suggestions. I am scouring the internet as we speak, looking up each one and seeing what seeds or plug plants I can get. Yes, the walls are old dry stone, very rustic, some falling down...I will post a photo at some point! thanks again.
Hi, I've just built a limestone semi dry wall and there is an area along the top for a couple of inches depth (max) of soil, is this enough for aubretia?
Posts
The main one I have growing in a wall is visible on 7 minuets and 50seconds into this recent video clip from the garden. The stone wall is one I put together myself with the traditional filling of small stones and soil in between the the outer layer of bigger stones. It went in to replace a variegated alpine thyme plant which passed away after filling the spot nicely for a few years. I propagate it from cuttings and got it established in places in the garden with very little soil where it seems to do fine but it can get bigger in better conditions.
I don't think that's what the OP is doing though, ie planting into the top.
I think its this type of thing
Thrift [Armeria] is another plant which will do well in the sunny bits .
That's very pretty @Silver surfer. In light of my forum name, I should probably get some of those
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Hi Fairygirl. Sorry you can't see the perennial wallflower in the video I gave a link to. It is surrounded by euphorbia and broom that are not growing in the wall and is only just starting to flower now so not at its best yet. I am not making it up that it is growing out of the low wall I have made in my garden and it is growing elsewhere with very little soil. I do believe it could grow out of a dry stone wall as I pictured it from the opening post. I did not picture something like the one constructed out of quarried stone in your picture. There is some variation in dry stone wall construction and the ones near here usually have some soil in them and often have hawthorn planted on top but I was not making the suggestion of perennial wallflower just to be planted in the top of the walls of the opening poster.
rather than a solid, constructed wall as in my previous pic, but I was describing the type of planting the OP would be looking to do.
Nooks and crannies for small plants as an attractive feature
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I pushed plugs of clay into the wall [in that initial pic of mine] to make sure it stayed in place. The chicken wire also helped to keep it lodged in, where the holes were small, or a tricky shape.
It's about finding a way to get a plant in, and then maintaining it until established. As you say, it's often necessary to have some back ups.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Hi Fairygirl. That was my aim with my suggestions as well. I usually would have more young erysimum cuttings getting established but they are usually fairly small. The current one that I only started a few weeks back when I cut off a living branch by accident should be just starting to form roots and is about 5cm tall in a very small pot. In about a month it would be suitable in my opinion to fit in a nook or crannie in a dry stone wall and as I was saying above they don't grow as big when they are in a situation with not very much soil available.