Verge gardens

Image by Emma Rooksby. 

Verge gardens are some of the trickiest to design and to manage. Verges are typically long, narrow strips of land, owned by councils but managed by the adjacent landholder. They perform several different functions, including providing safe places for pedestrians to walk, and being a buffer between residential properties and roads. They provide welcome space for street trees that cool and shade the urban area, but may also compete with power lines under which nothing tall can be planted.

Key design considerations for verge gardens include making sure there is a stable, even pathway for pedestrians and posties to travel on, and ensuring that plants don't grow up into power lines. It's also important to leave some areas with low vegetation to enable people to get into and out of parked cars.

If in doubt about what you can plant, consult with your local council and comply with their verge policy (if they have one!).

A naturalistic verge garden featuring the staple species Spiny-headed Mat-rush (Lomandra longifolia). Image by Tracee Lea ©. 

Some plants to consider include:

Small fruit-bearing trees	Notes
Illawarra Plum Pine (Podocarpus elatus)	Slow-growing medium tree with glossy green leaves and tasty purple fruit; it eventually grows large but can be kept pruned
Blue Cherry (Syzygium paniculatum)	Neat small tree with edible blue fruit good for making jam
Black Apple (Planchonella australis)	Small to medium tree with large, tasty fruit
Sandpaper Fig (Ficus coronata)	Small low-branching tree with edible (but not particularly yummy) fruit that grow directly off the stems
Coastal Banksia (Banksia integrifolia)	Small or medium-sized tree with flowers in the form of ‘candles’ containing edible nectar
Flowering shrubs
Native Elderberry (Sambucus australasicus)	Woody shrub to 3m with three-part leaves and pleasantly scented creamy flowers; part shade and a moist position
Ricinocarpos speciosus	Rounded shrub to 3m with large white flowers in spring; full sun
Lance Beard-heath (Leucopogon lanceolatus)	Shrub to 3m, tending to woodiness, with delightful scented white flowers; part shade
Musk Daisy-bush (Olearia argophylla)	Large bushy to 3m shrub with musk-scented foliage; part shade
Twiggy Heath-myrtle (Sannantha pluriflora)	Dense shrub or small tree with masses of creamy white flowers; full sun or part shade
Bridal Daisy-bush (Olearia microphylla)	Dainty rounded small shrub to 1.5m with tiny leaves and masses of white flowers in spring; part or dappled shade
Austral Indigo (Indigofera australis)	Shrub to 1.5m with arching branches, lacy-looking foliage, purple flowers and long seed pods; part shade
Colourful climbers
Purple Coral Pea (Hardenbergia violacea)	Tough sun-loving climber or rambling groundcover with prolific purple flowers
Dusky Coral Pea (Kennedia rubicunda)	Robust climber or groundcover with attractive felty leaves and red flowers; full sun or part shade
Trailing Guinea-flower (Hibbertia dentata)	Delicate climber with beautiful red stems and yellow flowers; part shade
Climbing Guinea-flower (Hibbertia scandens)	Very hardy climber with glossy green leaves and yellow flowers; part shade
Wonga Vine (Pandorea pandorana)	Tough, large climber with attractive pink flowers; full sun or part shade
Native Sarsaparilla (Smilax glyciphylla)	Delicate twiner with decorative red new growth and tangy fruit; part shade
Native Raspberry (Rubus parvifolius or R. rosifolius var. commersonii)	Low climbers or groundcovers with prickly stems and edible raspberry fruits; full sun or part shade
Taller grasses and strap leaved plants
Scented-top Grass (Capillipedium parviflorum)	Clumping grass to around 80cm with lightly fragrant flowers; full sun or part shade
Black Anther Flax-lily (Dianella revoluta)	Elegant strappy leaves, purple fruit; full sun or part shade
Branching Grass-flag (Libertia paniculata)	Strap-leaved plant to 40cm, white iris-like flowers; part shade
Swamp Lily (Crinum pedunculatum)	Upright, clumping plant with tough strappy leaves and sweetly scented white flowers; full sun to part shade
Groundcovers and low plants
Pigface (Carpobrotus glaucescens)	Succulent groundcover for sandy sites, the fruit are tasty and young leaves can be blanched and eaten; full sun
Warrigal Greens (Tetragonia tetragonioides)	Low spreading plant with soft green spinach-like leaves; part shade
Cockspur Flower (Plectranthus parviflorus)	Low semi-succulent plant with lightly mint scented foliage, self-seeds readily; part shade
Bulbine bulbosa	Spring onion-like foliage and lightly scented yellow flowers on long stems; part shade
Everlasting Daisy (Xerochrysum bracteatum)	Classic paper daisies with tough long-lasting papery flowers on tall stalks; full sun
Grass Daisy (Brachyscome graminea)	Low-growing perennial with pretty purple flowers, self-seeding; full sun
Native Bluebell (Wahlenbergia communis)	Dainty annual with small blue bell-flowers, self-seeding; full sun
Native Violet (Viola hederacea)	Spreading low plant with charming purple and white flowers that stand proud of the leaves; part shade
Whiteroot (Pratia purpurascens)	Tiny creeping plant with pretty toothed leaves and dainty white flowers; part shade
Trailing Speedwell (Veronica plebeia)	Small creeping plant with sweet little purple flowers; part shade
Orchids
Sydney Rock Orchid (Dendrobium speciosum)	Large orchid with spectacular flowers, that can be grown on rocks close to the ground; full sun or part shade