Butterfly bush an attractive shrub

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33874, 20 June 1975, Page 15

Butterfly bush an attractive shrub

An attractive shrub to ; be found in many gardens is Buddleia davidii, commonly called the butterfly bush because of the attraction of its flowers for these insects — particularly red admirals. If left to develop naturally; it forms a large shrub up to; 4.5 m high and will eventuallyi even form a small tree. It is rarely allowed to reach more, than about half this height in; gardens as it is kept in bounds by pruning. Although deciduous in cold| districts it will retain many! of its leaves where winters! are milder and remains almost evergreen in the, warmer situations. Best quality flowers are produced when growing in better soils but it is tolerant of growing in quite diverse conditions. Ease of cultivation and continuity of bloom, from close to' the end of the general spring flowering period make it a generally, useful plant to have growing, somewhere in the garden. HAND PRUNING Flowers are borne on current season’s growth and, there is good response there-j fore to hard pruning back.] This should be done in the; winter when pruning cuts are made to within two ori three buds of an established framework; some thinning of i subsequent shoots is desirable so that remaining shoots

I will have sufficient room to develop fully. Hard pruning produces strong virorous growth with larger leaves and flowers than on a shrub which is .only lightly pruned, j Flower spikes 30cm -long !are not at all uncommon on heavily pruned plants. Flowering is somewhat earlier on unpruned bushes than on those which are severely cut back. By leaving ■ a few shoots but lightly pruned the flowering season can be prolonged. Where hard pruning is i regularly practised it pays !to supplement the treatment Iby giving the plant a complete fertiliser feeding of 60g per sq. metre annually. SMALL FLOWERS The fragrant flowers are! themselves quite small but; their arrangement in dense; round clusters on slender! panicles helps create the: impression, of size. The flower colour of the; species is lilac to purple but; : the colour range has been ex-' tended to include pure white,, (magenta and almost pure true ! blue. Some of the varieties, available are Buddleia davidii, i “Black Knight” (purplish (black); B. davidii “Flaming! i violet” (immense spikes of; j brilliant violet colour); B.| (davidii “Golden 1 Glow”! (orange yellow); B. davidii! ' “White Cloud” and B. davidii! variegata (cream margined; , leaves—mauve flowers). 1