I WANT to take you back in time to just after the Second World
War, and to the Slieve Donard Nursery in County Down, Northern
Ireland. Imagine a mild winter's day, the low sun alighting on the
golden sprays of Mahonia japonica, enticing them to
release their delicious scent. The warmth is a stimulant to
insects; so do not be surprised to see honeybees, bumblebees, and
wasps stumbling across the lax flower spikes.
A gust of wind reminds us that it is not really spring, and
carries a helpless bee across the stock beds to another mahonia,
labelled lomariifolia. Balminess returns, and our bee
continues to forage for nectar among the less scented blooms of
this equally beautiful specimen.
A fantasy scene, I admit, but it is a fact that in 1950 or '51,
John Russell, of Richmond Nurseries, Windlesham, bought a batch of
seedlings of Mahonia lomariifolia from Slieve Donard
Nursery. Sir Eric Savill, creator of the Savill Gardens, Windsor
Great Park, then bought some of these from Mr Russell, particularly
selecting one that displayed broader leaves.
It became increasingly clear that it had inherited
characteristics from M. japonica. Later commended by the
Royal Horticultural Society, it was named "Charity" by Sir Eric in
recognition of Mr Russell's parting with the special seedling.
All hybrids between M. japonica and M.
lomariifolia (which, to be correct, now goes by the cumbersome
name M. oiwakensis subsp. lomariifolia) are called
Mahonia x media. After the introduction of M. x
media "Charity", other gardeners crossed the same two parents,
and made selections of the best progeny. The result is a choice of
truly special evergreens for the winter garden.
"Charity" is still arguably the best of the group, with
lemon-yellow flowers that thrust first up and then outwards from
the terminal ruffs of pinnate leaves. It has the distinctive
silhouette of M. lomariifolia, and the toughness of M.
japonica. The cultivar "Lionel Fortescue" displays yellow
flowers early on in the mahonia season. "Underway", in my
experience, peaks at Christmas. "Winter Sun" rivals "Charity", and
is the one to go for in a smaller garden.
Mahonias are not fussy about soil, and are surprisingly tolerant
of shade either from overhead trees or a north-facing wall. Perhaps
it is their ubiquity, but, for me, they do not have strong
associations such that they can be used equally successfully in a
city courtyard or a cottage garden. Their spiny foliage makes them
a good barrier plant - their typical height is the two-metre mark,
but they can get taller.
If your mahonia has reached lofty proportions, so that at head
height you have bare stems rather than leaves and flowers, you can
cut it back mercilessly in April, or after flowering. To avoid the
need for such drastic measures, adopt the annual habit of
shortening the longest flowering stem by half when in full flower.
You can then reduce the head to a manageable size, and display it
indoors, in a vase, complete with its collar of leaves. Those
winter-active pollinators can enjoy the remaining blooms.