Pachysandra terminalis, Japanese spurge

Pachysandra are a mat-forming evergreen perennials or shrubs which grow with medium rate. The plant is very easy to grow and is very useful for shady position. This species is newly planted between two busy roads in Salford, Manchester, very close to Media City UK.

I am not sure about the designer intentions when planning this particular site (if any designer was involved). Despite the odd looking planning scheme the Pachysandra thrives very well. The air pollution doesn't seem to affect the plant, at least not visibly. The plant bed is surround entirely from hard surface which means that a lot of the run off goes into it. Luckily or intentionally all of the species there grow well in moist soil. The function of the plant looks to be purely aesthetic, filling the space with green colour throughout the year. Although such a small scale planting cannot improve dramatically the quality of air and water, it still filtrates the air and water. It receives plenty of sunlight and is probably regularly maintained judging by the mulch. When I spotted this species the flowers were already fading but still had faint fragrant smell. In order to produce fruits after flowering male and female plants are required but quite often only one of them is planted.