silk tassel bush
Garrya elliptica
USDA zones7 to 9
SunHandles full sun to partial shade
WaterHandles dry to moist soil
Size6 to 15 feet tall6 to 10 feet wide
- Growth rate
- Rapid
- Bloom season
- Spring, winter
- Bloom color
- White
- Foliage color
- Gray/silver, green
- Soil types
- Sand, loam, clay, chalk
- Soil pH
- Acid, alkaline, neutral
Garden uses
Attracts
Notes
Silk tassel bush (Garrya elliptica) is a shrub for hedges, privacy screens, borders, and winter interest. It is hardy to USDA zone 7, or down to 0°F (-18°C). This plant likes full sun to part shade and dry to moist soil of most types. Male plants bear long, drooping, greenish-white catkins in winter, and female plants need a male nearby to set purple-brown fruits. Birds feed on the fruits in winter. Deer usually look elsewhere for a meal.
Pairs well with Hummingbird sage, Bluff lettuce, and Madrone.
Native range
CA and OR.