Loropetalum (Chinese Fringe Flower)

How to choose a loropetalum

For a burgundy hedge or feature shrub to about 1.5m, Razzleberri is the favourite, with plum leaves that hold their colour through summer and hot pink fringe flowers, and the darker leafed plum forms in the range give the same height with a deeper leaf. China Pink has greener foliage with a bronze flush and heavy pink flowering, and is the one for a softer effect. For ground cover and the front of a bed, Purple Pixie stays at 60cm and spreads to 1.5m, spilling over a wall or the edge of a large pot.

The trade-off is colour against sun. The darkest leaf needs full sun; in shade the purple forms turn greener but still flower.

Where loropetalum works

Loropetalum grows in warm temperate and subtropical gardens and in sheltered cool temperate ones, taking light frost once established. Give it full sun to part shade and a free draining, slightly acidic soil; it sulks in limey ground. Use it as a low hedge along a path, a block of colour against a grey or green backdrop, a feature in a pot, or a ground cover under taller shrubs. It is one of the easier hedging plants for a coloured hedge, and it suits the partial shade positions where many flowering shrubs give up.

Planting and spacing

Space hedging forms 60cm to 80cm apart and Purple Pixie 1m apart as a ground cover. Dig in compost, plant level with the soil, water in and mulch. In a pot use a quality potting mix for acid loving plants. Loropetalum roots shallowly, so keep the mulch 5cm to 7cm deep and renew it each spring.

Care basics

Water weekly through the first summer and in dry spells after that; the leaf colour fades if the plant is stressed for water. Feed in spring with a fertiliser for camellias and azaleas. Prune lightly after flowering to keep a hedge dense; it takes a harder cut every few years. Yellowing leaves with green veins mean the soil is too alkaline, and a dose of iron chelate fixes it. Pests are rare. Our guide to choosing the right hedge covers heights, spacing and clipping for loropetalum and its companions.

Common questions

Why has my loropetalum turned green?

Not enough sun, or heat stress in midsummer. The purple returns with the new growth in autumn and spring; plant in full sun for the darkest colour.

How tall does loropetalum grow?

The hedging forms reach 1.5m to 2m if left, and are usually kept at 1m to 1.5m. Purple Pixie stays around 60cm.

When does loropetalum flower?

Late winter and spring, with a lighter flush through summer and autumn in warm districts.

Is loropetalum frost tolerant?

Light frost, yes, once established. Protect young plants in their first winter in cold districts.