ABC Wednesday - E is for ...


Euonymus fortunei ‘Emerald Gaiety’

This is a popular evergreen shrub in many gardens round here as it likes limy soils and is drought tolerant. It’s also tough as old boots, so often forms part of municipal planting schemes. It comes in a wide variety of other forms and colours, such as this ‘Emerald n Gold’. Just because it’s common as muck, doesn’t mean it should be sniffed at. I like to use it as a structural shrub that comes into its own over the winter months, cheering up the garden. It can also be clipped into bold shapes or trained up walls or trellis to give some height.

In the photograph, it looks like the colour of the Pyracantha coccinea (firethorn) berries have ‘bled’ into the leaves of the Euonymus. This isn’t so - many of the varieties with white variegated leaves take on a rosy tint during the winter cold.

The Euonymus family also has deciduous varieties, such as Euonymus planipes, the spindle tree. These are spectacular in the Autumn, with fiery leaf tints and eye-popping red pods that split to reveal bright orange seeds, attractive to the wild bird population.
Check out Mrs Nesbitt's Place for other ABC Wednesday postings.

Comments

  1. mrsnesbitt20 February 2008 at 00:15

    Boody Hell!
    You are a fast moover!
    LL

    ReplyDelete
  2. VP20 February 2008 at 00:17

    Hee hee hee!

    I had the odd half hour to wait before midnight, so did the writing bit in Word first ;)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Leslie:20 February 2008 at 00:32

    I have a bit of a mucky back garden so I'll have to see if I can get this plant here.

    ReplyDelete
  4. mrsnesbitt20 February 2008 at 00:35

    Please re-vist my blog............all is OK!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous20 February 2008 at 00:47

    You sound like a wonderful gardener! This plant sounds like one that might be hearty enough that I wouldn't kill off quickly...

    ReplyDelete
  6. DeeMom20 February 2008 at 01:03

    Sooooooooooooooooooooooon it will be spring and I can play in the dirt...garden that is

    Great information and I like the plant

    ReplyDelete
  7. dot20 February 2008 at 01:06

    Red berries look great in the garden. I think I still have a few hanging on.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Flassie's Fil'a20 February 2008 at 01:13

    I took a look at the Euonymus
    planipes. Really pretty.

    Have a Blessed Happy Fun
    Creative Healthy Year!!!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Lana G!20 February 2008 at 02:22

    That is pretty!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Andrea20 February 2008 at 02:35

    Nice red berries. I did not know this was what it was called though. Learn something new every day.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Sharon20 February 2008 at 02:53

    That is a very pretty plant! I like reading your blog. Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous20 February 2008 at 03:28

    Hmm, the berries really stand out amongst the leaves in your photo!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Neva20 February 2008 at 03:36

    ohh you did a good "E"!!!

    ReplyDelete
  14. kate20 February 2008 at 03:39

    I like the look of Euonymus fortunei.The berries are attractive. I smiled when I read your 'tough as old boots' - it made me think of your Brummie post.

    I'm glad Lytton's post was entertaining. That dog keeps me laughing all the time - he's full of beans.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Katney20 February 2008 at 04:04

    An interesting plant.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Silly Goose20 February 2008 at 04:23

    Hey, I have in my garden what I always thought was a Euonymous Gaiety, but yours has redder berries than mine. The berries on mine are more orange, at least they were in the fall when I last checked. Hahaha

    ReplyDelete
  17. Patty20 February 2008 at 04:27

    I love those berries on the bush

    ReplyDelete
  18. Lilli & Nevada20 February 2008 at 04:34

    Great looking plant I wish i had a green thumb

    ReplyDelete
  19. Petunia20 February 2008 at 06:40

    I learn something new every (ABC) Wednesday! Thank you!!!

    ReplyDelete
  20. FO - 220 February 2008 at 07:36

    Very good choise for the E. :)
    I have different sort of Euonymus in my garden. They are decorative.
    Happy ABC! :)

    ReplyDelete
  21. imac20 February 2008 at 08:14

    Hi, very colourful E post and a colourful blog too.

    ReplyDelete
  22. AVCr8teur20 February 2008 at 09:25

    Nice to see something colorful growing during the winter. Those red berries would be a welcome sight during any season.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Gerald (Ackworth born)20 February 2008 at 10:21

    don't think I've seen much of that round here - what we get is bindweed!

    ReplyDelete
  24. Claire20 February 2008 at 10:48

    Was attracted to your blog as I got married in Chippenham quite a long time ago.I haven't been back for years. Like this plant don'tknow whether it grows here.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Liz Hinds20 February 2008 at 11:56

    Very pretty shrub.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Gordon20 February 2008 at 12:18

    A colourful shrub; I now know who to ask for gardening advice! (Not one of my fortes)

    ReplyDelete
  27. Daryl20 February 2008 at 12:48

    I had no idea it had such a nice name, we always call it holly!

    ReplyDelete
  28. Kerri Farley20 February 2008 at 13:22

    A Beautiful plant for E post!
    Nice!!

    ReplyDelete
  29. Janet20 February 2008 at 14:45

    Beautiful photo....and I learned something, too!

    ReplyDelete
  30. Randi20 February 2008 at 16:13

    I don't think we has this plant in Norway, i have never seen it.

    But it looks lovely.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Anonymous20 February 2008 at 16:30

    Hi VP. I like the spindle, there's lots of it in the hedges around here and its autumn colour's wonderful. I planted some in my allotment hedge but I've since learnt that it harbours the broad-bean aphid, but but the broad beans will just have to cope. The european spindle is Euonymus europaeus, I think your spindle is Asian.

    Simon

    ReplyDelete
  32. Rune Eide20 February 2008 at 16:43

    A spot of red is always a good thing.

    ReplyDelete
  33. Kim20 February 2008 at 17:39

    Ooh, that's pretty. I like the colors in the leaves. Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  34. photowannabe20 February 2008 at 19:06

    Very pretty plant. I like the variety of colors and this is a great choice for the letter E.

    ReplyDelete
  35. Dragonstar20 February 2008 at 21:25

    I thought of Euonymus, but mine's rather bedraggled. We have a fairly acid soil here! Your's looks really healthy.

    ReplyDelete
  36. Nancy21 February 2008 at 00:17

    The evergrreen plant with the red berries is so very pretty.

    ReplyDelete
  37. VP21 February 2008 at 11:20

    Hi everyone - thanks for stopping by and leaving comments. I'll get back to your ABC posts over the next couple of days if I haven't already. A lousy migraine yesterday means I'm now playing Blog catchup!

    Kissa - that's quite a coincidence! I'll be writing more about Chippenham, so you'll see how it's changed and changing!

    Simon - you're right. E. planipes is from Korea/Japan. I tried to get a good link for E europea, but the pictures I found were lousy and it does need a good one to show just how spectacular it gets in the Autumn. Perhaps I'll need to go out on a photo shoot late on in the year...

    ReplyDelete
  38. Paulie21 February 2008 at 16:12

    The red berries are nice but I like the leaves best -- maybe the berries show the leaves off?

    ReplyDelete
  39. Miss Robyn21 February 2008 at 20:18

    it must be spectaclular if it snows!

    ReplyDelete
  40. kml22 February 2008 at 18:17

    The leaves are really pretty on this plant!

    ReplyDelete
  41. VP26 February 2008 at 21:41

    Hi Paulie, Miss*r and KML - glad you liked the picture!

    ReplyDelete

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