Occasionally, a plant of value disappears in the overgrown clutter of treasures, a consequence of too many collections and scattered attentions. Once discovered, or remembered, these are regretably lost, a category listing too many plants that have suffered due to inattention or procrastination.

Now is the time that Underway mahonia (Mahonia x media ‘Underway’ now Berberis x hortensis, above) must be rescued from a relentless, wide spreading paperbush (Edgeworthia chrysantha). Years ago, a second paperbush overwhelmed ‘Charity’, interrupting a growing collection of late autumn flowering mahonias that appear very similar. My intention was to compare flowers and the growth habit of each out of curiosity, but this intent was cast aside by the garden’s increasing shade and growth.

Today, this group of mahonias is valued for yellow racemes that brighten the garden’s darkest months. While further collecting was discouraged due to lack of appropriate planting spaces, in recent years I planted two ‘Marvel’ (below), a similar hybrid that lacks spines (except at the leaf tip) that make mahonias a hazard to handle. Both are planted in less than ideal locations, though both have thrived.

The rescue of ‘Underway’ should be a simple matter. I recognized the problem as leaves of the paperbush fell in mid-November, revealing the mahonia’s skimpy branching. A semi-annual snip of several branches of the paperbush will allow adequate space for the mahonia to grow, so I will have one less regret to whine about.

There are also late winter and early autumn flowering mahonias in the garden. A few have failed (Soft Caress, multiple times) and a few must have protected spots. These have become favorites, with mahonias that flower in early winter clearly the most valued.