Category: Good for cutting
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Osmanthus fortunei
This has to be one of the great perfumed shrubs and tough as they come. It flowers in the autumn and the tiny white blossoms perfume the surrounds with what I think is the scent of ripe apricots! The foliage is rich green and somewhat holly like in the plants youth but as it ages
Stephen Ryan
Jovellana violacea
This is a much neglected evergreen soft wooded shrub from South America that could find a place in any moist semi-shaded spot in your garden. It grows to about 1metre tall and will in time make a small suckering clump. It produces its mauve, purple spotted and yellow tongued flowers in clusters during the early
Stephen Ryan
Cyclamen repandum
My favourite species is probably the one that is in flower at the moment! And C. repandum is just coming out as the spring approaches and so is my favourite at the moment. Its flowers are usually a strong carmine pink with long elegant curled petals and the perfume is divine, although it is best
Stephen Ryan
Viburnum sargentii ‘Onondago’
I love this Genus, there is so much that Viburnums can do in the garden. Some are evergreen with bold foliage, some deciduous with great autumn colour, some are grown for scent or berries, branch structure or of course stunning showy flowers. If you collected the whole Genus it is so diverse that it wouldn’t
Stephen Ryan
Acis tingitana
The true snowflakes are often seen as the poor cousins of the Snowdrops (Galanthus) however this is quite unfair as although they may not have as many species and certainly no where near as many forms and hybrids they certainly have quite a lot of diversity and the Moroccan Snowflake is an interesting example. It
Stephen Ryan
Syringa meyeri ‘Palibin’
I have a love hate relationship with Lilacs I love the flowers but in general hate the bush. They are one week wonders and scruffy for most of the time. Sorry if I have offended anyone! What I would like is to have friends with lots of well established bushes that would kindly give me
Stephen Ryan
Ruscus hypoglossum
This has to be the ultimate plant for dry shade, in fact it will grow in the driest and darkest shade you can find so anywhere that almost no other plant will survive will be ideal for this one! It is in fact an evergreen perennial to about 1metre tall that acts more like a
Stephen Ryan
Liquidambar styraciflua ‘Golden Sun’
I love Liquidambars for all sorts of reasons. They are tough and have not only done remarkably well through the long years of drought but also came up with flying colours (quite literally!) after the very wet summer we had a couple of years back when Cherries and Smoke bushes drowned. They will colour in
Stephen Ryan
Corylopsis sinensis
Winter is just round the corner and what better time to consider and plant something that will give colour and joy in the late winter? This tall arching shrub exudes elegance with its soft green hazel nut like leaves that turn yellow in autumn and it is even better in late winter when its drooping
Stephen Ryan
Mahonia oiwakensis
Well here we go again, another much loved plant has had a name change. So if you are looking for this stunning shrub in a book more than a few months old then look up Mahonia lomariifolia and it will have the same description as it is the same plant. What ever the name is
Stephen Ryan