Buddleia

[poliphilo]

 The weeds that are growing out of the crack between the driveway and the wall turn out to be buddleia- aka butterfly bushes. I was going to pull them up but thought we'd better check first. 

We have a buddleia in the back garden that we paid for. It's coming along famously. 

We had one at the farm that Julia used to cut back to the stem every autumn- and every summer it doubled- tripled- in height and bloomed famously and drew every red admiral and peacock butterfly in Kent. 

Buddleia are hardy. Buddleia are unkillable. I love buddleia.

Comments

[cmcmck]

We have one in one of the side beds which we know the butterflies will love when it gains a bit of growth but they do need keeping under control- there was one the previous owners had planted and not tended and it was ginormous!

[heleninwales]

There was a feral buddleia growing through the fence between the builders' merchant and the Co-op car park. It was pretty but I suppose it was a nuisance because it's now disappeared.

[poliphilo]

The one on the farm would have been similarly ginormous if Julia hadn't kept it in hand

[poliphilo]

I hadn't realised how prolific they are- and how unfussy about soil and location.