Looking for some Gardening Wisdon

Hi all,

I have two black thumbs, so I'm looking for some gardening wisdom.

We are trying to grow a Murraya hedge along our front lawn. Over winter it has really yellowed, and we've noticed a lot of murrayas in our local area are actually doing a lot better. Just wondering what we need to do? Someone has suggested our soil might have too much lime. How much, when, and with what, should I fertilise murraya?

Second question - our bedroom window looks out on a 1m retaining wall, and atop that, a colourbond fence. So we basically look out onto nothing from our bedroom window. :( I would like to put some wire or a lattice up on the fence and grow a climber up it to try and give us something nice to look out onto, but I'm not sure what to plant. The area is very narrow, and is mostly in shade. And it would have to grow in a planter or pot, as I can't really dig down under the retaining wall (and anyway, the area is lined with plastic and gravel). I'm looking for something that will do well under these conditions and give us some nice flowers to look at.

Any suggestions?

I will have to ask DH on most of it, but for the hedge, we put our grass clippings on the base, and they have greened up and took off.. We actually notice a difference in them even being away for a day..

Go for a wander around your neighbourhood and stop to talk to those with the Murraya Hedge growing well.
It's amazing what you can learn from the green thumbs (and the oldies) about the soil in your area and all the green thumb tips and tricks.

xoxoxoxo

no idea about your hedge, but thought i'd comment on the climber - i've lived in two houses now where jasmine has been planted in shady areas and has thrived. one was under a carport, the other (this house) was under a pergola. the one we pulled out here had been here for 20 or more years, and it had the thickest trunk i'd ever seen on a climber! was divine - the only reason we took it out was because it had been left to get out of control, was intertwined with ivy, and had gotten wrapped around the fence (which was falling down from the age of it). loved that plant! very hardy, lovely scent, and the flowers are very cute.