Sorry, but for the rest of today we are only accepting orders for
BEDDING | FIRE PITS | GARDEN FURNITURE | GIFT VOUCHERS
Please visit us again tomorrow to order from our full range.

Garrya elliptica 'James Roof'

silk-tassel bush

5 5 1 star 1 star 1 star 1 star 1 star (16 reviews) Write review
2 litre pot - 20cm £24.99
available to order from autumn
Quantity 1 Plus Minus
add to wishlist
pot size guide
Buy Garrya elliptica 'James Roof' silk-tassel bush: Wonderfully extra long catkins in winter

  • Position: full sun or partial shade
  • Soil: moderately-fertile, well-drained soil
  • Rate of growth: average
  • Flowering period: December to February
  • Hardiness: frost hardy (needs winter protection in cold areas)

    Long, silvery catkins up to 20cm long, shine out among glossy, wavy-edged, dark green leaves throughout winter. The silken tassels of this upright, evergreen shrub make a stunning feature in the winter garden. Try it towards the back of a sunny, shrub border, against a wall or as a windbreak in coastal areas. When it has finished its display, the dark foliage makes a lovely foil for summer-flowering shrubs.

  • Garden care: Cut back dead or straggly branches in April or May.

Delivery options
  • Standard
more info

Eventual height & spread

Notes on Garrya elliptica 'James Roof'

"Offers great architectural interest for the back of the border where its long flower tassels look elegant, especially when covered in frost"

Healthy plant that has established well

5

I mainly use Crocus to buy my plants because as a beginner to gardening I have no clue what I'm doing and so far all mu Crocus bought plants have survived! I've struggled with locally bought plants, finding it difficult to get them to establish and generally losing them in the first 6 months. I bought the James Roof shrub as according to one of the wildlife charities it is one of the best for attracting nesting birds. As I'm building a wildlife garden felt it was a good addition. The plant arrived very well packed in a heathy condition, and took to its spot in partial sun very well. We have clay soil which drains quite quickly where its planted. It grew very well in the first 6 months and existed to see the growth this year.

Kathryn

Essex

true

Quality plant but would have liked bigger.

4

Plant arrived well packaged and in good conidtion. Has established well and is very healthy in a very chalky soil close to the coast. The only criticism and reason for 4 stars was that I would have liked a bigger plant to start with. It has grown sigbificantly since planting, but will take a while to reach a good size.

LizBee

South Coast

true

Fine, looking forward to seeing int in flower.

4

Planted to shield garden equipment, in a fairly shaded spot, close to a fence. Should grow up to fill this space and provide good scent,

Nico

West Midlands

Yes

5

Easy to plant

RTB

SW18 18 3 LH

true

I would definitely use this company again

5

Evergreen and will grow to hedge height. Beautiful long tassels for winter interest. Eventually will hide the grey cinder block wall behind it.

Cajo

Kent

true

Lovely healthy plant

5

Lovely healthy plant doing well in a shady corner.

MF

London

true

I would definitely recommend this product

5

So impressed with the condition this plant in. It was excellent, now very happy in our back garden.

Rosie

Norfolk

true

I would recommend this product

4

Recommended by a professional gardener to hide an awkward corner where 3 garden fences meet. It's evergrren, pretty leaves & catkins for interest. Well packaged on arrival.

Beanie

Middlesex

true

Amazing Plant Found!

5

Been hunting for one of these silk tassel trees for about a year. Over the moon when Crocus had one in stock. Plant arrived, was smaller than I hoped but very healthy with one silk tassel and glossy leaves. Potted it on and with in the season it had doubled in size and was covered in tassel buds. Once the new bed area was ready it went into the ground and has probably doubled in size again. it's currently covered in stunning silk tassels. I am excited to see them open up and expect it to be a stunning backdrop to a perennial bed. Delighted with the quality of the plant.

AllyN

Cheshire

true

Great plant

5

Good foliage great tassels. It needs a bit of protection from bitterly cold winds

Lin the Flower arranger

Northumberland

true

3880

4.7 16

100.0

My gary is absolutely beautiful. It has given us lovely long tassels ever since it was planted. I'm worried this year as some of the lower/half leaves are going specaldy yellow. There have been some before but very limited. It is now just under 2 mtrs in height. Never been pruned. Is it lacting nutrients.

Plantdotty

Hello, It is quite normal for evergreen shrubs to lose some of their lower (older) leaves as they put on new growth each year, but if it is quite a significant loss, then I suspect that it does need a feed - a good general purpose one like Vitax Q4 would work well.

Helen

Hi. I live in Southern Scotland and have an exposed windy west facing site. I have used your plant selector to sub select 'exposed to winds' and it has come up with this plant. When I look at the RHS website it says that this plant is prone to wind scorch. Please can you advise because it could be a costly mistake!!!

Newbie

Hello, This is a bit trickier than it sounds as while it can be used as a windbreak in milder coastal areas, it is not fully hardy so will need protection in colder areas. Therefore, I doubt it would be ideal for your exposed garden in Scotland.

Helen

I have a Garrya planted approx 1 ft from my boundary and it has been there 20 years or so and is approx 3m high but my neighbor is going to build an extension on his side of the boundary and I'm worried about the roots getting damaged. Do the roots spread widely and if they do will the plant die off if they are damaged?

WilfMcGrew

Hello there Unfortunately it is hard to say how far the roots will have spread, as roots will naturally go towards available water and don't spread evenly. Whether the plant will die, this it really depends on how much of the root system is damaged.

hi could i grow this in a large pot in a coastal south facing garden up the front wall of a garage? does it need support to climb or is it self attaching?

Vicky

Hello, These plants are not suited to very exposed coastal gardens, however if you are set back a little, or have a very sheltered garden, then you may get away with it. Ideally however (as they get pretty big), they should be planted out into the ground where their roots can spread out and grow. Finally, these are shrubby plants, so if you want them to grow flat against a wall, their stems will need to be tied onto support of some kind.

Helen

I am trying to find a nice plant to cover a wall by my front door. One that can be neatly grown around a gas meter box. Either planted in a pot or in the ground. The ground is heavy clay and it is west facing covering a wall area of 3.5 meters by 2.5 meters approx. Any suggestions? I was thinking of putting a large trough or plant some plants into pots around it.

Val

Hello there A Garrya would be lovely grown against a wall. It will tolerate a clay soil and likes a west facing aspect, but if possible I would grow it in the ground as this is quite a large shrub. Hope this helps.

If I let Garrya Elliptica grow to 4m, against a fence, (for privacy) will it look unkempt or straggly? Does it need to be pruned, or is it ok without it? Also, when the tassels fade, do they turn brown and remain on the bush for a long time, or do they drop off after they have faded? Also, do the catkins drop off whole, or do they crumble? I am wondering how much of a mess it makes when they fall off. Thank you.

br

Hello, These make very handsome wall shrubs, particularly if they are given a little formative pruning. For best results cut way any outward facing stems when you plant it, leaving just one or two stems that will create a permanent framework. These remaining stems can then be tied onto a support - ie. trellis panel or wires. Then as the plant grows, you can pinch out the growing tips of any outward-facing shoots as this will encourage side branching, or remove badly placed branches to their base in early spring. Lanky lateral growth can be trimmed back, again to encourage bushy new growth, which can be tied onto the support as it grows. As for the catkins, they do turn brown as they mature and do remain on the plant until they become almost crispy. At that point they can either crumble entirely, or fall off in one piece.

Helen

I have a garrya elliptica which has never produced tassels in the five years I have had it growing on a north facing wall. I have never pruned it and it is growing quite well but is straggly. Will it ever produce tassels?

Chris

Hello there Given the right conditions it should produce tassels, you could always try and give it a push by feeding through the growing season with a high potash feed. You can give it a light trim to remove any dead and straggly branches in April or May. Hope this helps.

Can I grow garrya elliptica in a pot?

Beck

Hello there You could try growing it in a really large pot, but it would need to be well watered and fed. Ideally it is better to grow it in the ground, as this large shrub could grow to 4m x 4m eventually. Hope this helps

Winter flowering shrubs and climbers to plant with new hedge Hello, I have newly planted a hedge (made up from Hornbeam, Rosa rugosa, Blackthorn, Cornus, Hawthorn and Hazel) about 50ft long. I have been told that if I was to plant amongst the hedge some winter flowering Clematis such as 'Wisley Cream' it would give some nice colour these bleak winter months when the hedge is bare of foliage. The hedge is south facing and although the ground is ???good??? heavy Cambridgeshire clay the hedge has been planted in a trench back filled with leaf mulch, chipped wood and spent peat. Although I have said about in-planting Clematis in the hedge, I am open to other plant suggestions if you have any. Regards Terry

Terry Allum

Hello Terry, If you click on the following link it will take you to all our winter flowering climbers - of which the Jasminum is tougher and more like a shrub. http://www.crocus.co.uk/plants/_/climbers/plcid.15/vid.204/ Alternatively, this link will take you to all our winter flowering shrubs. http://www.crocus.co.uk/plants/_/shrubs/plcid.1/vid.204/ I hope this helps. Helen Plant Doctor

Crocus Helpdesk

Clay loving evergreen plant for covering a wall Sir, I need to hide an ugly brick wall. I would prefer to have all year cover, meaning evergreen, and not over 6` or so tall, and able to thrive in my clay rich soil. I thought of a blue lilac but am not sure if the roots could cope. A variety of plants might look nice and would breakup the monotony of the wall, but your advice would be much appreciated. Sincerely, Dorothy.

dorothy

Hello Dorothy, There are several plants you could consider, including the Ceanothus if your soil is not too heavy. Alternatively any of the following would work well Aucuba http://www.crocus.co.uk/search/_/search.aucuba/ Elaeagnus x ebbingei http://www.crocus.co.uk/plants/_/shrubs/elaeagnus-%C3%97-ebbingei-/classid.3772/ Garrya http://www.crocus.co.uk/plants/_/shrubs/garrya-elliptica-james-roof/classid.3880/ Pyracantha http://www.crocus.co.uk/search/_/search.pyracantha/ I hope this gives you a few ideas. Helen Plant Doctor

Crocus Helpdesk

How to create a wildlife-friendly garden

Wildlife-friendly gardens are not only more interesting as you can watch all the comings and goings, but they are often more productive as many creatures will help increase pollination. Garden ponds act as a magnet to dragonflies and damsel flies, along w

Read full article

February pruning of trees, shrubs and climbers

The garden is at its most dormant right now, so it’s a good time to catch up on any pruning missed or forgotten since the autumn. If the weather isn’t favourable, you can leave it for a week or two, but make sure all winter pruning is completed before the

Read full article