Griselinia is an evergreen shrub with small inconspicuous flowers. Its fruit is a small berry which can be grown into new plants. It is a simple shrub to understand and enjoy and with a little care it will benefit the gardens of beginners and masters alike. It is native to New Zealand and it grows perfectly well in Ireland. It thrives in South America and it enhances gardens throughout zones 7 and 8 in the U.S. It tolerates English winters in its stride and as it offers year round protection in coastal gardens it is a very valuable shrub to cultivate.
Vigorous Growth
Griselinia is an easy shrub to grow. It is a vigorous, hardy evergreen stalwart shrub so take care when planting. Once planted, a Griselinia shrub is generally in for the long haul, 100 years or more, and removing it from a badly chosen site is not an easy task. If a site has been chosen in error remove the plant as early as possible, within the first year or two; after this it will take considerable effort to move. The first years of growth are normally slow but consistent and at this time the roots are settling down for life. After about the third year the vigorous aspect begins to take hold and the plant becomes part of the landscape. The New Zealand species of Griselinia can grow anywhere between 4 and 20 meters.
Woody Shrub
Griselinia is a woody shrub and the trunks can become formidable; they can also become somewhat bare leaving gaps in the hedge so to speak. Depending on the site these gaps can be filled with other low growing evergreens, such as Euonymus Emerald Gaiety with its green foliage and white leaf markings or Ceanothus California Lilac could be useful with its evergreen foliage and summer flowers.
Griselinia as a Coastal Favorite
Griselinia is very wind tolerant and salt spray doesn’t bother it so it is useful as a coastal screen or hedge. It grows in a wide range of soils but it is not good to subject it to prolonged droughts. Before planting make the ground as fertile as possible. It will fail miserably in infertile soil and will look leggy and insignificant during its time in such a site until the irate gardener moves it altogether. Increasing the stock of Griselinia is easy and it will grow from seed, although taking semi-hardwood cuttings is perhaps the easiest way to propagate.
Pruning a Griselinia
Griselinia is a very beneficial shrub for certain areas but it must be remembered that unless "grown to abandon" it must be kept pruned on a yearly basis. If this task is left unattended for too long the trunks will be very difficult to handle and a lopping shears or even a pruning saw will become necessary.
Planting a Griselinia
Griselinia has many uses in gardens – big or small. A Griselinia hedge can be used as a screen between neighbors, it can be a wind barrier, it is useful as a view breaker – it can break up a long narrow garden thereby preventing the whole garden from being viewed at one glance adding interest for the visitor and the gardener. It is also widely used by bees as it is a good source of pollen.
Types of Griselinia
Griselinia carlomuozii, G. jodinifolia, G. littoralis, G. lucida, G. racemosa G. ruscifolia and G. scandens
