[jdquinn]

Hi Guys,

I've just been given a couple of shrubs from my Father-In-Law. He got them from a job he was at where the owner asked him to dump them. They are very nice bushes and apparently burst into flower as well. Neither of us have an idea as to what they are. Can anyone on the forum shed any light?

thanks

Jonny

[tippben]

The first one certainly looks like a Japanese Spindle (Euonymous alatus), grown for its bright red autumn colours and pink fruits (not edible).

[Blowin]

If I had to hazard a guess I think the bottom one is a member of the camellia family, most likely a bay tree?

[Good guy]

If they've been transplanted with plenty of rootball they stand a chance of surviving. If they were mine, I'd cut them back a good bit to reduce transpiration demands and I'd water them well and frequently and protect them from wind until they have grown new roots.

[Sue Deacon]

How big are the leaves? The bottom ones look a bit like Myrtle. it has smaller leaves than the Bay or Camellia.

[jdquinn]

Thanks for the replies guys. The Jap Spindle has taken incredibly well and is growing much quicker and aggressively than I thought. The other is not doing well. I did water it well in the drier spells recently and this last week or so there has been enough precipitation. The leaves are going brown and the branches are starting to wilt.

I've also planted some lavender and a couple of other bushes which we had in pots outside last year into the bed 10 days ago. I know these had been neglected prior to planting out and the root balls were exceptionally dry. They were wilting before transplanted them, they aren't showing much sign of recovery yet but that could be due to the return of the cold weather and a couple of frosty nights.

If I cut the wilting bushes back hard to reduce the demands on the roots are they likely to recover from it? Prior to planting I mixed some store bought planting compost with the soil which seemed quite loamy anyway to help all the plants.

[Sue Deacon]

Did you soak the rootballs before planting them? It makes a world of difference if you stand the plants in a bucket of water before planting.

[jdquinn]

[Sue Deacon]

Depending on the size of the lavender plants, perhaps you could dig them up, soak rootballs and repot somewhere sheltered until this cold spell is over. They won't have settled in 10 days.

Once they start to perk-up you could trim them back a little, but DO NOT cut back into old wood - lavenders hate that.

Don't worry, we all had to start somewhere. I've lost count of the horticultural disasters I've had.

[jdquinn]

Hi Sue,

The plants have been in pots outside all year, winter and all. In March they were looking quite well in their pots and starting to deepen in colour but then the dry spell hit in April and I didn't bother looking at any of the potted plants which resulted in them drying out. I may not have soaked the root balls before planting but I drenched the soil around them in water after planting out. Probably 4-5 litres per plant.

The lavender is quite grey in colour now but they have perked up in that their stalks have straightened considerably since planting so perhaps they are not gone yet?. If I rub my hand on the stalks there is a really nice scent left behind.

[Sue Deacon]

I've just re-potted a lavender. I rescued it from a friend's garden. We planted it in a sunny spot with good drainage, but over the winter we had not noticed that a nearby downspout was blocked and the ground was flooding.

The lavender was in a terrible state (well how would you like to spend the winter up to your ankles in freezing water?) I brought it home and just kept it dry, in a sheltered spot and it has picked up. So I found it a new pot and have planted it in seed compost mixed with grit.

That's the thing with Mediterranean plants, they don't like their roots to dry out completely, but the hate standing in wet ground - picky beggers.

I hope they continue to do well for you.