Ruscus aculeatus,
the butcher’s broom of old books, is nothing new in this garden: it’s been here
for decades. The original form grown here is the one distributed by Woodlanders
as ‘Wheeler’s’. There are ten plants,
and not a one of them has ever been particularly reliable about fruiting.
‘Elizabeth Lawrence’ and ‘Christmas Berry’ were acquired a few years ago: these
fruit heavily and can be very ornamental. That's 'Christmas Berry' in the image above.
These are definitely not plants to cuddle up to: they are
unpleasantly spiny, the dried pieces sold for Christmas decoration being
especially so.
