I was back at work on my street-side succulent bed on Monday. In the process, I gave the Xylosma congestum shrubs we added back in May 2016 to extend the existing hedge a light trim and made a surprising discovery: berries I'd never seen before on these shrubs.
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| There are a LOT of these shrubs here. They make up hedges that run not only along the front of our property but also one side and the entire stretch of the backyard border so I found it peculiar that I'd never seen the berries before. |
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| These photos, taken last February show the Xylosma hedge that runs in front of the house along the street. The shrubs shown in the photo on the right behind the succulents are those we added in 2016. They haven't yet grown large enough to merge with the original shrubs. |
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| I saw flowers on the shrubs for the first time last November. Most online sources I checked don't even mention that they flower. One source simply stated that flowers are rare. The fact that we got so much rain in winter through spring last year may have been a factor in producing both the flowers and the berries. |
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| Oddly, I found only the one shrub that had berries. The hedges are sheared 3 to 4 times a year but the 3 shrubs added in 2016 are still playing catch-up so they're rarely touched, which may explain why I didn't find the berries anywhere else. I think they're pretty and I may find a way to use them in a floral arrangement before they're gone. |
While the berries on the Xylosma are attractive, I can't make that claim with respect to the mutant lemons I discovered on the lemon tree at the bottom of our back slope.
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| I consulted online sources once again and found that the fruit has probably been affected by bud mites. In most circumstances, predatory mites keep these in check but water stress and dust on trees can tip the balance. Since my run-ins with fire ants last year, I've seriously neglected the hand-watering I usually do on the back slope so I accept responsibility for this problem. |
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| Luckily, only a small portion of the fruit has been affected thus far. The sources I consulted also indicate that that the taste and quality of the fruit isn't impaired by the mites. |
Both discoveries provided useful information. I can use stems of the Xylosma to provide interest in flower arrangements but I also need to be more mindful about watching out for seedlings around any shrubs that produce berries. The mutant fruit on the lemon tree is a reminder to keep the tree well watered during periods of drought and hose down the foliage periodically to keep it clean.
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All material © 2012-2021 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
