While red and blue-toned Dianella cultivars often steal the spotlight, green-foliaged varieties offer a subtler, more naturalistic option for specifiers and designers seeking harmony, versatility, and foliage longevity in designed landscapes. Their vivid greens blend effortlessly with surrounding planting palettes, making them ideal for softening hardscapes, reinforcing biodiverse plantings, or delivering structure in both formal and informal settings. But with many cultivars available—each with its own growth habit, tolerance, and aesthetic—it’s essential to understand which green Dianella varieties perform best in New Zealand’s diverse conditions.
Breeze™ Dianella caerulea ‘DCNC0’ PVR
Breeze™ Dianella is a robust, clump-forming Dianella cultivar renowned for its tidy appearance and resilience. Unlike common Dianella varieties that develop tall, messy canes prone to falling, Breeze™ Dianella maintains a neat form without above-ground canes. It reaches approximately 60–70 cm in height and width, making it suitable for mass plantings and grassy gardens. This cultivar thrives in full sun to part shade and tolerates a wide variety of soils, though very poor soils should be avoided. Breeze™ Dianella is moderately drought-tolerant and can withstand humidity and cold, making it a versatile choice for various New Zealand landscapes. Delicate blue and yellow flowers appear in spring, adding seasonal interest to its dark green foliage. Low maintenance requirements and adaptability make Breeze™ Dianella a dependable option for erosion control and aesthetic appeal.
https://ozbreed.co.nz/plant-ranges/strappy-leaf-plants/breeze-dianella/
Emerald Arch™ Dianella tasmanica ‘DT23’
Emerald Arch® Dianella is an ornamental flax lily distinguished by its majestic, broad arching leaves that create a warm, tropical feel in cooler climates. This cultivar grows to approximately 55 cm in height and 50 cm in width, with flower stems reaching up to 1 m. It produces delicate blue and yellow flowers from September to November. Emerald Arch® Dianella thrives in full sun to heavy shade and is tolerant of drought and frost, making it suitable for a range of New Zealand conditions. It prefers well-drained to clay soils, avoiding very poor soils. This plant is ideal for mass plantings, specimen plantings, and low-water gardens, offering year-round deep green foliage. Regular maintenance includes watering as required during establishment, applying slow-release fertiliser in spring, and trimming older leaves as needed.
https://ozbreed.co.nz/plant-ranges/strappy-leaf-plants/emerald-arch-dianella/
Little Jess™ Dianella caerulea ‘DCMP01’
Little Jess™ Dianella is a dwarf, clumping Australian flax cultivar known for its compact growth habit and low maintenance requirements. It reaches approximately 40 cm in height and width, making it suitable for specimen and mass plantings in both commercial and residential settings. This cultivar is highly drought-tolerant, even more so than other Dianella caerulea varieties, including Breeze™ Dianella. Little Jess™ Dianella thrives in full sun and moderate to heavy shade and is tolerant of drought, humidity, and frost. It suits a wide variety of soils, though very poor soils should be avoided. The plant produces masses of purple flowers from September to November, adding vibrant colour to the landscape. Maintenance is minimal, requiring trimming approximately every 8 years, depending on the setting.
https://ozbreed.co.nz/plant-ranges/strappy-leaf-plants/little-jess-dianella/
Tasred™ Dianella tasmanica ‘TR20’ PVR
Tasred® Dianella is a robust and adaptable Australian flax cultivar, renowned for its striking green foliage that may develop red hues at the base in cooler positions. This feature adds seasonal interest and makes it a versatile choice for various landscape designs. Reaching approximately 45 cm in height and 40–50 cm in width, Tasred® Dianella forms a dense, tidy clump, making it suitable for mass plantings, low-water gardens, and Japanese-style landscapes. It thrives in full sun to heavy shade and is tolerant of frost and heat, performing well in sandy, sandy loam, and clay soils, provided they are not of very poor quality. Notably, Tasred® Dianella has demonstrated excellent erosion control capabilities, strengthening soil by up to 250% compared to bare soil, making it an effective choice for stabilising slopes and embankments . The plant produces large purple berries in spring and summer, enhancing its ornamental appeal. Low maintenance requirements and adaptability make Tasred® Dianella a dependable option for New Zealand landscapes.
https://ozbreed.co.nz/plant-ranges/strappy-leaf-plants/tasred-dianella/
Conclusion
Green Dianella cultivars bring more than just fresh foliage colour to the landscape—they contribute resilience, textural variety, and dependable form across a range of landscape types. Whether you’re designing for public amenity, commercial frontage, or low-maintenance residential planting, the right cultivar can make all the difference in terms of long-term performance and visual impact. With careful selection based on site conditions and desired outcomes, these green-toned workhorses prove that subtlety can be just as powerful as showiness in sustainable landscape design