Colletia cruciata (Crucifixion Thorn / Patagonian Butterfly Bush)

A vicious little evergreen shrub from Patagonia, with lots of delicate white flowers if summer is fine and dry. Very hardy. Very unusual. Very ‘marmite’. It’s the peculiarest thing we grow. Probably. The entire plant appears to be made up of little models of nose to tail Vulcan bombers. Or are they Concordes? Constructed in a foundry by fractal-fetishists, certainly. What we love are the contradictions in it: that sumptuous powdery-jade colour has such delicacy, and the teensy white blooms emit the most delicious almond scent. In summer it’s plastered in butterflies: surely they’ll shred their wings on this nightmare? They seem not to. Such a grotesque beauty, we’re absolutely smitten, can you tell? Very hardy indeed, and hailing from Uruguay originally, it’s both visually arresting and a fascinating focal point. One that’s perhaps best kept to the back of a border and away from passing traffic unless you’ve really taken against your postman. A well-drained soil and a sunny aspect is ideal. These ones are propagated by us, from cuttings, wearing gauntlets. Not common, so you definitely need one in your menagerie. Originally, ours came from either Chelsea Physic Garden or Borde Hill in Sussex. We can’t remember.