Phillyrea /Phillyrea   •  フィリリア  •  native to mediterranean region  •  firiria

I took this pic a few weeks ago, but forgot to post it: at the first glance it looks like one of many roundly trimmed, green bushes around the garden, but it’s actually the only one phillyrea we have in the garden (other roundly trimmed bushes are mostly azaleas or boxwoods). It sits on the corner of E and N path, in area K, right before you round the corner of  the E path (look at the left side of the path, second bush from the end) to N path – it will probably not make you pause, unless you are interested in botany.

SJG • 5/3/13 – Phillyrea latifolia media • Philyrea, Area K; round bush second from the last on the E path, before you turn to N path

SJG • 5/3/13 – Phillyrea latifolia media • Philyrea, Area K; second from last on the E path, before you turn to N path. ‘Opposite serrated leaves’

From wikipedia:  Phillyrea is a genus of two species of flowering plants in the family Oleaceae, native to the Mediterranean region, the Canary Islands and Madeira.

They are evergreen shrubs or small trees growing to 3-9 m tall, related to Ligustrum, Olea and Osmanthus. The leaves are in opposite pairs, small, leathery, ovate to lanceolate, 2-6 cm long and 0.5-2 cm broad. The flowers are small, greenish-white, produced in short clusters. The fruit is a drupe containing a single seed. […]

From Blue Bell Arboretum and Nursery (South Derbyshire, England) : […] An elegant evergreen plant, Phillyrea latifolia is an olive-like native to the Mediterranean region and Western Asia. It is unusual in the United Kingdom and has masses of small, glossy, dark green leaves.

In spring Phillyrea has clusters of small, white flowers which are followed by tiny, back-blue fruit although in the United Kingdom it will only fruit after an exceptionally warm summer. […]

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