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Hebes are a popular evergreen shrub that can flower for most of the year, making them a wonderful addition to any garden. These shrubs require very little looking after and can be a great choice for a first time gardener.
Hebes are also a great choice if you want to encourage wildlife into your garden, as birds, bees, butterflies and other pollinators love them.
They are not native to the UK, and come from New Zealand, Australia and South America. But as our weather changes, our choice to plant only native species to the UK may have to change. For me personally, if the plant helps our wildlife and isn't invasive then it's good with me.
Hebes have a long flowering period, mine can flower for 10 months of the year. Flower colours include white, pink, blue, and mauve. Leaf colour also varies from dark green to pink as well as being variegated. They come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes and can be planted in a range of sites. Some hebes are not hardy and may need to be brought into a glass house during winter.
They are great in shrub borders and can keep weeds at bay when used as ground cover. I haven't had a weed pop up under my hebes yet, but the foot fall from the birds hiding under the hebes could also be helping.
Hebes thrive in moist but well-drained soil in full sun to partial shade, ideally sheltered from strong winds. They don't need rich soils and can tolerate drought.
Remove spent flower heads to encourage further flowering and to improve the look of the hebe. Prune back in late summer to encourage new growth and a pleasing shape. If you leave the dead flowers on the shrub lots of insects including ladybirds will enjoy hiding in them.
Hebes are native to scrubland making them a tough plant, but they will need protecting from cold winds. Larger leafed varieties are more tender than the smaller leafed varieties. They can also be grown near to the coast as they will tolerant being sprayed with sea water.
They will do really well in a sheltered spot, such as in front of a south or west facing wall. Larger cultivars can be grown at the back of a border while smaller varieties can be grown towards the front or in pots.
Hebes look even better when mixed in with catmint, Japanese anemones, cranesbill geraniums, penstemons and other herbacesous perennials. I love my sapphire coloured hebe next to Erysimum Walberton's Fragrant Sunshine wallflower and a garnet penstemon. Red's yellows and purples really seem to work well together.
It's best to plant hebes in late spring to give it time to establish over the winter months.
Dig a planting hole slightly wider than the pot it is grown in. Start by placing the pot onto the ground and push down and twist, remove, you'll see an indent from the pot giving you a digging guide, once the hole is dug, use the pot again to place into the hole to check the depth is correct. Hebes enjoy poor soil, so simply place the root ball in the hole, replace the soil (back fill) and firm around the plant gently. Water well. Do the same if planting in pots.
Hebes need little care. I left my hebes to do their own thing for years and they looked glorious, then we had temperatures of -12 and the plants had a lot of frost damage which had to be removed. The bush came back better and stronger.
Cut back dead flowers as well as cutting away a third of foliage in later summer (after flowering) this will encourage strong new growth and a good bushy shape. Hard pruning, where you take the plant back down to 2 to 3 inches from ground height can rejuvenate an old hebe.
Take cuttings in summer. It's really simple, remove a shoot of a non-flowering stem (preferably from the middle of the plant) remove the leaves from the lower portion of the stem and push into a pot of moist compost (you can use gritty compost). You can cover with a clear plastic bag or place in a propagator with a lid to maintain moisture. I have never used a plastic bag or propagator, I check the soil every day to make sure it is moist and on very hot days I might spray them with some water every now and again, I do keep them in a shaded location though. All of my cuttings have been successful so far. If you choose to use coverings, they can be removed once the plant starts to grow.
Hebes don't tend to have problems. Some are less hardy and can suffer in exposed areas. Simply don't buy a tender hebe if you are going to plant it in an exposed site. As always right plant, right situation.
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