Sunday 20 July 2014

Philadelphus aff. delavayi

Philadelphus aff. calvescens
Philadelphus are sometimes unfairly dismissed as rather coarse and unwieldy, mainly after experience with the common Mock Orange, P.coronarius but there are many good choice species out there with good foliage and more manageable habit. They flower relatively briefly in late spring/early summer but with that fragrance they are highly desirable.
I can't even remember where I got the cuttings of this one. It's clearly one of the delavayi calvescens or melanocalyx types with their strongly textured foliage and contrasting dark calyx (remarkable how much difference that makes to the look of the flower) but in this case the flowers are unusually elegant with pure white filaments. The fragrance is just as good.
This is an easy adaptable, medium sized arching shrub for sun or semi shade.
3L pots ~£12