@Silver surfer I live just west of Glasgow, if that's any help.
I'm not sure about Spiraea either. The leaves aren't quite right, I think - S. cantoniensis looks like it has small teeth on the leaf margins, which are absent on my mystery plant. The leaves are also very matt on my plant, not glossy at all.
It's difficult to tell what the natural habit of the shrub is, as it's been shaped into a 'hedge' in most places I see it, but it does seem to shoot up some more arcing branches where it's left uncut.
I'm also fairly sure it doesn't turn orange / red in colour in autumn and would feel about 70% sure in saying it's evergreen (I can't really remember!).
@GardenerSuze It turns out I don't have a good sense of scale - flowers are smaller than my jeans button, at any rate! More like my thumbnail.
Your thoughts and comments are much appreciated. I wasn't expecting such a mystery! I'll see if I can get any more photos the next time I'm out.
Yesterday while in town I came across a hedge....planted by a Scottish council. Looked identical to mystery shrub! They only plant common, cheap, easy to maintain stuff. No flowers just lush green leaves...but that is because the gardening team have probably gone in with strimmers to prune it. I stopped for a closer look and lower down found mature slightly different shaped leaves. Definitely Spiraea sp.
Good photos Silver surfer. Your photos look exactly like the ones I saw at my local surgery except they're quite newly planted and still small, planted under newly planted trees, so in quite a shady position.
I hope to pass that way next Tuesday and will try to photograph them & get a close up of a few leaves. Haven't seen them flower, which was why I was unsure what shrub it was originally. They do look like they might be semi-evergreen if protected.
@Silver surfer After seeing your photos I went back to check and found some more mature leaves - they match! I also took photos of the flowers again - Flowers which have gone over, arranged along the stem
Good call Borderline Really good clear new pics. Most interesting. I have never seen one with such large double flowers! Flowers are many flowers to a stalk which fits with Spiraea...shows up well in your new pics...thank you BlueBirder
Fits with Spiraea prunifolia. Quote...."petals pure white and so numerous as to form a flower like a small ‘bachelor’s button’, 1⁄2 in. across."
see full description in link below..
Mr Bean say...."The single-flowered plant is in cultivation, and is distinguished as S. prunifolia f. simpliciflora Nakai. In my experience it is an absolutely worthless shrub because of its extraordinary sterility. "
@GardenerSuze I would if it was my shrub! Unfortunately I don't grow it myself (it borders a public path cutting through a residential area, so not sure if it's the council's or part of a garden).
Interesting how very different the free-growing shrub looks in comparison with these heavily clipped, hedge specimens. It would be nice to see it growing in its natural form! I wonder why someone thought it would be a good hedging plant?
Thanks all for your help and suggestions - @Silver surfer, you are a veritable mine of knowledge!
I managed to get down to look at the mystery shrubs at my local surgery and have taken some photos of older leaves, branches, & younger tips. All leaves were smooth edge and with a suckering habit.
I think they are Spiraea Cinerea because they are compact. I’m sure they were there a year earlier but only staying at 70cm in height.
The ones photographed by Silver surfer & BlueBirder look to be far bigger and leaves are part serrated in the mature sections. So their shrubs are more likely Spiraea Prunifolia.
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@Silver surfer I live just west of Glasgow, if that's any help.
I'm not sure about Spiraea either. The leaves aren't quite right, I think - S. cantoniensis looks like it has small teeth on the leaf margins, which are absent on my mystery plant. The leaves are also very matt on my plant, not glossy at all.
It's difficult to tell what the natural habit of the shrub is, as it's been shaped into a 'hedge' in most places I see it, but it does seem to shoot up some more arcing branches where it's left uncut.
I'm also fairly sure it doesn't turn orange / red in colour in autumn and would feel about 70% sure in saying it's evergreen (I can't really remember!).
@GardenerSuze It turns out I don't have a good sense of scale - flowers are smaller than my jeans button, at any rate! More like my thumbnail.
Your thoughts and comments are much appreciated. I wasn't expecting such a mystery! I'll see if I can get any more photos the next time I'm out.
Certainly would expect anything rare/unusual West of Glasgow.
Leaves look deciduous and look soft and hairy.
Yesterday while in town I came across a hedge....planted by a Scottish council.
Looked identical to mystery shrub!
They only plant common, cheap, easy to maintain stuff.
No flowers just lush green leaves...but that is because the gardening team have probably gone in with strimmers to prune it.
I stopped for a closer look and lower down found mature slightly different shaped leaves.
Definitely Spiraea sp.
I hope to pass that way next Tuesday and will try to photograph them & get a close up of a few leaves. Haven't seen them flower, which was why I was unsure what shrub it was originally. They do look like they might be semi-evergreen if protected.
I also took photos of the flowers again -
Flowers which have gone over, arranged along the stem
Really good clear new pics.
Most interesting. I have never seen one with such large double flowers!
Flowers are many flowers to a stalk which fits with Spiraea...shows up well in your new pics...thank you BlueBirder
Fits with Spiraea prunifolia.
Quote...."petals pure white and so numerous as to form a flower like a small ‘bachelor’s button’, 1⁄2 in. across."
see full description in link below..
Mr Bean say...."The single-flowered plant is in cultivation, and is distinguished as S. prunifolia f. simpliciflora Nakai. In my experience it is an absolutely worthless shrub because of its extraordinary sterility. "
https://treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/spiraea/spiraea-prunifolia/
Interesting how very different the free-growing shrub looks in comparison with these heavily clipped, hedge specimens. It would be nice to see it growing in its natural form! I wonder why someone thought it would be a good hedging plant?
Thanks all for your help and suggestions - @Silver surfer, you are a veritable mine of knowledge!