This drawing is of Philadelphus, more commonly known a ‘Mock Orange’. The branches of our tall Mock Orange bush were arching over the drive, each one a mass of flowers.

It seems a shame for such a beautiful shrub to be ‘mock’ anything.  It surely deserves its own beautiful name, but Mock Orange seems to havee stuck.

There is some doubt as to whether the name refers to the secnt, certainly heady, or to the flower’s similarity to orange blossom.  The flowers on our specimen are not much like orange blossom, other than the pure white colour.  The flowers are double and many-petalled, and grow in profusion along the lenthg of the branches.  It was a pleasure to draw this lovely flower, with its curving ‘cup’ shape and delicate stamens.  The Mock Orage has its fame in Idaho, where it is the state flower.