Why seldom seen Spring shrubs are a garden glory

Corylopsis and Stachyurus are two of my favourite flowering shrubs, both flowering in March but rarely seen in gardens.

Stachyurus praecox is native to Japan, and is a large spreading deciduous shrub with slender-pointed leaves, and stiffly-drooping racemes 10cm long of bell-shaped, pale yellow flowers on bronze coloured stems. The attractive, pale green leaves appear after the flowers have fallen and last until autumn, turning orange or red in colour before they fall. Although it will grow on most soils, it will perform best on moist well drained loam, and I think looks most at home in a woodland setting, although it can be grown in a shrub border or against a wall or fence. If in full sun it will require moisture all year round. In dappled shade it is slightly less demanding. Mature specimens carry a mass of flowers and make quite a spectacular sight when in bloom. Although fully hardy it is advisable to protect young plants against frost with fleece until they are established.

Other varieties of S.praecox available include Stachyurus rubriflora which has soft peach yellow blooms that fade to pink, S.p.Magpie with variegated leaves; (I am not so keen on variegated forms but that is a topic for another column!) Stachyurus chinenesis from China, is a rare species but is more floriferous than S praecox. S.yunnanensis is an evergreen species and has smaller creamy white flowers, and S salicifolia is a Chinese variety fairly new in cultivation which forms a large suckering clump in shade with long racemes of yellow flowers.

Corylopsis otherwise known as winter hazels belong to the Hamamelidaceae or witch hazel family and are native to China and Asia across to Japan. They are deciduous shrubs or small trees, with simple leaves and nodding racemes of small, usually fragrant, bell-shaped pale yellow flowers in early spring. Corylopsis sinensis or willmottiae grows to about 1.5 metres and C.s. ‘Spring Purple’ has attractive plum coloured new growth which is more pronounced in maturity.

Corylopsis pauciflora grows larger to 2m and has bronze leaves when young, but my absolute favourite if you can find it is Corylopsis glabrescens Gotoana which makes an elegant open upright shrub which is covered in pendant racemes of fragrant yellow bell shaped flowers, followed by attractive green foliage which turns bright buttery yellow in Autumn.

Like Stachyurus, Corylopsis will grow in most soils but may not withstand a cold exposed site in poorly drained clay soils. They thrive in woodland situations in neutral to acidic soils. They can be seen flowering and purchased in the nursery here at Green Island Gardens

For further information visit www.greenislandghardens.co.uk