confirmation on escallonia ID

magicbastarder

can someone confirm that this is - as i think the previous owner of our house mentioned - escallonia? and if so, any idea what variety?

this time of year (well, it's flowering a little earlier than usual this year) it's swarming with bees and butterflies, mainly tortoiseshells and red admirals. there's currently at least 40 butterflies on it. large bees, so i assume they're emerging queens fuelling up.

i can get a closer shot if that helps ID.

Bixy

Do not think it is an Escalonia, Might be an Olearia. A picture of a close up of leaf and back of leaf would help !

magicbastarder

cheers - forgot to mention that it's evergreen, about 15 foot tall, and probably about as wide too.

Skrynesaver

coisya?

magicbastarder

i did a quick google of that and wikipedia claims up to ten foot tall - this is definitely noticeably taller than that.

Bixy

Most garden stats on plant heights are UK based - evergreen plants tend to grow taller in Ireland (assuming you are Ireland based!) due to our mild winters.
One of the identifiers of choisya is a smell of cat pee if you crush the leaves?
Having seen the underside of the leaf I am not sure that it is an Olearia - they tend to have white "felty" undersides.

magicbastarder

from a bit of googling, escallonia iveyi seems a close match?

celticbhoy27

Could be viburnum?

my3cents

magicbastarder wrote: »

from a bit of googling, escallonia iveyi seems a close match?

I'll see your Escallonia "Iveyi" and raise you an Escallonia bifida.

I think the bifida refers to the leaf not being closed at that end.

magicbastarder

anyone have any experience pruning escallonia? the one above needs to be knocked back a notch, but i want to keep a natural spreading shape, this is not part of a hedge, but is probably over 12 foot tall and has a spread probably a little larger.

macraignil

I have a red flowered escalonia that I have taken a few low growing miss directed branches off without any trouble. Some of them actually took as cuttings when I stuck them in the ground straight after taking them. I just stripped off some of the lower leaves when the pieces where trimmed to a suitable size. Also had a pink flowered one that just decided to die a couple of years back for no particular reason I could see. It might have been a bit crowded by other shrubs and a hedge nearby.

I read other people mention there is some disease they can get so I would try prune when the weather is dry if possible as spores can travel easier when there is high humidity and damp conditions.

magicbastarder

i've spotted there's already signs of fungus on at least one of the main boughs. possibly due to my father in law visiting to help chop up some old conifers about six years ago, and lived the dream of 'to a man with a hammer, every problem looks like a nail'.

standardg60

It's not that unusual for a main bough of a mature escallonia to die off, keep an eye on it and if the leaves start to become unhealthy or its unsafe cut it out.
As for pruning May is the right time, to keep a natural looking shape cut each branch you wish to shorten back to a suitable lateral, but leave all the laterals alone bar any that are dead or crossing.
Take a step back and check the shape as you go.
I would agree that it's 'iveyi' too, especially as it flowers so late in the year.