An evergreen shrub ???

What is it? Anyone?

I have identified all the stuff in the new garden but this one is eluding me. I had hoped it would be Garraya Eliptica/Silk Tassel Bush but it should have had its catkin tassels by now. Or should it?

It hasn't produced any flowers in the 9 months I've known it so no help there.

The leaves are very paper like, rustle loudly in a breeze and are silvery green underneath.

 

I don't grow Garraya myself but looks a good bet for it. Maybe it was pruned quite a bit after it produced catkins? Think if you need to prune it should be immediately after "flowering" as the shrub flowers on old wood. Also think the catkins can be damaged By frost and fall off? It's not a plant for my climate unfortunately as it is nice. As it's quite late for it to flower this season think it will be a case of that familiar gardening expression after yet another failure "There's always next year". This sentence is usually accompanied by a sigh

 

I'd agree with silu it looks like a Garrya. I have one and it is quite old and tassels regularly. At the moment it doesn't have tassels (just some old wizened ones from last year). I think they can be temperamental about flowering/tasseling. There are male and female apparently and one (can't remember which) flowers less and less often. I'm assuming you inherited it, any old nursery tag around the trunk anywhere?

It looks quite exposed and I think they generally like a sheltered position and with some shade as is mentioned above it is very prone to winter damage (hates wind), that will also affect flowering. Mine is very sheltered as still gets damaged quite often.

Perhaps a bit more patience is needed. Looks nice and healthy in the meantime.

Hope it perks up for you.
GG

 

Thanks for the musings.

No signs of dropped buds, or wind scorch. The 2nd pic is looking west so the prevailing wind does blow from up there. The top leggy shoots are all last years growth and no signs of flower up there. It has a few weeks yet, then it will have some old wood removed from low down to encourage that new growth.

It compliments the 2 conifers well with the glossy leaves, so it wont be coming out. I will accept the challenge to try and get it to flower, still assuming its Garraya!

 

Just a thought but....try Googling Pittosporum tenuifolium. The flowers are very inconspicuous apart from the scent, so it could be that?

 

The males are the one which flower the best. The variety "James Roof" being the most prolific

I think you might be right there @noisette47

 

No that's definately Garrya elliptica. Looks like it has had the hedgecutter treatment at some point and that's the main reason it's not flowered. If you refrain from pruning it this year, my bet is it will produce the catkins next winter.

 

Or perhaps it is Itea illicifolia? In that case it will probably flower later on in Summer.

 

Definitely not Itea ilicifolia...leaves of this are alternate.

http://www.onlineplantguide.com/Image Library/I/12350.jpg

Garya eliptica fits as it has opposite leaves.

http://www.nwplants.com/images/commons/Garrya_elliptica_jko0609100.jpg

Trimming shrubs = neat shrubs.
Trimming shrubs at the wrong time = no flowers.

 

We inherited this shrub 10 months ago, it hasn't been pruned and hasn't flowered in all that time.

Definitely this one as I originally thought.

 

I would trim the new uprights back about 8", give it a feed and a mulch and I reckon it will flower next winter.