Funky Coloured Plant ID Please

[Fuchsia]

Hello all you experts,
I had one of my walks around the jungle that is our orchard today. I risked life and limb climbing over 4 foot of brambles to get this bit of plant (see pics) but then a little further on I found a whole tree of it. Does anyone know what it is? It's great looking.

Many thanks
Jen :hi:

[Michael Frankis]

Spindle (Euonymus europaeus)

[cjay]

Fantastic pink Arils. It is abundant at Strumpshaw RSPB reserve. I have found White Arils on bushes in Suffolk only.

CJ

[Fuchsia]

That's brilliant - thanks. I can hardly believe something this fantastic looking is so common.

Best wishes
Jen

[Michael Frankis]

One word of warning - those fruit are VERY poisonous for people.

Birds can (and do!) eat them safely, as they are immune to the poison.

Michael

[Fuchsia]

Mm - thanks Michael. I've got rid of the piece on my computer table as the child was a bit too taken with it.
While I've got your attention, I've another 'berry' bush/shrub that I can't find on the net. The bottom pic was August and the top yesterday. I've seen a Blue Tit eat a fruit once but apart from that they all ignore it. If you (or anyone) knows what it is I'd be very grateful.

Jen

[Michael Frankis]

Second plant is a Crab Apple - great for Waxwings and winter thrushes (though I guess you don't get any Waxwings so far west). They tend to leave eating them until they've been softened by a couple of frosts. They are edible, but very, very sharp (they make very good jelly/jam, if you don't want to leave them for birds).

Oh, and Chaffinches love the pips that the thrushes leave behind.

Michael

[Nina P]

I went gathering those seeds recently as I haven't seen one since I was a teenager and they grubbed that one out when they built all over the site of my childhood fields. I'm trying to grow them and they are extremely slow growing, and very dense wood, used to be used to make spindles, hence the common name of spindle... Geraldine Take note!! I was telling her about this plant, and Michael has also named the crab apple correctly too.

[Fuchsia]

I should have thought of Crab Apple really - I always imagined they were bigger. Great news for the Chaffinches and Thrushes. I planned to plant a Rowan tree just in case any Waxwings should pass by but this should do the job. As I learn more about this garden it seems the previous owners planted with birds in mind.

Jen

[Nina P]

That is good then, bbut if you want to plant any more bushes for birds food, the hawthorn is a thrushes much loved one, and cotoneaster horizontalis is a good ground cover berrying bush, which after six years can look like the one Goonerz turned into a canvas picture on my Dorset news thread, the bush on the left of the grassy path, behind the Christmas tree.Any more info wanted I'm happy to help, but I wasn't able to get into the BF earlier due to web overload, so many people using the forum this morning.

[Fuchsia]

Hello Nina,
Looking at your pic, I think I might have some Cotoneaster - I'll take a pic tomorrow (it's raining now) and I'm sure you can tell me if it is or not. I've put Hawthorn on my (ever expanding) list.
We haven't managed to do much to the garden yet, just put up the bird feeders and cut down some of the weeds and grass. There's an acre we haven't touched yet. I have so many plants and trees that I can't identify so I will be calling on your (and others) knowledge a lot!
Regards
Jen

[Fuchsia]

Hello,
Very windy today so this is the best I could do. It has little red berries. I've had a look around the net and the pics vary a lot so I'm not sure if this is Cotonaster or not.

Best wishes
Jen :hi:

[Michael Frankis]

That one's Berberis thunbergii 'Atropurpurea' - a purple-leaf cultivar of Japanese Barberry. The berries are still good for birds, popular with small birds like wintering Blackcaps.

Michael

[Fuchsia]

Many thanks Michael, that's good news again. I haven't seen any Blackcaps since Summer. I can't see this little hedge from any window so I tend to ignore it - might have to keep a better eye on it in future.

Jen

[Alastair Rae]

I read the other day that spindle is the winter host of the black bean fly (or was that aphid?) so farmers grub them out of hedge rows.