Planting windbreaks

The aim of a windbreak of trees and shrubs is to reduce the force of a wind entering the garden.  With the prospect of increasing temperatures it’s important to reduce hot winds affecting the site - these are generally from the north-west and west. Hot drying winds increase the rate of evapotranspiration of the garden, reducing water available for plants.  

Windbreaks are most effective when they are permeable allowing around 50% of the air to pass through the plant material.  The remainder of the wind circulates over the top of the windbreak.

The width of a windbreak will depend upon how much room is available on the site.  In a garden of greater than 1000 sqm a windbreak of 5 to 6 metres wide may be possible but would be much narrower in a smaller garden.

Aim to plant a range of fast, medium and slow growing species in your windbreak.  Fast growing local plants like Acacia and Cassinia will make suitable nurse species.  These plants will cope with drying winds and low moisture levels but will perform best when supplied weekly with drip irrigation.

Once established, over a 5 to 10 year period, windbreaks will reduce evapotranspiration in the garden.  The windbreak will also make the garden a more pleasant place to spend time in and if plants are chosen well they will attract wildlife.

References

Adams, Laurence (1990) Trees and shrubs of Black Mountain, Mt Ainslie and Mt Majura - a key based on vegetative characters.  CSIRO:Canberra

Society for Growing Australian Plants Canberra Region (2001) Australian plants for Canberra region gardens & other cool climate areas.

Thompson, Paul (2002) Australian Planting Design. Lothian Books: Victoria.