''Buddleja farreri'' is a

xerophytic A xerophyte (from Greek ξηρός ''xeros'' 'dry' + φυτόν ''phuton'' 'plant') is a species of plant that has adaptations to survive in an environment with little liquid water, such as a desert such as the Sahara or places in the Alps or th ...

deciduous shrub

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

Kansu Gansu (, ; Chinese postal romanization, alternately romanized as Kansu) is a provinces of China, province in Northwest China. Its capital and largest city is Lanzhou, in the southeast part of the province. The seventh-largest administrative dis ...

, China, discovered by

Reginald Farrer Reginald John Farrer (17 February 1880 – 17 October 1920), was a traveller and plant collector. He published a number of books, although is best known for ''My Rock Garden''. He travelled to Asia in search of a variety of plants, many of wh ...

in 1915. Farrer described the shrub's habitat as "..the very hottest and driest crevices, cliffs, walls and banks down the most arid and torrid aspects of the Ha Shin Fang".Bean, W. J. (1981). ''Trees and shrubs hardy in Great Britain'', 7th edition. Murray, LondonFarrer, R. (1917). ''On the Eaves of the World.'' London, Edward Arnold. Farrer sent seed to the UK shortly afterwards, and it is from this consignment that all the British specimens have been derived.Cotton, A. D. (1947). The spring-flowering buddleias (sic). ''R H S Journal, Vol 72'' 1947 pp 428-430. ''Buddleja farreri'' was one of five species sunk as ''

Buddleja crispa ''Buddleja crispa'', the Himalayan butterfly bush, is a deciduous shrub native to Afghanistan, Bhutan, North India, Nepal, Pakistan and China (Gansu, Sichuan, Tibetan Autonomous Region), where it grows on dry river beds, slopes with boulders, exp ...

'' by Leeuwenberg in 1979,Leeuwenberg, A. J. M. (1979) ''The Loganiaceae of Africa XVIII Buddleja L. II, Revision of the African & Asiatic species''. H. Veenman & Zonen, Wageningen, Nederland. and later treated as such in the ''Flora of China'';Li, P. & Leeuwenberg, A. J. M. (1996). Loganiaceae, in Wu, Z. & Raven, P. (eds) ''Flora of China'', Vol. 15. Science Press, Beijing, and Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis, USA.
online at www.efloras.org
/ref> however the original epithet is widely retained in horticulture.

Description

''Buddleja farreri'' is a

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

shrub A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...

of sparse habit which, left unpruned, grows to a large size. The flowers appear on the old wood before the leaves at the nodes of the previous year's growth, during April in the UK. The lax panicles are < 20 cm in length and pale lavender in colour. The leaves are initially white, owing to a dense coating of hairs, but ultimately become almost glabrous, with a dark green upper surface; the underside remains white and

tomentose Trichomes (); ) are fine outgrowths or appendages on plants, algae, lichens, and certain protists. They are of diverse structure and function. Examples are hairs, glandular hairs, scales, and papillae. A covering of any kind of hair on a plant ...

. Their size and shape are variable, depending on the type of shoot bearing them. Strong shoots from the base will bear large

stipules In botany, a stipule is an outgrowth typically borne on both sides (sometimes on just one side) of the base of a leafstalk (the petiole). Stipules are considered part of the anatomy of the leaf of a typical flowering plant, although in many speci ...

, and broad, winged petioles, very different from those on ordinary shoots. Farrer summarized the plant as a "noble bush with ample flannely foliage", however Bean noted that it is probably the cooler, damper UK climate which prevents the shrub from making the striking display that so impressed Farrer in China.

Cultivation

The shrub is hardy in southern Britain, although shoots are killed in severe winters. The plant is self-fertile, and can produce copious viable seed. Softwood cuttings can be struck in June. Hardiness:

USDA The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of com ...

zones 8–10.Stuart, D. D. (2006). ''Buddlejas''. RHS Plant Guide. Timber Press, Oregon.

Notable plants

A large specimen is grown as part of the

NCCPG Plant Heritage, formerly known as the National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens (NCCPG), is a botanical conservation organisation in the United Kingdom and a registered charity. It was founded in 1978 to combine the talents of b ...

national collection of ''Buddleja'' at Longstock Garden Nursery, near

Stockbridge, Hampshire Stockbridge is a small town and civil parish in the Test Valley district of Hampshire, England. It is one of the smallest towns in the United Kingdom with a population of 592 at the 2011 census. It sits astride the River Test and at the foot of ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

References

Literature

*Bean, W. J. (1970). ''Trees & Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles, 8th ed., Vol. 1.''. (2nd impression 1976). John Murray, London. *''Hillier's Manual of Trees & Shrubs, 5th ed.''. (1990). David & Charles, Newton Abbot. *Stuart, D. (2006). ''Buddlejas''. Timber Press, Oregon, USA. {{Taxonbar, from=Q4984633 farreri Flora of China