Hibbertia scandens or Guinea Flower is one of the most hardy and useful native plants I know of. It can be used as a ground cover, a low shrub, climber or it can even be pruned and shaped into lovely topiary shapes. In the images of this post I used it as a screening species growing on a weld mesh fence in a narrow difficult shady position which is also a wind tunnel. As you can see it is handling this hostile spot with ease and even looking quite lush and green.

Hibbertia scandens is a local species along much of the eastern coastline, from Cape York to the NSW South Coast. It is common in wet sclerophyll forest and coastal dunes making it a very hardy and adaptable native plant.

The large yellow flowers are around 5-6cm across and appear from Spring through to Summer, they are followed by showy fruit which splits to reveal red seeds.

Another feature of this climber that I like is the reddish Pink new stems, you need to keep your eye out for them when establishing your Hibbertia scandens as a screen. Always train the climber along the horizontal axis first to where you need the coverage then allow the new stems to climb up to the higher trellis.

Once the whole fence or trellis is covered you can then either prune off the new twining stems or feed them back into the trellis.

This species is tolerant of coastal, salt laden winds and very sandy soil but can also be grown on clay as long as it doesn’t get boggy. It makes a great weed suppressant ground cover or low dense shrub if you dont mind regular pruning.

Hibbertia scandens gets very few diseases or pests and due to its long flowering period is great for pollinating insects. Its dense mounding shape also makes it a good habitat plant for lizards and small birds.

So if you have a difficult position which calls for a climber this might be your answer.