Garrya is a genus of about 13–18 species of evergreen shrubs in the family Garryaceae, order Garryales, native to Mexico, the western United States, Central America, and the Greater Antilles. Common names include silk tassel and tassel bush, references to the long, pendulous catkins that are the genus's most striking ornamental feature.
Plants grow to 1–5 metres tall and are dioecious — male and female flowers are borne on separate individuals. The leaves are arranged in opposite pairs and are simple, leathery, and dark green to gray-green, ovate, 3–15 cm long, with an entire margin and a short petiole. Garrya is wind-pollinated: the flowers are small gray-green catkins that appear short and spreading in late summer before elongating dramatically in late winter. On male plants the catkins reach 3–20 cm and become long and pendulous as pollen is shed; female catkins are slightly shorter and less pendulous. The fruit is a small, round, dry berry containing two seeds.
The genus belongs to the small family Garryaceae, which also includes the closely related genus Aucuba. Within the angiosperm order Garryales, Garryaceae occupies an isolated phylogenetic position that once made its placement contentious; molecular studies have since placed it firmly within the lamiids.
Several species are valued in horticulture. Garrya elliptica (coast silktassel) from western Oregon and California is the most widely grown, prized for its handsome foliage and the spectacular silver-gray male catkins it produces in late winter — sometimes as long as 35 cm in the cultivar 'James Roof'. Shrubs are frequently planted against a sheltered wall or used as windbreaks in coastal gardens. Two hybrid species have been developed for ornamental use: G. × issaquahensis (G. elliptica × G. fremontii) and G. × thuretii (G. elliptica × G. fadyenii).
Distribution
Garrya is native to the western United States (California, Oregon, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas), Mexico, Central America (south to Panama), and the Greater Antilles (Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola). Individual species range from coastal California chaparral to montane forests in Mexico and the Caribbean.
Cultivation
Several species, notably Garrya elliptica, are widely grown in gardens for their evergreen foliage and the ornamental catkins produced in late winter. Plants are often trained against a sheltered wall or used as windbreaks in coastal gardens. Male plants are preferred by gardeners, as their catkins are longer and more showy; the cultivar G. elliptica 'James Roof' bears catkins up to 35 cm long. The garden hybrids G. × issaquahensis and G. × thuretii have been raised specifically for ornamental planting.
Taxonomy Notes
Garrya is the sole or principal genus of the family Garryaceae (order Garryales). GBIF recognises 14 taxa within the genus. Garryaceae's phylogenetic placement was historically uncertain; molecular data now places it within the lamiid eudicots. Two hybrid species widely grown in gardens — G. × issaquahensis (G. elliptica × G. fremontii) and G. × thuretii (G. elliptica × G. fadyenii) — are recognised in horticultural literature.
