Eucryphia x nymansensis ‘Nymansay’ (Brush Bush)

All the plants we've ever produced came as cuttings from a tree at Leonardslee Garden in West Sussex but that one would have come from the original up the road at the National Trust garden, Nymans. It's a hybrid created from seed collected by Harold Comber from Argentina and Chile in the 1920s. Harold was Head Gardener at Nymans and went on a couple of intrepid expeditions sending back many remarkable plants never in cultivation before. This was one of them. Apparently there were two seedlings : Seedling 'A' and Seedling 'B'. 'A' was considered superior to 'B' and hence the variety name 'Nymansay' (Nymans 'A'). Clear as mud?

It's a fine tree, evergreen, quite narrow and covered in fragrant white flowers in August. There are evergreen plants and deciduous plants and then there are some that can't quite decide. In Britain, following most winters Eucryphia nymanensis is not at its best. The leaves don't drop but they go brown round the edge. When the new growth appears in April/May, the old leaves fall and order is quickly restored. It's tolerant of all sorts of soil - including chalk - and grows quite fast : 15ft in 10 years. It's a rare tree but there's a fine example right on the corner of Comptons Lane and Millais in the middle of Horsham. Presumably planted in the late 20s (when first available) it's now about 40ft. A surprising spot to find such a rare tree but some local historical research revealed that the housing estate on which it grows was once a nursery. Also, a very fine example overhanging the B2126 between Sutton Abinger and Holmbury St Mary in Surrey.

Propagated by us from cuttings originally from a tree at Leonardslee Garden in West Sussex.

N.B. When clipping several plants with the same tool, have a bucket containing a 5% bleach solution and swish your blades around for 30 seconds between plants to sterilise them. This will help avoid the chance of cross contamination of disease.

As with all woody plants, plant high, exposing as much of the taper at the base of the trunk as possible. Allowing soil to accumulate round the base of a tree can be fatal. Keep very well watered when first planted.