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Shrub id please

Pete.8Pete.8 Posts: 11,126
in Plants

I've forgotten the name of this shrub and not had much luck on google - I thought it was a euonymus 

This beautiful shrub was a picture year before last, but we had so little rain last year it's not been doing too well.
Also lost a big part of a huge rhodo behind it for the same reason.

This year most of the lower branches are dead and I just have leaves and a few flowers at the top.

This was how it looked in May 2014.

Any ideas what it is, and can I give it a hard prune to revive it, and if so, when?

Thanks

image


Billericay - Essex

Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
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Posts

  • Pete.8Pete.8 Posts: 11,126

    Just realised I can't zoom-in any more or edit my earlier post image

    So here a pic of the flowers/leaves close-up - 

    image


    Billericay - Essex

    Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
    Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
  • Ladybird4Ladybird4 Posts: 37,199

    Hi Pete 8. I think it is one of the Dogwood family. Possibly Cornus kousa. That is about the nearest I can guess.

    Cacoethes: An irresistible urge to do something inadvisable
  • Ladybird4Ladybird4 Posts: 37,199

    p. s. Sorry I forgot to say that you can prune this one quite hard.

    Cacoethes: An irresistible urge to do something inadvisable
  • Pete.8Pete.8 Posts: 11,126

    Hi Ladybird - thanks for your suggestion. I'm not sure it's a cornus though.

    My shrub has proper little flowers rather than bracts - not easy to see on the photo, but they are proper flowers like tiny yellow fuchsias.


    Billericay - Essex

    Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
    Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
  • Ladybird4Ladybird4 Posts: 37,199

    I'll have a look and see if I can find anything else image

    Cacoethes: An irresistible urge to do something inadvisable
  • Ladybird4Ladybird4 Posts: 37,199

    Could it be Cornus mas? This has small yellow flowers

    Cacoethes: An irresistible urge to do something inadvisable
  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,349

    It is a euonymus,  E. umbellata is a possibility, there's another one I have that's similar but its name escapes me for the moment. They can take a hack back, no problem. I do it at the end of winter but one of them often gets another bash in summer or it would be in the road.

    I have Euonymus umbellata in 2 places, one is exposed to sun and wind on dry soil and is half the size and half as healthy looking as the one on better soil.



    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,349

    I have recordsimage

    The one I couldn't recall is  Euonymus angustifolia

    Umbellata is in flower now, angustifolia is considerably later. The both have great scent. angustifolia is more silvery in leaf but that won't help ID if you've nothing to compare it with.



    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • Pete.8Pete.8 Posts: 11,126

    Thanks nut - that's the one! 

    It's E.umbellata.

    It was growing inside another shrub I had in that place. Only when I removed the other (huge) shrub a few years ago I found this beauty lurking in the middle.

    As it's had a hard time over the last year I'll leave it alone until winter and give it a good hack back.

    As the poor thing has spent most of its life inside another shrub, there are no branches from the trunk until about 5-6ft up, just 2 bare twisted trunks.
    If I cut the top off in winter - just leaving the bare trunks - will it shoot from lower down?

    This is how it looks today

    image

    image


    Billericay - Essex

    Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
    Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
  • Flowerlover3Flowerlover3 Posts: 219

    If it were mine I'd leave it with the bare twisted stems, I think it's beautiful image

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