Thursday, November 7, 2013

Favorite plant of the week: Coprosma repens 'Plum Hussey'

It surprises me that I haven't featured Coprosma repens 'Plum Hussey' as my favorite plant of the week since I began participating in the meme sponsored by Loree of danger garden.  I now have this shrub in 3 separate beds in my garden.  I found that I've featured it in no fewer than 5 foliage follow-up posts.  Most recently, in responding to a query presented by Hoover Boo of Piece of Eden, I identified it as my best new plant of 2013.  So why hasn't it shuffled to the top of the deck when it came to identifying a favorite plant?  Maybe it's that it isn't a plant that jumps up and demands to be noticed.  It doesn't flower.  It's growth is steady but not dramatic.  It's relatively short in stature.  However, it's undeniably a beautiful foliage plant.

New leaves are a yellow green color and older leaves are a wonderful burgundy.

The bright leaf color dominates in this young plant

Darker burgundy colors becomes more evident as the plant matures


I think it looks particularly good surrounded by plants with uniformly bright green foliage.

Coprosma repens 'Plum Hussey' accompanied by an aggressive peppermint pelargonium

Back side of same Coprosma


This Coprosma (aka mirror plant) was introduced by a New Zealand grower.  I initially picked it up because I was amused by its name but the variety is correctly identified as 'Plum HussEy,' not 'Plum Hussy.'  Still, it's a compact shrub that struts her stuff, albeit in a somewhat subtle fashion.

It develops the strongest burgundy color in full sun and it's hardy to 15 degrees (Fahrenheit).  Most sources say it grows to be 2-3 feet tall and wide (or 1.2 x 1.2m), although, in my dry garden (where it was largely ignored for several months), it grew taller but skinnier.  It responds well to tip pruning to promote outward growth and it's reportedly wind and salt tolerant.

Please go to Loree's danger garden to view her favorite plant of the week and to link to other gardeners' selections.

17 comments:

  1. 15F huh? So conceivable it would over winter here...I love that foliage, being a sucker for dark burgundy. Uhm...must check this one out, thanks Kris!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The 15F comes from an internet source. I can't say I can vouch for the truth of it as it never gets anywhere near that cold here...

      Delete
  2. Looks like it might be drought tolerant too from the way the leaves are 'thick' and shiny. You might want to link this post to Garden Bloggers Foliage Day on the 22nd of each month.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's at least somewhat drought tolerant, Christina. I have one in my dry garden that gets very little supplemental water.

      Delete
  3. 15F? Nice plant and looks like worth a try here!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. How's your weather relative to that in Edinburgh? Angie said it didn't make it through a relatively mild winter in her area (see note below).

      Delete
  4. Lovely plant - tried and tested here in my garden, even though the winter was a mild one, it didn't survive! I love it with the pelargonium foliage - lovely combo you've got going on there.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, that's too bad, Angie. I'm afraid I'm unable to attest to the veracity of the 15 degree Fahrenheit figure - we just never get winter weather that cold.

      Delete
  5. The foliage is amazing, I love the color it adds to the garden. I am off to the internet to see how well in would do in my Hardiness Zone.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Sunset Western Garden Book says Coprosma repens is hardy in Sunset zones 14-24, which would appear to rule out Seattle; however, Ball Horticultural projected hardiness to 15F for 'Plum Hussey.'

      Delete
  6. I was completely unaware of this beautiful foliage plant. I immediately looked up coprosma to see if it would grow for me. The answer is maybe. I will look for the types that are hardier, as I am always looking for plants with beautiful foliage.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I hope you can find one that might work for you, Deb. All of the Coprosma repens are pretty but I don't have experience with other species in the genus.

      Delete
  7. That's a nice one; I have not seen it for sale around here.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Roger's had some in 4-inch pots the last time I went by.

      Delete
  8. 15F is very wishful thinking. 25F is safest, maybe 20 established with protection.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I got the 15F rating from an internet source. We rarely dip even near freezing temperatures so I'm afraid I can't claim any personal experience with its hardiness within the 15-25F range.

      Delete
  9. I lost my 2 Plum Husseys after our December freeze (about 9 consecutive nights in the 20s - unusually cold for our area in northern CA). The tops are lifeless gray twigs, but there is some sign of green growth developing at the base. The problem is, it may be a couple of years before the new growth fills in enough to look like a serious plant. I am on the fence about whether to leave them or yank them, but I will say that P.H. is a great plant for consistent plum colored foliage in the fall and winter - really beautiful.

    ReplyDelete