Garrya

Garrya, known for the Garrya elliptica and x thuretii varieties, are evergreen bushes with exceptional winter flowering. They have long, pendulous and trembling aments. With their very dense habit, 2 to 3 metres (7 to 10 feet) in height, and their beautiful tough leaves that resemble those of the evergreen oak, Garryas find their place in hedges, groves, or at the back of borders. Among the 13 to 15 species in the genus Garrya (family Garryaceae), the elliptica species and its varieties James Roof or Evie are mainly cultivated. These plants, native to coastal scrub vegetation of California and Oregon, are moderately hardy, down to -10 or -12°C (14 or 10.4°F) at their lowest, they prefer mild winters and withstand dry summers well.

In Garrya, the sexes are separate, and it is the male plants that are the most decorative with their long pale aments that bloom between December and March. These bushes tolerate both sea spray and urban pollution, and they thrive in deep, loose, and well-drained garden soil.