ORANGE-BALL-TREE

Buddleja Globosa

Figwort Family [Scrophulariaceae]  
Formerly in: Buddleja Family [Buddlejaceae]

month8jun month8june month8jul month8july month8Aug

flower
flower8orange
inner
inner8green
morph
morph8actino
petals
petalsZ4
type
typeZglobed
type
typeZclustered
stem
stem8round

20th June 2008, Peel Harbour, Isle of Man. Photo: © RWD
A large shrub which grows exhuberantly.


20th June 2008, Peel Harbour, Isle of Man. Photo: © RWD
Full of golf-ball-sized globular orange flowers.


20th June 2008, Peel Harbour, Isle of Man. Photo: © RWD
the flowers grow at the ends of long stalks. Stalks are in opposing pairs up the branch.


20th June 2008, Peel Harbour, Isle of Man. Photo: © RWD
Some stalks grow 'through' the globular flowers.


4th July 2010, London. Photo: © Philip Draper
Each globe is covered in a few dozen closely-packed orange tubular flowers radiating from a central (unseen) centre. Not the runted flower un-developed by the end of the season (top right).


4th July 2010, London. Photo: © Philip Draper
Each tubular flower ends in four short stubby petals. Many inwardly directed orange hairs partially impede access to the deeper recesses of the flower. There is a green ovary. The flowers have a waxy look and feel.


20th June 2008, Peel Harbour, Isle of Man. Photo: © RWD
The leaves are mid-green, large, very wrinkley and lanceolate in shape.


4th July 2010, London. Photo: © Philip Draper
The underside of the leaves is a much lighter green, almost white.


4th July 2010, London. Photo: © Philip Draper


Hybridises with: Butterfly-Bush producing Weyer's Butterfly-Bush (buddleja × weyeriana), a Butterfly-Bush type plant with orange-coloured flowers that are not as compactly spherical as are those of the Orange-Ball-Tree.

Some similarities to : Strawberry Tree [which has similar globular-shaped orangey-red flowers].

Slight similarity to: some orange-coloured garden varieties of Butterfly Bush can look vaguely similar, but usually have a less-compact and sloppily-formed larger rounded heads.

Distinguishing Feature : The compact orange spherical flower-heads containing numerous waxy-looking flowers.

This plant is more likely to be found growing in peoples gardens, but as shown here in Peel it is growing on the south-facing grassy slopes above Peel Harbour.

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Distribution
family8Figwort family8Scrophulariaceae
BSBI maps
genus8buddleja
Buddleja

ORANGE-BALL-TREE

Buddleja Globosa

Figwort Family [Scrophulariaceae]  
Formerly in: Buddleja Family [Buddlejaceae]