Buddleja officinalis
Winter flowered buddleja, Buddleia
- Height × spread
- 3m × 3m
- Position
- Full sun
- Hardiness
- Mild winter to -5C (RHS H3)
- Flowers
- Summer
Availability
Please ask in store about availability
Many plants are seasonal. Call 01234 567890 to check current stock.
About this plant
This makes a rather open habited shrub with grey tomentose on the stems as well as the young leaves. The leaves are lance shaped, dark-green when mature and up to 15cm (6in) in length. The flowers form short panicles, rounded at the top, in shades of a warm, pinkish-lilac with tiny orange or pink eyes. They carry a delightful fragrance. This frost tender Buddleja can be grown out of doors in summer but needs a frost free area during the winter months. The plant has commercial uses for dyes, as well as medicine. This reaches around 2m (7ft) height with equivalent spread.
- Flower colour
- Lilac, Pink, Purple
- Foliage colour
- Green, Grey
- Variegated
- No
- Scent
- Yes, honey-almond
- Shape
- Fan
- Height
- 3m
- Spread
- 3m
- Height in 10 years
- 2m
- Spread in 10 years
- 2m
- Season of interest
- Summer
- Flowers in
- Summer
- Evergreen
- Deciduous
- Garden style
- Seaside garden, Scented garden, Mediterranean garden
- Sun or shade
- Likes full sun
- Soil type
- Chalk, Loam (normal), Poor soil, Sandy soil
- Soil pH
- All types
- Drainage
- Well drained soil, Drought resistant
- Hardiness
- Mild winter to -5C (RHS H3)
- Borders & containers
- Borders
- Use for
- Wall cover, Structural, Deer resistant, Rabbit resistant, Bee attraction, Butterfly attraction, Bird attraction
- Walls
- South, West facing
- Hazards
- No
- Pet safe
- Yes – listed in our pet-safe plants
Spring
Spring - late · Outdoors
Feed with slow release fertiliser
Apply a general purpose slow release fertiliser, spreading it around the root area of the plant as it is coming into growth. (Or apply a liquid feed at regular intervals throughout the growing season.)
This is a simple way to provide a nutrient boost as a single annual procedure.
Spring-Autumn · Outdoors
Water during dry periods
For plants in the ground, when there has been little or no rain for a period of 7-10 days and the soil is dry, give it a deep watering and repeat weekly until there is a downpour of rain. Check plants in pots more frequently, especially in hot weather.
Spring - early · Planting
Prune hard to the base
Prune back to within 30cm to 45cm of the plant base so that the year's growth will begin from this low framework. If you want the plant to grow larger, this need only be done every few years.
Planting & general
Outdoor planting · Planting
Add root growth stimulant to the planting hole
Mycorrhizal fungi helps roots establish quickly, so they absorb water and nutrients more efficiently. It comes as a powder, granule or gel. Add to the planting hole or container, and to the plant's rootball before planting in the hole. For "bareroot" plants use a gel.
Planting
Deadhead blooms during flowering season
Remove flowers as they turn brown and fade. Snip the stem just below the bloom. This will keep the plant tidy and encourage more flowers.
The removal of spent flowers encourages the plant to produce fresh ones, rather than spend its energy on the development of seeds.
Found in
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