With the Victoria Ceonothus, I'm getting some mixed msgs.. the tag said up to 12 feet wide, I've run across a couple sites that say 6 feet wide. I would guess that this varies between areas? Opinions on size would be helpful too. Also, if you were going to plant something that gets 6-12 feet wide against a home, how far away from the home woudl you plant it?

I've gotten a hold of a nursery and had my question answered :) Thanks~

So they told you that the 12' was the right answer, and that they can coexist only if you shear them or cut back severely, right?

I had that Ceanothus, and it was 5' high and 7' wide in two years. So much for the 6' theory.

We knew how big they get. And ours was pruned into a tree form.

We planted it when it was 18" tall, if that gives you an idea of speed.

It makes a lovely tree form. But it's different to prune than almost anything I can think of.

Not only does the inside need a tiny bit of thinning, but a few of the outer limbs, need to be pruned back to another twig to keep the weight down a bit on the ends. Not a lot, but a few each year. And that was the interesting part - figuring out where to make the cut, and leave a nice form on the plant.

Bees like those a lot, but don't become pests.

Two big bushes for warm, sunny places with good drainage. These two selections probably look quite good together. Both ceanothus and escallonia in general lend themselves to training onto hot walls. Don't know about trying to make often rather dense and spreading 'Victoria' into a tree, there ARE other cultivars which assume treelike shapes even without training.

Yes, they told me the 12 was the accurate number. I took out the Victoria Ceonothus and centered the Frades Escallonia. On top of not thinking of width, I didn't think of the depth it would take.. I didn't have near that amount of space. I'm a bit dissapointed- I was looking forward to seeing these two side by side.

Now, I am trying to find a place for the Ceonothus. What would happen if I planted it against a fence without a full 5-6 foot gap?

Select branches, fan onto fence and prune back each summer after bloom to maintain size and shape. Plant a smaller-growing ceanothus near the escallonia to recapture the original concept.