Identifying a plant... without a picture!

[GinAndOnIt]

Morning! The weather is lovely here this morning, so I'm planning to do some more tidying. I'm going to tackle another bush, except I don't know what it is. MIL said it was rose hip last year, but isn't that just a rose?

So, it's two plants - one in the centre with a wooden support (and I think it's clematis) with another plant growing around the edge, of similar height. In late summer last year, it had what looked like rose hips, but I can't remember if it had flowers - I don't think it did, apart from perhaps a tiny spray of pinkey/purple. Any ideas?

It's now completely bare, obviously, but I want to give it a good chop today.

I do also have another plant I need identifying, so I may post a picture of that later on!

I think if you had a previous identification of Rose hips on the bush then chances are it's an old Rose bush gone wild. If the suckers on a grafted rose bush get the chance they can grow and flower. These flowers are very small Lilac colour roses. Are there any leaves? It should have leaf buds and some leaves now.

Does it have prickles?

Yes, you are totally right - rose hip is just some kind of hip-bearing rose! I suspect garnet is right about what has happened here!

It doesn't have prickles. I've just had a good look, and there is hardly any greenery on it at the moment. I've found a little bit of leaf (on second picture) and another bit the same further up - they look like rose leaves to me? The first picture is what it looks like everywhere else: shrivelled berries and dead wood! Am I best just giving it a hard cut back?

Looking closer, I think it was once supposed to be clematis one side and rose (or whatever it is) the other, but this rose(?) has taken over the whole thing.

And this is the other plant - something evergreen. Does anyone recognise the leaves?

rose with a nice case of black spot? If so, don't use it for compost.

Oh, what is black spot?!

yeah looks like a rose, you can cut it back to the first bud, the second one is a winter evergreen - it should have little bunches of flowers in winter, it's pretty once it grows

It's very close to a pine tree - could that be effecting it?

black spot is a fungal infection roses can get.

www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=270

I'd agree a type of rose, they can me thornless. The other plant looks like a bay.

JT05 i don't think it is bay, as it has a serrated edge.

I have no idea what that is, but I wanted to swing by and say NICE GLOVES GIN!!

Snap!

thank you - DP gets credit for that one!

I'm think the evergreen is Portugal Laurel with the red leaf stalks and serrated leaves (Prunus lusitanica)

Thanks Trethew I think you're right, I've just looked it up and it looks the same. Will keep an eye out for white flowers!

I've had another look at the wild rose plant, and I actually don't think there's clematis at all - I think the wild rose flower looked similar to a clematis flower, which is why my friend pointed it out. I think I may cut the whole thing back and dig it out, because I don't think it's really suited to the site anymore (shaded by pine tree, acidic soil and covered in pine needles!)