What the heck is this?

Think that is Pieris! not sure if spelt it right ?

Agree sue Pieris (sp?) or what we call a flame tree

I agree it sounds like a Pieris. Is it like these pics?
www.google.co.uk/search?q=pieris&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjnzsLr1Y3TAhXpBcAKHRE9CGEQiR4IrwE&biw=1338&bih=610#spf=1

I was thinking of a Forest Flame (which i think is a Pieris although i am hopeless with proper names). My FF is kind of split and looks like two separate plants although it is all one. One side is quite pale almost pink and white and the other side is very red. Why is that I wonder?

Oh well done folks! That is definitely it! I have never seen such a thing before. It is lovely. Do I leave it to do its own thing or does it need feeding or pruning at some stage?

Yes, sounds like a Pieris; I have two varieties, the new shoots are pink and one variety has white flowers on an arching stem, the other one doesn't flower.

Forest flame has darker pink or red shoots (the one that doesn't flower) and the flowering one has paler pink leaves then the leaves become paler green and white variegated.

I clip mine back (not a drastic prune) in the Autumn. In fact, mine are in pots because they didn't do very well in the garden as they like acidic soil I think so I dug them up and potted them and they seem to have survived!

I think I totally neglect mine apart from the odd prune and they are beautiful?

It's also called Lily of the Valley tree or bush, due to the pretty drooping flower heads. I can't grow mine in our limey soil so it's been in a pot for the past 20 years! I haven't ever pruned it and it's still only 5ft high.

Mine looked very sad indeed in the ground, despite being planted in ericacious compost and having a mulch of same every year. Since plonking them in a pot and neglecting them they seem to have thrived! Although they haven't grown more than about 2 ft.

I hope this is not Famous Last Words.
I must remember to give them a drink of rainwater tomorrow.

nanasam - that is identical to mine - it is so pretty - I am thrilled with it. It is so exciting when all these lovely things just appear and I am loving having a garden to potter in - it gets me out in the fresh air and it has such wonderful results!

Lucky you have the right soil for all these things, I can only plant them in large pots( which are plonked in to the garden) in ericacious compost, which does limit their size unfortunately ( and they like rainwater to drink not tapwater) so anything like Pieris, hydrangea, rhods, and azealas all have to be potted versions.Your new garden sounds really lovely, don't forget to post pics.

Lucky I have been reading your posts since you moved house and it's so pleasing to read of the joy you are taking in your new garden! We waited years (following the drum) before we had anything we could call a garden and I remember how exciting it was to see things appearing that we didn't know we had, and we didn't know what half of them were. I learned more about plants in that first year than I'd ever known! You are now officially a gardening nut! Welcome to the club ?!

Thank you for your welcome!

What makes it all even more wonderful is that our garden backs on to a small field, beyond which is a wood - we have large low windows everywhere and our eyes are constantly assailed by the amazing white blossom that has appeared along the side of the wood facing us - so we look at all that beyond the flowers in the garden - it it truly glorious.

I am going on holiday for 6 days with the family and a bit of me wants to stay here and enjoy the view!

Pier is are beautiful plants, the colour of the new leaves positively glows. They are also very amenable to being pruned, if they get too large.

.....and what a lovely club it is to belong to Greyduster

My garden is quite small but still loads to do and I could never be bored. I bought myself a little "lean to" greenhouse in the sale last winter. It wasn't the best quality but I sanded it down and painted it a lovely cream colour. It looks fab and you would think it were twice the price so I am really chuffed. I have all my seeds in and "everything's coming up rosy".

One thing I wonder if anyone can help with is that I have a small raised bed that I use for my herbs and "cut and come again leaves" and next doors bloody cat keeps getting into it. I have had to put mesh over the top, which looks awful but seems to be effective. Is there anything else I could do to deter the damned thing? I have battery operated cat deterrents and glass bottles filled with water etc. but the horrible thing still digs and poops all over the garden.

You could try sticking pointy sticks or twigs all around the plants. Cats are cunning.
We had a similar problem, but with deer eating the roses. I tried the pointy stick thing first, but that didn't work so had to resort to netting. In the end dug up the survivors and put them in pots near the house.
We've got pieris too - I agree, it's a beautiful shrub.

ps some people say that human urine deters other animals.
Have a word with your husband .

He wouldn't pee on me when I was writhing in agony after being stung by a jelly fish TriciaF so have no hope of him doing it to deter next doors moggie!

I managed to get rid of rabbits by spreading a solution of red pepper around the place that they favoured - it worked straight away.

Just to show my ignorance, what is all this white blossom on the trees in the wood? I assume it is too early to be May blossom.

I tried orange peel to stop the cats. I didn't work. Water pistols work well but I tend to get a bit tired at around 1 am and always end up falling asleep and missing the horrible thing.

gillybob?

luckygirl I think you'll find that's Hawthorn. It's beautiful in the lanes here in Swindon. One site also called it May, so you were also right.

It could be blackthorn. That flowers earlier than hawthorn (and produces sloes for sloe gin) Blackthorn leaves are smaller and rounder than hawthorn, without all the deep serrations, and the thorns are even more brutal.

I saw a cat spraying and pooing in the nice soft soil where we had weeded the day before. Unfortunately it was in the front garden, I was parking at the time and drove on the lawn because I was busy shouting at the cat through the window of the car. It took no notice.