Allotments 4 All

Hi all
I took surreptitious cuttings from a neighbour's buddleia the other day - I go on the principle that if it's sticking out enough to get in your way on the pavement, it's fair game - does that make me a bad person? :-D

It's a very compact bush, with glossy, dark-green leaves - the neatest buddleia I've ever seen. I don't know what colour the flowers are, as they've finished, but the spikes look quite long and pointed.

Does this ring a bell with anyone? I suppose I could knock on my neighbour's door and say 'you know your buddleia, that I nicked some of - er, do you know what it is?' :-)

'glossy, dark green leaves' doesn't describe any Buddleia I know.   I suppose it's a bit late for a picture. ;D

valmarg

Quote from: valmarg on October 12, 2008, 19:13:31
'glossy, dark green leaves' doesn't describe any Buddleia I know.   
valmarg

That's what I thought. Could it be a hebe?

I'll sneak back for a picture tomorrow. :-)

I should have said, by the way, 'glossy for a buddleia' - they're not shiny like holly or smooth like hebe. And they are greyish and soft on the underside. I'll get a pic later...

Was it a bit like this, without the flowers, This one is black knight

I don't *think* it's Black Knight, I have cuttings from one of those too, and the leaves are normal buddleia leaves, and the flowers aren't as spikey.
Here are some pics, let's see if this helps!

By the way, I can't ask the owner what it is - the house is 'To Let' and there's nobody living there...

I have a similar one to that, small, narrow leaves, it has a white flower, only ever grows to about 3ft tall.  I am really sorry, I don't know the name, so not much help really!

T.

I wonder if it could be one of these 'English Butterfly Series' ?
http://www.colorchoiceplants.com/purple_emperor.htm
Particularly, this one: "PURPLE EMPEROR™ has smaller mauve-purple flowers and has the tightest habit of the three due impart to the foliage being much narrower, almost strap like."

(It's most likely a purple variety, I would have noticed any extraordinary colour when it was in flower, as I often pass that garden.)

Sad as I am to see a plant name with 'TM' next to it... still a lovely compact bush. I might get some extra cuttings just to be sure.

Well, having looked in the library, having seen your pictures, I would suggest buddleia lindleyana.  I've never seen a plant of it.  We have ab. alternifolia, and while the flowers look similar, insofar as they are down the stem, the leaves are too small.

Hope that helps. ;D

valmarg

Oooh, Valmarg - I think you might have it. It does sound like it:
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/57955/ - with the mention of the dark green leaves and the long racemes. However, half of the photos linked from that page look like something else entirely, with an almost wisteria-like flower and heart-shaped leaves - which might be 'Miss Vicie' cultivar of lindleyana:
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/78781/

Those posters, all in the USA I think, say it's very popular with butterflies, but a British gardener here claims that it is not:
http://www.butterflygarden.co.uk/plants/buddleia_lind.htm
I wonder if we have fewer butterflies that can cope with long, narrow flower tubes? (How I wish we had hummingbirds here, they are SO fantastic...) But then, hers may be the Miss Vicie, where the flower tubes do look exceptionally deep.

Thank you, Valmarg!

Quote from: hellohelenhere on October 14, 2008, 15:04:42


Sad as I am to see a plant name with 'TM' next to it... still a lovely compact bush. I might get some extra cuttings just to be sure.

'TM'? probably being thick but whats that?
lbb

TM for 'Trademark' - they've copyrighted the species, or whatever the term is. Wrong, all wrong!

I mean the variety, not the species.. they can't baggsy the whole buddleia family...  :D