What's this plant?

[Sue]

Hi
There is a bit of communal private garden where I walk home and it's mostly scrubby stuff but I just noticed an evergreen which I'd love to have. It has smallish holly like leaves (without the prickles) and hanging flowers of the most brilliant egg-yolk yellow that hang in clusters, looking closely they resemble daffodil heads in miniature.
If anyone could help would be grateful, on a dull day the flowers seemed to glow, I could do with a plant like this to remind me Spring is really here.
best wishes
Sue

[Palustris]

Could be one of the Corylopsis family, possibly wilmottiae, but there are others.

[Birdie Wife]

Sounds like mahonia. Lovely architectural plant with arching branches, I'd have it in my garden if I thought it might survive...

[SueA]

Hi Sue, it does sound like mahonia which I have in my garden (see pics.)Does it have a very nice scent if you get close to the flowers? I got mine from an offer in a mag. years ago for 99p but it has taken a few years to get to flowering as when it arrived it was just a tiny stick!

[Earthbabe]

The berries look similar to myrtle and blueberries in colour but are grape shaped. They are edible but you'd need an awful lot for one pot of jam. Best leave them for the birds.

[Nicos]

Earthbabe- I looked it up on this site and it says the berries are poisonous

www.habitas.org.uk/gardenflora/mahonia.htm

correct me if I'm wrong!

[rustylady]

Deffo sounds like mahonia

[Sue]

Hi
It doesn't look like that picture of mahonia, much more orangy yellow, see it in the dusk and it seems to glow. The flowers are more in a row and hang down, I shall have to give it a sniff next time I walk past.
Sue

[Palustris]

If it is flowering now, then it is awful late for a Mahonia. Ours finished by the end of February. Though some varieties do go on till May.
See here for edibility information http://www.pfaf.org/database/plants....nia+aquifolium

[Sue]

Hi everyone
Found it! I decided to sit down and trawl through my plant reference books, luckily it began with a B, Berberis Darwinii and Crocus have it so can get my own plant to ogle in future.
Thanks for looking
Sue