I have posted these photos on the thread for winter perennials, and since I do not know the names of these lovely plants, hoping someone can ID them.
1) Photo taken on 30 Jan 2012 - bushy plant with red berries

close-up of the berries:


2)Photo taken today, 31Jan2012
This one is a vine of some sort, presently climbing our community fence.


3)This one is a bushy plant with dark berries:


4) This one is another bushy plant with light blue berries:



5) This one is a bushy plant with yellowish orange berries:

berry close-up:


6)This is a bushy plant with red berries, somehow similar to photo #1 but the leaves look slightly different in shape and the berries a little smaller too:


Thanks for the help in advance!

I think the top two are Pyracantha, the vine is Duranta, and the bottom photo is of a Cotoneaster.

Thanks Zuzu! So Photos #1 and #5 looks like Pyracantha, I guess they come in 2 colors; then the bottom photo #6 looks like Cotoneaster..am not sure about photo #2 being a Duranta, comparing it to other online photos, this one has no white edging. I hope you can help me with photo #4 too

Oh, you're right. It's not Duranta. It's on the tip of my tongue (yuk!), but I can't think of the name. You must live near me because all of these things are growing all around me. I can't help you with 3 and 4. They're growing here, but I never found out their names. Maybe Sue knows what they are. She lives near me. I'll send her a link to this thread.

Plant #2 looks like Hardenbergia violacea.

Yes, Zig. That's exactly what it is. The name I was trying to think of was Lilac Vine, but that's only the common name of Hardenbergia violacea.

I know from my CA days two of those plants are Pyracantha and, yes, it comes in two colors.

What is the one with the blue berries? It looks so familiar?

I know from my CA days two of those plants are Pyracantha (1 and 5) and, yes, it comes in two colors.

What is the one with the blue berries? It looks so familiar?

4 looks like Blueberry, genus Vaccinium.

3 resembles Gaultheria shallon .. could be wrong though!

http://www.netartsbaytoday.org...

http://www.google.co.uk/search...

Hello and Happy Feb First to all! Thanks for all the ID help! You are right Zuzu, we live near your area but we are classified Central Valley already as soon as you go over the Altamont Pass coming from the East Bay area.

So as you all said:
Photos #1 and #5 = Pyracantha
Photos #2 = Hardenbergia violacea
Photos #3 = not sure if the Gaultheria shallon ID is right, the leaves of this plant looks lighter in color and a different shape.
Photo #4 = Vaccinium
Photo #6 = cotoneaster

Again a ton of thanks!! Maybe if I chance upon plant #3 later in Spring and if it also bears flowers, it can be given a clearer ID

So the one with blue berries is a blueberry? Why didn't I guess that?

Janet, I'm also not sure about the Gaultheria. Those photos look like an idealized version of the shrubs around here. For lack of a more scientific term, they always look more ratty than that. Maybe they need special care and the ones I see around here are growing wild and are left to the mercy of harmful pests.

I don't know why you didn't guess blueberry Zuzu, maybe you couldn't see the woods for the trees.

Gaultheria shallon is close, the berries certainly look very close. I don't know if the shrubs shown are in a garden and if they are they would look better than those in the wild. Some shrubs do go pale if they don't have the correct conditions or soil, and if they get too much sun. My neighbour has a shrub which looks similar but I don't have a clue what it is, the flowers are white and small but not dangling tubular flowers. The leaves are leathery and smell strongly of citrus, sort of like tangerine when crushed. It makes smaller red berries but few of them.

When it flowers we should get a better idea. Both Vaccinium and Gaultheria are in Ericaceae! A look through some of the genera there might reveal something closer.

http://luirig.altervista.org/f...

Pyrocanthus will have thorns some 2" unless there are new varieties where the thorns have been bred out
I have not heard of any

Yes, there are several cultivars that are thornless or nearly thornless.

# 4 looks like Carolina Cherry laurel, Prunus caroliniana http://wildflower.org/gallery/...
but not sure.