The best low maintenance plants for Adelaide's climate

Adelaide has a classic Mediterranean climate, with hot dry summers and cool wet winters. That sounds demanding, but it is exactly the climate a huge range of beautiful plants are built for. The trick is choosing species that want the conditions you have rather than fighting against them.

Hardy natives that earn their place

Australian natives are the backbone of a low maintenance Adelaide garden. Once established they need very little water and reward you with foliage, flowers and birdlife.

• Grevillea for long flowering displays and nectar feeding birds.
• Westringia, often called native rosemary, for tough, tidy hedging.
• Lomandra and dianella for strappy, structural foliage that copes with almost anything.
• Kangaroo paw for a striking, sculptural flower through the warmer months.

Mediterranean exotics that love it here

Plenty of non native plants share the same heritage climate and settle in beautifully. They bring scent, colour and a softness that pairs well with natives.

• Lavender for fragrance, colour and pollinators.
• Rosemary as both an ornamental and a useful herb.
• Salvia for reliable, long lasting colour with minimal care.
• Olive trees for an evergreen, drought hardy feature.

Structure with succulents and grasses

For the lowest maintenance corners, succulents such as agave, aloe and sedum bring bold form with practically no water. Ornamental grasses add movement and soften hard edges, and most ask for little more than an annual tidy.

Pulling it together

A genuinely low maintenance garden is less about any single plant and more about a thoughtful combination, layered with good mulch and a simple drip system. That is where a considered design pays off for years.

If you would like help choosing and arranging plants that will thrive on your block, our landscape design and planting services can take it from idea to finished garden.