Daphne transatlantica Summer Ice

The Daphne x transatlantica 'Summer Ice' is a recent American cultivar selected for its compact growth, decorative variegated foliage, easy cultivation, and long-lasting intensely fragrant jasmine-like flowering. This shrub forms a dense small bush with dark green leaves margined with cream yellow that turn ivory white under the summer sun, effectively brightening up darker corners of the garden. Starting from April, numerous clusters of flowers appear and are punctuated with pink buds that open into small white flowers. This generous flowering regularly continues until October! Use this daphne to illuminate your shady areas or to fill your terrace with fragrance.

The Daphne (x) transatlantica is a horticultural hybrid resulting from the cross-breeding between Daphne caucasica, a botanical species with white flowers and deciduous foliage native to the Caucasus, and D. collina, an evergreen shrub with pink flowers, native to rocky slopes and scrub vegetation in the Naples region of Italy. These shrubs belong to the Thymelaeaceae family and are resistant to cold mountainous conditions, growing in acidic, well-draining but moist soil. It is a slow-growing shrub that does not require pruning.

The 'Summer Ice' cultivar was introduced in 2019 by American breeder Robert Ticknor. It slowly forms a spreading shrub with a compact, bushy habit, reaching 1.2m (3 ft 11 in) in all directions. Exceptionally floriferous, this daphne is adorned with pink buds that open into delicate tubular flowers, white with yellow-orange anthers, measuring 2cm (0.8 in) wide, highly fragrant, arranged in small round clusters at the end of each stem. Its flowering is abundant, starting timidly from May and intensifying, covering the shrub in flowers until July. The flowering slows down in August, then resumes more vigorously in September and lasts until October. The lanceolate leaves, with dark green colour bordered with cream-yellow turning ivory-white, have a leathery lamina and are clustered at the end of branches before spreading along the length of the year's growth. They are evergreen in mild and temperate climates during winter, semi-evergreen in cold climates.

The Daphne x transatlantica 'Summer Ice' is a beautiful shrub for ornamental planting in an ericaceous bed in climates that do not dry out. It will look stunning in a container on a terrace, planted in good horticultural soil and watered with non-limestone water. To enjoy its fragrance, it is advisable to place it near the house or a pathway. For example, you can pair it with Japanese azaleas, acid-loving heathers (Calluna, Daboetia, Erica). Being mountainous in origin, it will also appreciate a cool alpine rockery, always in acidic soil, with plants like Lithodora fruticosa, Roscoea and Liriope muscari.

Note: Daphnes can be high-maintenance and difficult to cultivate. They are best suited for experienced gardeners.