This shrub is deciduous so it will lose all its leaves in autumn, then fresh new foliage appears again each spring.

• Position: full sun or partial shade
• Soil: fertile, well-drained soil
• Rate of growth: fast-growing
• Flowering period: July to September
• Hardiness: fully hardy
  
  Much maligned for its habit of colonising railway sidings, buddleja can be a fabulous addition to a sunny border, with dramatic, fragrant flowers that are attractive to butterflies and other beneficial insects. Pruned hard in spring, this elegant white form of the butterfly bush produces huge clusters of scented, yellow-eyed white flowers on arching stems from July to September. In autumn the pointed grey-green leaves gently fade to butter-yellow. Deadheading the buddleja will encourage it to produce more flowers and stop any unwanted seedlings.
  
  
• Garden care: Prune back hard in March, removing all of the previous year's growth to three or four buds.