Hello, May I please have assistance identifying this plant in my backyard? It is in the shade and there are a number of them along my fence line. They are located on Vancouver Island in the Comox Valley. The leaves are dark green and 3-5" long, 1-2" wide. The stems are woody and look like thin tree branches. I have never seen them flower, they are green all year round and I don't recall them ever losing their leaves. The attached photos were taken today, February 20, 2022. Thank you.
Daphne laureola. See Daphne laureola – Flora around Nanaimo (viu.ca) You're showing us flowers in four of the photos, particularly in the last one.
I remember many years ago finding the beautiful Daphne laureola growing in my Burnaby garden. It seemed to have everything going for it - evergreen, interesting flowers, an ability to grow in sun or shade and pest-free. It was only years later that I became aware that it was near the top of the BC invasive plant list; almost as bad a broom for taking over native habitat due to prolific self-seeding and rapid growth. Not only that but "Daphne is listed as a poisonous plant by the Canadian Poisonous Plants Information System, and as a toxic plant by Worksafe BC. Its toxic sap can cause skin rashes, nausea, swelling of the tongue, and coma." Daphne (Spurge-Laurel) - Invasive Species Council of British Columbia laurel/#:~:text=Daphne%20is%20listed%20as%20a,of%20the%20tongue%2C%20and%20coma. If you do remove your daphne (and I really hope you do), be sure to wear gloves and protect your eyes.
