Excellent ! Thanks guys. I started looking last night to find more, now with a name to start. Your right formandfoliage, all the first ones I found are very small in comparison. Sorbaria arborea seems to be the right direction. Then I ran into the name change, since these species were formally included in the genus Spiraea. Went down that path and read parts of a paper about which plants froze and to what extent at Harvard the winters of 1942 and 1943 ...still Spiraea then. Anyway, I've been digging out old books and going various directions on the web comparing the various descriptions. It's been interesting that I keep running into such a mix of languages on the web. This is a well traveled plant. Right now I've decided this is most likely Sorbaria kirilowii . Height of the plant being the main factor, but knowing the same plant can vary by region and this would not be the first time our PNW weather gave a plant an advantage in size. The photo I posted shows the top of the 6 foot fence and that run away branch is about 6 or 7 years old ? I know one friend has been telling me he will help get it trimmed for three years now but we get distracted. You know how that can happen. Looking out back this morning and guessing the height of the current tallest group of trunks I think they are about 18 feet conservatively. They're probably at about 15 years since I whacked them down. Thus the 20 to 26 feet height noted for Sorbaria kirilowii , at 25 to 30 years of age makes the most sense. And the leaves seem to match what photos and descriptions I can find. Best part ? I find I'm more relieved than expected to know for sure this is not a weed because I would have kept it anyway. It serves it's purpose beautify where it's at. Still seem odd to not see others growing in the neighborhood. Here is a link that might be useful: Sorbaria kirilowii This post was edited by plaidbird on Sat, Jun 22, 13 at 13:34

esh_ga: In the second pic halfway down the stem on the right side is an example of the thorns that are prominent on the plant. Thanks for taking a look. dsieber: I already had every intention of keeping (at least while I can cut it down with pruners if needed) and your sarcastic "Get over it" was unnecessary and rude. You can keep your comments to yourself in any future topic(s) I create. This is as educational topic for everyone. If it leaves esh_ga scratching his head then this should be interesting if anyone can nail it down. Everyone: I also measured one of the large post oaks I mentioned earlier and it measured 44.5" at 4 feet above the ground. So maybe it is not quite the 20 feet in circumference I thought but it is still pretty darn big :) I think I found the mother tree just before dark and it is in pretty bad shape. Unfortunately it is on my neighbors property and I don't want to trespass. They are never home to ask for permission. Maybe I can catch them this weekend and get pics of mature bark if it is indeed a match to my small example.

Ogrose is absolutely correct. Some people get very upset if a neighbor plants anything that grows past the fence line. My deceased father was one of those people and so is my mother. She HATES her next door neighbor with a wild burning passion because he has two large mature trees with limbs that extend past the property line. Now those trees are planted smack dab in the middle of the man's front and back yards but it doesn't matter. The limbs are a deal breaker for mom. If it were legal I honestly think she would harm him, she hates him that bad. My partner of 15 years is of a similar mind. We had neighbors who planted trumpet and honeysuckle vines right up against the shared fence in the back yard. Sure enough each year the invasive vines would grow up, through and over the fence. They also had big shrubs planted in the front and side yards no more than a foot from the property line. So every year my partner and I were stuck with having to cut them back. You should have heard the blue streak coming out of his mouth. Personally I would love to see a large MAC in full bloom covering an ugly shed, but even I have to admit that those shrubs and vines worked my nerves. This year the neighbors moved to Ohio. A month before they left I contracted to have the fence replaced. Just to avoid any conflicts I paid an extra $700 to have a surveying company come out and stake the property line and that is EXACTLY where I had them put the fence. You should have heard the complaints coming from that couple. They fought me every step of the way. Finally a week before the work began I went out there and dug up all the invasive plants while the neighbors were out of state attending a wedding. When they returned the husband and I almost came to a fistfight. He made threats. I gave him the evil eye but didn't say a thing. What was there to say? I knew they were in a vulnerable situation and took advantage of it. My thinking was the worst that could happen is they would sue me for the cost of the plants. I can afford to replace plants. What I can't afford is having to listen to my partner ca-vetch about the neighbors landscaping. Besides, you can darn well be sure I would drag out the proceedings to maximize the inconvenience to the soon to be leaving neighbor. Flying is expensive. The next week they left and I haven't heard from them since. The new neighbor's have been much more polite about their landscaping. Don't ever put plants against a fence if the growth will invade the air space of your next door neighbor. It really upsets a lot of people. BTW, the new fence is ceder, extends to the maximum height, and has no gaps to allow things through. Good fences make good neighbors. Life has been much more peaceful ever since. Ciao from the wicked witch living next door.

Hi Melissa, when I was still gardening on my 100 square metre rooftop terrace in Rome, containing among other plants about 70 mostly OGRs and some Austins, I used to follow your always interesting posts on the forum of compagniadelgiardinaggio. What you said in this post has so many parallels to my own experience that I just decided to add my little comment. Losing or giving up a garden, even a pot ghetto, is never easy for an appassionate gardener as we all here are supposed to be, but I finally did it, out of concern for the professional perspectives of my two sons who didn't want to leave at first but were convinced by the impossibility to find a decent job as IT engineer and economist. Since 2012 they are building promising careers and are happy, one in my native Germany, the other one on the French Riviera. In the same area and similar climate as Rome, at about 50 km away, I was able to buy a small house with a big garden. Before selling my Rome appartment, I saved at least 30 of my most beloved roses, but some beautiful lemon and olive trees as well as a magnificient Chorysia sadly had to be left behind. The roses are now happily growing and many still blooming in the soil of Provence and 30 new ones have just been planted. My sons took both some plants from their old home too. Maybe this means good hope and continuity for my new garden as well.