Colquhounia coccinea
- Subject: Colquhounia coccinea
- From: T* L*
- Date: Fri, 16 Nov 2001 13:43:50 -0000
David - At its best, spectacular and absolutely worth growing - though maybe
not ideally formed for your particular climate. The foliage is handsomely
formed and delicately 'felted' (both handsomely and delicately scented,
too), and is a particularly attractive pale-green; the vivid 'candles' of
flowers are eye-catching (and quite long-lasting: 4-6 weeks here).
In my wet climate it does wonderfully, if kept in warm semi-shade and out of
the wind (it hates bright hot sunshine and salt-laden gales almost equally).
It seems much hardier, in relation to sheer cold, than reference books over
here usually suggest: certainly there's no need to give it the 'warm
south-facing wall' which is usually recommended (in my experience, it would
fry in such a situation) since it has tolerated double-figure frosts quite
comfortably. I simply incorporate it in a planting of other substantial and
mostly evergreen shrubs (pittosporums, myrtles, etc) and the degree of
shelter and shade they provide seems to be about right.
Most years here it flowers profusely, beginning late August or early
September and going on until the end of October. When it partly or
completely fails, as it occasionally does, it seems to be because either the
preceding winter or the preceding summer was too cold - or, this year, that
both were. Even so, it still flowered - but 'adequately' rather than
profusely.
I confess it *is* gawky and, in winter, it looks like nothing more than a
bundle of dead sticks. But once it's in leaf it's a fine shrub - and when
it's in full flower, it's a show-stopper.
I'm also growing the var. vestita (aka mollis), courtesy of Einion Hughes,
who had it courtesy of Bleddyn Wynne-Jones. That's growing equally
vigorously (from wee cutting to 4ft in a year) but has yet to flower here.
Certainly worth juggling about with, to see if you can find a spot which
will accommodate its Himalayan peculiarities.
Tim
