Keeping your garden low-allergenic
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For some people, spring is the worst time of year. Spending more time outside, plus a multitude of different pollens floating about in the air, makes for some mean hayfever. If you or your family suffer from hayfever then you might want to take advantage of the following gardening tips and make your home as low-allergenic as possible.
Spring arrives, and at the Service Central office, we collectively reach for the tissues, antihistamines and nasal spray. Not only more pollens about, but we also spend more time outdoors in our gardens or at friend's homes, and with 2 in 5 Australians affected by hayfever it's no wonder that the focus is on low-allergenic gardens.
It sounds impossible to have a non-allergenic garden unless you rip out all the plant matter, install cement, and keep the dust to a minimum. It's hardly a perfect solution. But there are some things that we can do to keep the allergens to their lowest possible level.
1. Plant non-allergenic trees
Trees break the wind and reduce the amount of outside pollen that gets into your garden. Good options are eucalyptus or magnolia trees.
2. Choose a good lawn cover
Greenless couch, kangaroo, wallaby or buffalo varieties are good. Or, replace your grass with pebbles or even non-flowering ground cover.es, native violets or kidney creeper.
3. De-Weed
Weeds spread quickly, and because they're weeds they propagate easily - so it stands to reason that weeds are a major source of pollens.
4. Low allergenic plants
As if you didn't have enough to think about when choosing your plants, you also need to select low allergenic plants. Some tips:
- Plants originating from the northern hemisphere often have more windborne pollen
- Plants with separate sexes (dioecious plants) are good choices as only one of the sexes (the male) produces pollen. So, simply find the female versions.
- Flowering plants are usually alright because they are insect and bird pollinated not wind pollinated.
Achooallergy.com recommends these choices:
- Grasses: St. Augustine
- Shrubs: Azalea, Boxwood, Hibiscus, Hydrangea
- Flowering Plants: Begonia, Cactus, Daffodil, Daisy, Geranium, Iris, Lily, Pansy, Periwinkle, Petunia, Snapdragon, Sunflower, Rose, Tulip
- Trees: Apple, Cherry, Dogwood, English Holly, Magnolia, Pear, Plum, Red Maple
If you need a professional's advice or want to overhaul your garden through a landscaper, simply post your job for a landscaper or gardener today. You can also search our Directory of quality professionals.
Landscaping Quotes
from local landscapers
