[U/C] M2 North-South Motorway

[claybro]

I can understand not going with grass, you need to keep it alive and then cut it.

A nicer replacement would have been nice.

Exactly. There are a multitude of clumping, native grasses which would require very little water once established.

That is not correct. Native grasses like all grasses, die off when not watered, require weeding and trimming. One of the greatest frauds in modern public landscaping is the prevalence of native grass, which is planted, then left to die, once everyone has forgotten who planted it, and who was responsible to maintain it. Whoever is responsible, be it Charles Sturt or DPTI need to get serious about verge maintenance and include irrigation, and regular maintenance whatever is planted. Sure, we will get told...oh climate change this, and drought that...just excuses- and yet everyone seems happy to live in a city where dead grass and overgrown weedy verges are the norm. Every other Australian capital is making great efforts at landscaping and maintaining the major freeways and arterial road verges. As an expat, it is disappointing to see whenever I visit.

[Mpol03]

I can understand not going with grass, you need to keep it alive and then cut it.

A nicer replacement would have been nice.

Exactly. There are a multitude of clumping, native grasses which would require very little water once established.

That is not correct. Native grasses like all grasses, die off when not watered, require weeding and trimming. One of the greatest frauds in modern public landscaping is the prevalence of native grass, which is planted, then left to die, once everyone has forgotten who planted it, and who was responsible to maintain it. Whoever is responsible, be it Charles Sturt or DPTI need to get serious about verge maintenance and include irrigation, and regular maintenance whatever is planted. Sure, we will get told...oh climate change this, and drought that...just excuses- and yet everyone seems happy to live in a city where dead grass and overgrown weedy verges are the norm. Every other Australian capital is making great efforts at landscaping and maintaining the major freeways and arterial road verges. As an expat, it is disappointing to see whenever I visit.

I especially noticed this after living on the Gold Coast. Irregardless if it being a much newer city, all garden beds and median strips were always neat and cared for.
The overgrown weeds and dead grass only give Adelaide that backwater dust bowl feel, especially in the warmer months.

[Waewick]

Succulents are the thing we should be using.

Heaps of types that would suffice and need less watering.

[rhino]

Succulents are the thing we should be using.

Heaps of types that would suffice and need less watering.

Yup.

[Mpol03]

And when landscaped, they look awesome.

[Goodsy]

are there any succulents that would grow tall enough to provide shade?

[mawsonguy]

That is not correct. Native grasses like all grasses, die off when not watered, require weeding and trimming. One of the greatest frauds in modern public landscaping is the prevalence of native grass, which is planted, then left to die, once everyone has forgotten who planted it, and who was responsible to maintain it. Whoever is responsible, be it Charles Sturt or DPTI need to get serious about verge maintenance and include irrigation, and regular maintenance whatever is planted. Sure, we will get told...oh climate change this, and drought that...just excuses- and yet everyone seems happy to live in a city where dead grass and overgrown weedy verges are the norm. Every other Australian capital is making great efforts at landscaping and maintaining the major freeways and arterial road verges. As an expat, it is disappointing to see whenever I visit.

In Adelaide the verges are maintained by the adjacent landowner. All the council does is come along every few months and mow down any grass\weeds which have got ridiculously high. There are no adjacent landowners on the T2T. They are all hidden behind high sound proof panels. So, no-one to maintain the verges. In retrospect, it should have been obvious for months that they were never going to plant lawn. To do that they would have had to put pipes for the irrigation system under the concrete path before it was laid. That didn't happen.

[SBD]

are there any succulents that would grow tall enough to provide shade?

Prickly Pear is a noxious weed in SA, but does grow in our climate without additional water.

[omada]

Natives , endemic to the location - is what we should be planting, not succulents. There are a huge variety of natives that when incorporated in a garden design can look very attractive, have low water requirements and also promote our local biodiversity.

Same goes for your home garden - research the plants that are "native" in your area.

[claybro]

In Adelaide the verges are maintained by the adjacent landowner. All the council does is come along every few months and mow down any grass\weeds which have got ridiculously high. There are no adjacent landowners on the T2T. They are all hidden behind high sound proof panels. So, no-one to maintain the verges. In retrospect, it should have been obvious for months that they were never going to plant lawn. To do that they would have had to put pipes for the irrigation system under the concrete path before it was laid. That didn't happen.

You are correct in residential streets, although some Adelaide residents seem to take great exception to having to maintain their verge. Main roads I believe are the responsibility of the DPTI? which is possibly why so many of the arterials are crap. Then there are exceptions such as the Port Road median whichis looked after by city of Charles Sturt (though not very well). Not sure who does Anzac Highway, it is also very shoddy for a designated memorial avenue. Same with Sir Don. Often on arrival to Adelaide the grass on the median immediately near the airport is overgrown (West Torrens)?

Natives , endemic to the location - is what we should be planting, not succulents. There are a huge variety of natives that when incorporated in a garden design can look very attractive, have low water requirements and also promote our local biodiversity.

Same goes for your home garden - research the plants that are "native" in your area.

There is a common miss-conception that natives are just set and forget. To LOOK GOOD, they require some watering, fertiliser and trimming back to prevent dieback. Sure, they might survive without maintenance, but natives like any other plant have not genetically evolved to survive the roadside pollution and neglect without some maintenance. In fact many of the native species have evolved with fire as part of their cycle, so without this they at the very least require hard pruning to regenerate. Agree that there are some spectacular native gardens. There are many native verges, medians and public areas here in Perth obviously due to the poor sandy soil and intense sun and almost non existent summer rainfall-but these are well maintained, and with irrigation that is generally well services by the local councils.

[Waewick]

are there any succulents that would grow tall enough to provide shade?

Honestly I'd be going for something like the QLD bottle tree.

Don't need heaps off water but look decent enough and interesting.

[ChillyPhilly]

Just a thought about Cross Road. Politically, the biggest opposition is going to come from local homeowners. Driving the length of the road recently, it's really only the far eastern chunk that features old, large character dwellings. West of Goodwood Road in particular, the housing mix is wide and varied.

[Eurostar]

Just a thought about Cross Road. Politically, the biggest opposition is going to come from local homeowners. Driving the length of the road recently, it's really only the far eastern chunk that features old, large character dwellings. West of Goodwood Road in particular, the housing mix is wide and varied.

Many houses in Unley Park are worth a minimum of $1,000,000

[ChillyPhilly]

Just a thought about Cross Road. Politically, the biggest opposition is going to come from local homeowners. Driving the length of the road recently, it's really only the far eastern chunk that features old, large character dwellings. West of Goodwood Road in particular, the housing mix is wide and varied.

Many houses in Unley Park are worth a minimum of $1,000,000

Most definitely correct. I was more pointing out how west of Goodwood Road, this minimum would be far lower.

[Eurostar]

Houses on Cross Road in Clarence Park are at least 500K.

Connecting to the freeway via Greenhill Road and Portrush Road/Glen Osmond Road I feel would be easier and more affordable than the Cross Road option.