Charleston Landscaping
Ideas |
General Info-
Your Charleston landscaping ideas and designs will require a little
research before planting. Now,
I am not claiming to be a landscape architect but I have already done
an extensive amount of research for you regarding the different types of plants, shrubs,
trees and grasses which are common to the Charleston area. From my own
personal experience, I have
found that your best bet is to stick with and select
native plant materials which are common to the Charleston SC area.
Basically, what you
are looking for when selecting your home's plant material is to find the most hardy and
drought resistant specie available all while you trying to maintain the desired look you are after. If you
should make the mistake of selecting something other than South Carolina
native plant materials, you will
spend countless hours nurturing the plant's growth. Charleston's long
and hot summers require lots of water. Sometimes during a long dry
Charleston summer even the native plant materials have a tough time
surviving.
I hope you find
my extensive list of native
and non-native options that I think grow and show really well throughout the
Charleston landscape helpful.
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The state of
South Carolina is so proud of the native Palmetto palm you will find it
embroidered on our state flag. South
Carolina is called the “Palmetto State” and you will find these
beautiful palm trees growing in their natural habitat throughout the
state of South Carolina. The Palmetto palm is designated as the state tree
because of its ability to grow in the wild and survive anywhere in the state.
Another name for the Palmetto Palm is the “Cabbage Palm”. The Palmetto
palm is a
must have for your landscape design. The Cabbage Palm makes for a great
solitary specimen and can be used as your end-caps to show off your home.
When planting the Palmetto palm, you will need to be sure and allow at least
five or six feet from the
corners of your home. Otherwise the
palm fronds will overhang onto the house and look cramped.
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Palmetto Palm
Fact Sheet |
Height |
Spread |
Growth Rate |
Drought Tolerance |
The Windmill Palm is a little more
temper mental to full
sun than the Palmetto palm and is the perfect specimen for partial shade and
shaded areas. You will find the Windmill Palm growing in areas like
front entryways, back yard patios or among other shrubs bordering the
property line. The Windmill Palm is very symmetric and the fan-shaped
fronds are the perfect accent to your landscape. You will find the
Windmill Palm adds a formal and tropical elegance around patio and sitting
areas.
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Windmill Palm
Fact Sheet |
Height |
Spread |
Growth Rate |
Drought Tolerance |
This is really not in the Palm tree family. It is a
member of the cycads family and the Sago Palm is a “living
fossil”. The sago palm is very popular in the lowcountry and really does
look great in the landscape. This "palm" can take full sun and neglect. The
Sago Palm propagates by seed produced by the male (cone) and female
(flowering) plants during spring. These seeds can later be found in the
female's flower sometime in January or February. The Sago palm
is a really slow grower at the rate of 1" per year. There will be new
leaves produced once a year. These new tender light green leaves will
appear all at once in a circular pattern. You will need gloves and long
sleeves to prune their prickly leaves. The sago palm adds and
compliments every lowcountry landscape with its very tropical look.
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Sago Palm Fact
Sheet |
Height |
Spread |
Growth Rate |
Drought Tolerance |
Most generally, when people think of the south, they
picture a beautiful live oak tree draped in Spanish moss. The movie
"Gone With the Wind" is a great example of this. The live oak is a
native tree and you will find massive Angel Oaks dating back hundreds of
years. You will find that a well cared for live oak will bring a
premium to a home's value. Some of these trees date back centuries and
are truly breathtaking. It will become obvious to you why someone is willing
to pay thousands of dollars more in price for the home with one of these
beautiful trees to be located on the property. The live oak is a
coastal specimen with high a tolerance for full sun, salt air and drought.
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Live Oak Fact
Sheet |
Height |
Spread |
Growth Rate |
Drought Tolerance |
The Southern Magnolia's beautiful, white, fragrant,
saucer-shaped, flower is a southern landscape tradition. The Southern
Magnolia tree will form into a dense dark green pyramidal shape which makes for
a great property screen. There are many variations of the Southern Magnolia
but it is often difficult to see real differences among them. If you enjoy
the white blossoms but aren't keen to big trees, then check out the little
gem magnolia as a fine alternative.
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Southern
Magnolia Fact Sheet |
Height |
Spread |
Growth Rate |
Drought Tolerance |
The Red Sunset Maple
is an excellent choice for your backyard tree. This tree will provide you
with an interesting backdrop during all four seasons. The outstanding
ornamental characteristics start during the spring with brilliant red
flowers followed by the red summer fruit and then the magnificent display of
its colorful fall red leaves.
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Red Sunset Fact
Sheet |
Height |
Spread |
Growth Rate |
Drought Tolerance |
This tree is a
Charleston favorite. You will find plenty of Crepe Myrtles growing
in the Charleston area. There are many different varieties
available to choose from. You can even
select a dwarf crepe myrtle. The colors, sizes and flower duration are
all personal preference. You will find some varieties of Crepe Myrtles
where there flowers will last over 120 days all during the hot summer
months. One thing is for sure, Crepe Myrtles are just another
southern statement of Charleston's beauty. In the winter and early spring, you will find
owners committing acts of “Crepe Murder”. This is when the Crepe
Myrtle owner prunes the
tree completely down to the base trunk. These trees are very hardy and can take a
lot of pruning abuse, but please do not torture your
Crepe Myrtle and prune your tree back to its main trunk.
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Crepe Myrtle Fact
Sheet |
Height |
Spread |
Growth Rate |
Drought Tolerance |
This
small tree is like a dwarf Southern Magnolia. The Little Gem's
flowering blooms are just as beautiful and the best part is the tree will
have multiple blooms throughout the year. This is unlike the bigger
Southern Magnolia which blooms only once during the spring time.
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Little Gem
Magnolia Fact
Sheet |
Height |
Spread |
Growth Rate |
Drought Tolerance |
This tree grows
in full sun or partial shade. I recommend you select partial shade with a well drained soil. This will produce
the best results if your plans are not to water during the summer. The Flowering Dogwood is beautiful during the spring with its beautiful
flowers and in the fall produces colorful foliage with bright red berries.
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Flowering
Dogwood Fact
Sheet |
Height |
Spread |
Growth Rate |
Drought Tolerance |
Crimson Bottle Brush
This is truly
one of my favorites. The Crimson Bottle Brush will produce bright red
flowers on and off throughout the late spring and summer. The flowers are
fragrant and are very attractive to Hummingbirds and butterflies.
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Crimson Bottle
Brush Fact
Sheet |
Height |
Spread |
Growth Rate |
Drought Tolerance |
Azalea
The Rhododendron
family offers the gardener an abundant amount of choice. My favorite selection
here is the "Hino Crimson". This evergreen shrub will produce spectacular
late spring blooms and excellent fall color. You will not be disappointed with
this shrub. The first weekend in April is also the Summerville Azalea
Festival which is great fun for the entire family.
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Azalea Fact
Sheet |
Height |
Spread |
Growth Rate |
Drought Tolerance |
This variety of
the tough durable Wax Myrtle family is my favorite. The Fairfax Wax Myrtle is
also very popular to birds. The female, Fairfax Wax Myrtle, will produce
bright vibrant
fruit in late summer and last through winter.
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Fairfax Wax
Myrtle Fact
Sheet |
Height |
Spread |
Growth Rate |
Drought Tolerance |
The lowcountry is plentiful with this beautiful tropical and salt resistant
ornamental grass. You will also find Sea Oats growing along the sand
dunes helping stop beach erosion. This tropical grass works wonderfully
mixed in with other plant materials or as a stand alone ornamental grass.
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Sea Oats Fact
Sheet |
Height |
Spread |
Growth Rate |
Drought Tolerance |
Fountain Grass has
bright green leaves throughout the year and in the fall produces these
beautiful light and airy pink plumes.
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Fountain
Grass Fact
Sheet |
Height |
Spread |
Growth Rate |
Drought Tolerance |
The suggestions given to you on this
web site are just those, suggestions. Each person will obviously have
their own unique tastes for selecting their own home's ideal landscape design.
I have outlined for you some of my favorites which require very little or no
resources and are very low maintenance. You may enjoy hand watering flowers and
plants like some of my neighbors who are retired and like to garden.
However, should you end up selecting plant materials which do require frequent
watering, please be sure to design your irrigation system with this in mind or
at least locate the plants close to the hose bib.
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Site Map |
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Mark Costello
- AgentOwned Realty |
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1400 Palm Blvd. |
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Isle of Palms, SC. 29451 |
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Cell
843.224.3233 - Fax 843.725.6532 |
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