Caring for Teucrium fruticans: advice from a landscape gardener in Grasse – Brigitte Dematteis
Caring for Teucrium fruticans is a recurring question among lovers of Mediterranean gardens who wish to enjoy, all year round, the sculptural form and grey-blue foliage of the shrubby germander. With more than thirty years of creations across the French Riviera, Brigitte Dematteis uses it regularly to give structure to her borders while keeping watering and upkeep to a minimum. Here are her best practices, gathered from the news on her website and enriched with a few horticultural pointers.
Growing shrubby germander at the heart of the Mediterranean climate
Plant the Teucrium in full sun, in stony, perfectly drained soil; it withstands lows of –10 °C but dislikes stagnant moisture. In a well-designed garden following Brigitte’s approach — dry-stone terraces, low stone walls and well-chosen planting — the plant thrives on very little water, in keeping with the “little watering — plenty of emotion” philosophy championed by the landscape architect Brigitte Dematteis.
Caring for Teucrium fruticans: when and how to prune?
Brigitte prunes the germander just after its spring flowering, as she would with rosemary, to restore structure to the bed. For a more graphic effect, she readily shapes it into compact spheres: the plant responds very well to these cloud-pruned forms, which underline the architectural lines of a contemporary garden. A light annual cutting-back is therefore enough to maintain a dense, elegant habit.
Caring for Teucrium through the seasons
Beyond pruning, maintenance is minimal: no rich fertilisers, just a handful of sieved compost in spring. Germander, able to smother “weeds”, proves an effective ground cover and an excellent companion to lavender, cistus or santolina in Brigitte Dematteis’s compositions.
Mindful watering: how much water does a Teucrium need?
Once well established (roughly two summers), the Teucrium is content with a deep watering every three to four weeks during heatwaves, or the occasional spot of drip irrigation — a principle the landscape architect recommends for a dry garden as a whole. Between spells of heat, let the soil dry out completely; this shrub copes very well with drought thanks to its leathery foliage.
Growth of Teucrium fruticans: fast or moderate?
In our latitudes, the germander gains 20 to 30 cm a year and quickly reaches 1.5 m in both height and spread, offering a soft volume by the third season. This measured vigour makes managing confined spaces easier without sacrificing the mass effect sought in Mediterranean gardens.
Entrust your project to Brigitte Dematteis
Would you like to bring germander or other water-wise species into your outdoor space? Brigitte Dematteis, landscape architect in Grasse, designs sustainable gardens where caring for teucrium fruticans goes hand in hand with elegance and simplicity. Get in touch with her via to transform your plot into a living canvas in the colours of the Midi.