you are my last chance to find out what alien plant I have growing in a pot on my balcony. Can't find it in any botanical book. Must have flown in on the wings of the wind, maybe one of the storms blue it all the way from Africa? The nurseries in Germany don't know it. Description: Out of one single woody stem spring Xmas tree shaped smaller wooden stems with strong robust almost thorny leafs. Plant keeps leafs in winter, is evergreen. It even withstood the strong winter of 2013 with - 22 degrees celsius! The more I neglect it the better it grows. It showed first 2 1/2 years ago and I kept the alien plant simply because of its evergreen leafs and interesting looks. Now this year (2014) it's surprising me with bundles of stunningly scented flowers. Three different colors out of one plant! The scent is a blend of vanilla, cinnamon, orchid, spring carnation and something spicy herb. It keeps getting more interesting by the day. Do you know which pretty rare plant I've got here?
Hi. Do not know the botanical name but in the UK, where they are common, they are called wallflowers. They do indeed smell beautiful.Margaret
Thank you very much Margaret. That helps. Hoping someone will have the botanical name and details, such as how to keep it, soil requirements etc. It needs to come out of the pot as there is way too little dirt and I don't want it to die when I transplant it into my garden.
Hi Ruth. This web page may help you. https://www.gardeningdirect.co.uk/wallflowers-guide Thought the growing conditions in the UK might be similar to those in Germany. I have very fond memories of great beds of wallflowers planted in many Scottish parks and gardens in my youth. Hope that the site answers most of your questions. I grow both the purple and yellow perennial varieties which are very hardy and also some of the showier less hardy ones where I live now. Their perfume after a rain shower on a warm day transports me back in time and space! Margaret
The botanical name for wallflowers is Erysimum (formerly Cheiranthus). Wikipedia says there are about 180 Erysimum species but those in your photos look like the common E. cheiri of which there are many cultivars such a E. cheiri 'Bowles's Mauve' that won a RHS Award of Merit.
