11-13-2008, 08:10 AM
Heya Glen,
I sit here drinking coffee quite amused at your "pull a Kehena" allusion! I am thinking that if ya want the freedom to do that you might want a fuller hedge. Coffee seems to get kinda scraggly and may not provide a dense enough hedge, plus it does like some shade and protection from wind. Bamboo is awesome if you have the room - but it sounds like you may be looking for something more compact.
Here's a thought: if you can't figure out what you want yet, why not plant cassava (Manihot esculenta). It grows fast, likes sun or light shade, tolerates poor soil, is pretty and edible. (There's even a vairegated form) You eat the roots, which you can harvest from a live plant or pull out the whole plant. They taste a lot like potatoes and are delicious boiled or made into hash browns. They're also less starchy and easier to grow and prepare than kalo. Ms Carey gave me a couple of cuttings a while ago and they grew fast and are lovely and tasty!
Other ideas...You see it eveywhere but you can't really beat podocarpus for a fast hedge. Hibiscus can make an awesome hedge too but takes a bit more time. I really love our native alahe'e (Psydrax odorata) as a hedge. It's related to coffee, has dense glossy green leaves and little white flowers with an incredible fragrance. It may take time to fill in - but perhaps you can plant it parallel to your initial cassava hedge.
Mitzi
I sit here drinking coffee quite amused at your "pull a Kehena" allusion! I am thinking that if ya want the freedom to do that you might want a fuller hedge. Coffee seems to get kinda scraggly and may not provide a dense enough hedge, plus it does like some shade and protection from wind. Bamboo is awesome if you have the room - but it sounds like you may be looking for something more compact.
Here's a thought: if you can't figure out what you want yet, why not plant cassava (Manihot esculenta). It grows fast, likes sun or light shade, tolerates poor soil, is pretty and edible. (There's even a vairegated form) You eat the roots, which you can harvest from a live plant or pull out the whole plant. They taste a lot like potatoes and are delicious boiled or made into hash browns. They're also less starchy and easier to grow and prepare than kalo. Ms Carey gave me a couple of cuttings a while ago and they grew fast and are lovely and tasty!
Other ideas...You see it eveywhere but you can't really beat podocarpus for a fast hedge. Hibiscus can make an awesome hedge too but takes a bit more time. I really love our native alahe'e (Psydrax odorata) as a hedge. It's related to coffee, has dense glossy green leaves and little white flowers with an incredible fragrance. It may take time to fill in - but perhaps you can plant it parallel to your initial cassava hedge.
Mitzi
Uluhe Design
Native Landscape Design
uluhedesign@yahoo.com
Native Landscape Design
uluhedesign@yahoo.com