Black hawthorn (Crataegus douglasii) is a native vigorous deciduous shrub which grows up to 8 m tall. The trunk is sturdy and has woody branches with stout thorns. Many green oval(ish) toothed leaves appear in spring. Clusters of white (showy) flowers at the ends of thin branches. The individual flowers have 5 rounded petals. After flowering, dark red berry-like … Continue reading →
Spineless horsebrush (Tetradymia canescens) is a bushy evergreen shrub in the Asteraceae family. It grows from taproots and woody stems with multiple branches that rise to 40 – 80 cm. Many small lanceolate leaves are woolly or silver-haired in appearance. The inflorescence is grouped into 3-8-headed clusters at the tips of branches. The heads have 4 tubular, yellow flowers. … Continue reading →
Devil’s Club (Oplopanax horridus) is a deciduous shrub growing from rhizomes. It is found in damp, shaded forests, mostly in areas to the east and north of Kamloops. Thick stems spread horizontally and tend to overlap, rising up to 1 to 3 m. Large yellowish spines line the stems. Large green lobed leaves with pointed tips grow from … Continue reading →
Red-osier dogwood (Cornus stolonifera sp.) is a deciduous shrub found in areas with wet soil in our region. The shrub has many stems in opposite pairs. The lower one of the pair is often prostate and forms stolons. The stems rise up 1 m to 5 m and are reddish. Older stems start to turn grey. The shrub’s … Continue reading →
Mock orange (Philadelphus lewisii sp.) is a native long-lived deciduous shrub that is an attractive addition to the home garden. It can be spotted more in the Okanagan Valley than in the drier grasslands of the Kamloops hills. Our home garden mock orange shrubs started as a purchased cultivar. It grew to about 3 m and produced beautiful and … Continue reading →
