Duo of Callicarpas

This Duo of Callicarpa bodinieri combines the excellent varieties 'Profusion' and 'Magical Snowstar'. They are nicknamed 'Candy Bush' because their fruiting resembles clusters of shiny pearls coloured bright purple or white. Their autumn foliage, which turns shades of orange to purple, is also a decoration. Install these Callicarpa prominently, not too far from the house, to enjoy their beautiful berries, which shine in autumn and are so cheerful during the gloomy days of early winter.

This duo consists of:

1 Callicarpa bodinieri 'Profusion': an old variety that received the "Award of Garden Merit" from the Royal Horticultural Society of England and the Courson Merit in 1992. The bush, bushy, does not exceed 2m in height and 1.50m in width. It produces many decorative purple shoots in spring. Numerous intense violet berries from October.

1 Callicarpa x bodinieri Magical Snowstar 'Kolmsnostar': a remarkable variety with very white and long-lasting fruits similar to tiny shiny pearls. Its other characteristics are comparable to those of 'Profusion'.

Hardy and accommodating, the Callicarpa in this duo find their place in front of a large shrub bed or a free hedge in a sunny or semi-shaded position. Install your Callicarpa prominently, not too far from the house, to enjoy their fruiting from autumn to early winter. We recommend planting these bushes in small groups to improve pollination and fruit for motion. Any garden soil that is not too dry, adequately prepared and loosened, even limestone, will suit them. Space the plants 1.50m apart.

This duo of Callicarpa requires very little maintenance except for annual pruning in spring. The autumn foliage will go well with the Lysimachia clethroides planted before the shrubs. A background composed of Cotinus or autumn-coloured spindle euonymus is the ideal setting for fruiting these shrubs. In a bouquet, you can combine the pearl-encrusted branches of the callicarpas with the velvety crimson clusters of the Stag's Horn Sumach, the spikes of the foxtail barley, the long plumes of the amaranths, with a few branches of purple grapevine, for example.