Copperleaf

Copperleaf (Acalypha wilkesiana) is grown for foliage that does the work of a flowering shrub all year. Broad leaves marbled in copper, bronze, pink and cream cover a shrub reaching about 2.5m tall and 1.8m wide, fast enough to give you a dense, informal coloured hedge inside two seasons.

Why you'll love it

• Colour every day of the year. The flowers are insignificant. The leaf is the feature.
• Fast to fill a gap. A young hedge reads as a screen in two seasons, not four.
• Coastal ready. Salt tolerant, heat tolerant and comfortable in humidity, which suits beachside boundaries where many coloured shrubs scorch.
• Cuts back hard. It reshoots readily from old wood, so a leggy plant can be renovated instead of replaced.

Where it works best

Hedging and screening. Plant 1m apart in a single row for a dense hedge held between 1.5m and 2.5m. Trimmed twice a year it stays furnished at the base; left alone it takes a looser outline that suits an informal boundary.

Feature planting. One plant against a pale rendered wall or a dark green backdrop places colour where a garden feels flat.

Coastal gardens. Salt laden wind does not burn it the way it burns many coloured foliage shrubs, so it earns a place in a front line beachside bed.

Pots and containers. Use a pot 400mm or wider and expect it to hold at around 1.5m, with a trim each spring.

Growing Copperleaf in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun gives the strongest colour. This is a tropical, subtropical and warm temperate plant, and it is frost tender.

Soil. It wants moisture but not waterlogging. Work compost through the bed before planting, raise the row on heavy clay, and mulch 75mm deep clear of the stems.

Water and feed. Deep soak twice a week through the first summer, then weekly in dry spells. It is not a drought plant, and a stressed one drops its lower leaves. Feed a complete slow release fertiliser in early spring and mid summer; the newest leaves carry the best colour.

Pruning. Tip prune from planting to build density. Trim a hedge in early spring and again in late summer, and cut a tired plant back by a third in spring.

What to expect when it arrives

Four sizes are grown: 125mm in packs of ten and 180mm in packs of six for hedging runs, single 300mm plants, and 45L advanced stock, currently a backorder line. The packs are young plants with two or three branches, best for a long boundary; a 300mm plant is knee to waist height and gives a season's head start.

Some leaf drop after transit is normal and the plant replaces it quickly in warm weather. The milky sap can irritate skin, so wear gloves when planting and pruning, and keep the trimmings away from children and pets.

Delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Compare our hedging and screening range.
• See our picks for fast growing hedges in Australian gardens.
• Browse more variegated foliage plants for contrast planting.
• Browse the coastal and salt tolerant range.

Common questions

Will it hold its colour in shade?

No. Shaded plants revert towards plain green and grow leggy. Full sun for most of the day produces the copper and pink marbling.

Can I grow it in Melbourne or Adelaide?

Not in the ground. It is frost tender and will not come through a southern winter outdoors. A large pot that shifts to a sheltered spot under cover is the workaround.

Is it safe around pets?

The sap is an irritant, so it is not one we list as pet friendly. Do not put it where a dog chews foliage, and wear gloves when you prune.