An evergreen shrub that flowers right through the winter, when almost nothing else does, and follows with dark metallic berries.
Laurustinus is the backbone shrub a lot of gardens are missing. Dense, bushy and glossy dark green all year, it takes clipping and makes an informal hedge or a privacy screen, and from November to April it carries flat heads of pink buds that open white. Bees work them on mild winter days, and the metallic blue-black berries that follow feed birds into the summer. Planted at 45 to 60cm apart, three or six plants make a run of hedge.
Plant it in most well-drained soils, chalk and clay included, in full sun or partial shade. Laurustinus grows wild on sea cliffs and takes a coastal garden well, though it does want shelter from the fiercest drying winds. Water it through its first season; after that it is drought tolerant and needs little more than a light trim once the flowers are over. The berries are harmful if eaten.
Supplied as three or six established plants, each in a 1 litre pot, ready to plant out or pot on.
Cultural Information
Common Name: Laurustinus
Fully Grown Height and Spread: 2 to 3.5m tall and wide
Growth Habit: Bushy, dense and rounded
Perfect For: Informal hedging, screening, mixed borders, larger containers and wildlife gardens
Foliage: Evergreen, glossy dark green oval leaves
Flowering Time: Late autumn to spring, flat heads of pink buds opening white
Planting Position: Full sun or partial shade, good in a coastal garden with some shelter, and drought tolerant once established
Soil Type: Most well-drained soils, including chalk and clay
Hardiness: Fully hardy across Britain
Maintenance: Low; a light trim after flowering if it needs shaping
Seasonal Interest: Flowers from late autumn through winter into spring, with berries into the summer
Type: Evergreen shrub
