5 must-have variegated Abelias for the garden
Selection of varieties with variegated foliage in various shades.
Contents
Planting Abelia in your garden meets a range of needs or desires. You may first appreciate its delicate flowering in small white trumpet-shaped flowers, or declinate into various shades of pink. A long-lasting flowering throughout the summer, from June to September–October, which also releases a delightful fragrance blending jasmine, lilac and hyacinth. You can also appreciate its ease of culture and maintenance, provided it is planted in a sheltered spot away from cold and drying winds, noting that Abelia is somewhat frost-prone, hardy down to -10 to -12 °C and sensitive to severe frosts. You can also fall for its versatility, as it finds a place anywhere, in a shrub border, in a free-flowering hedge or even in a rock garden as groundcover for certain varieties.
Other gardeners will finally be won over by Abelia’s foliage, evergreen to semi-evergreen depending on the region, generally a dark, glossy green. Yet other varieties display their distinction with beautifully variegated foliage.
Discover our selection of the five most beautiful Abelias with variegated foliage to brighten your garden with their changing reflections through the seasons.
For further reading, consult our full guide: Abelia: planting, cultivation tips, pruning and maintenance
Abelia × grandiflora 'Kaleidoscope', a kaleidoscope of colour
Abelia x grandiflora ‘Kaléidoscope’… Just its name is a hint! From the outset, we know that this Abelia cultivar will give us a rainbow of colours. Quite recent, this cultivar indeed offers evergreen foliage that evolves continuously through the passing seasons. Hard to tire of such a bush with a compact and regular habit, bushy and slightly spreading. The small leaves all have green centres. As for the leaf margins, they are variegated with striking colours. In spring, at the bud burst period, new shoots appear in bright yellow, then take on red, orange and pink. As summer approaches, the foliage adopts a coppery-tinted yellow-orange, which becomes red as autumn and winter approach. Under the action of winter frosts, the foliage can even become bright scarlet red. Naturally, depending on exposure, climate and soil type, these colours may vary from garden to garden.
Abelia grandiflora ‘Kaléidoscope’
To complete the picture, the Abelia ‘Kaléidoscope’ is cloaked in beautiful small flowers in a delicate pale pink-white, lightly scented. The flowering period lasts from June to September.
With its variegated foliage, its pretty flowering and its modest dimensions (about 80 cm tall with a spread of around 1 m), this abelia will suit any garden, at the front of a border, in a rock garden, along a terrace border, or even grown in a pot on a balcony. The essential is to provide it with a sunny position sheltered from cold winds. This cultivar, bred in 2006, is nevertheless hardy down to -15°C.
Read also
How to choose an Abelia?Abelia 'Sparkling Silver®' with cream-marginate foliage.
Sparkling Silver”: again, the name of this Abelia grandiflora ‘Sparkling Silver®’ is crystal clear. In a word, that says it all. This cultivar, bred in 2012 and hailing from the Netherlands, is ornamental all year round thanks to its variegated and very bright foliage. Its small oval leaves, more or less dentate, show a dark green centre and are broadly margined with cream-white on the edges. Because this abelia has particularly dense foliage and forms a very compact shrub, from afar it takes on silvery tones. But the colour palette is not limited to this blend of green and cream-white. As night-time temperatures cool, the foliage takes on superb pink hues that persist through autumn and winter.
Abelia ‘Sparkling Silver’ in winter
The appeal of this abelia with variegated foliage is enhanced by its flowering, which is also distinctive. Its small white-pink corollas are, at their base, endowed with a star-shaped calyx that turns slightly russet, which becomes red, very decorative in autumn, even after the flowers have faded. Flowers that exhale a light fragrance from June to October.
With a spreading and compact habit, very dense, wider than tall, this abelia is ideal for the front of a border, a rock garden, or in a pot on a balcony, or better still on a terrace. At maturity, it stays under 50 cm in all directions, forming a pretty variegated cushion. It has a hardiness of around -10 to -14°C.
Abelia 'Tricolor Charm'®: three colours or nothing!
Once again, the name of this Abelia cultivar from the Charm® series, with variegated foliage, leaves little doubt. Abelia ‘Tricolor Charm®’ stands out for its foliage that, throughout the year, remains fairly stable, varying in three colours: green at the centre of the leaves, blended with cream and pink, two colours irregularly distributed along the edges. These three colours persist throughout the summer. But earlier, in spring, during bud burst period, the new shoots emerge in a bright yellow-bronze colour. Then, as summer wanes and gives way to the first cool nights, the foliage tends to take on rust-coloured to purplish reflections. These new colours persist for almost all winter.
the Abelia ‘Tricolor Charm®’ (©Hortival Diffusion)
As for the flowers, they bloom in white throughout the summer and into early autumn. In funnel-shaped form, borne in clusters, they sometimes take on small pinkish reflections. Slightly scented, they are melliferous and attract swarms of nectar-seeking insects and pollinators.
Broad and up to 1.5 m tall, this Abelia variety adapts to a wide range of situations. It can be planted in a shrub border with a low habit, but also in a rock garden or on a slope, in a low hedge or as a specimen to showcase its foliage. Container planting is also possible on a balcony or terrace. This Abelia with triple-variegated foliage forms a compact, dense shrub.
Read also
Abelia: planting, pruning and careAbelia ‘Sunshine Daydream®’, light for your borders
Abelia grandiflora Abelia grandiflora ‘Sunshine Daydream®’ is particularly prized for its brilliant variegated foliage, which stands out as a major feature in a garden. This cultivar, developed in 2008 in the Netherlands, really stands out for its glossy, ovate and opposite leaves, more or less dentate along the margins, which evolve throughout the four seasons, starting from a yellow base. Young shoots develop, all shaded in a delicate yellow, speckled with orange-red reflections. As summer approaches, the yellow leaves maculate with dark green and pale green, blending in perfect harmony. Then comes autumn with its vibrant colours. Abelia fits with the trend since the leaves take reddish tones that can persist all winter, depending on the region and climate.
Abelia ‘Sunshine Daydream®’
As for the small pink flower buds, they burst into pale pink-tinged white to form delicate funnel-shaped corollas.
This abelia is also notable for its vigor, hardiness down to -18°C and ease of cultivation. Reaching a height of 1.50 m and a width of 1.20 m, it adopts a rather erect, slightly rounded, compact and dense habit. It forms a shrub with a very balanced silhouette that would suit a border or a low hedge. It also thrives as a specimen plant, a position that will showcase its handsome colours. Pot cultivation is entirely feasible.
Abelia grandiflora 'Hopleys', hard to resist!
Saying that this Abelia grandiflora ‘Hopleys’ is one of the most beautiful varieties with variegated foliage would perhaps be a tad presumptuous. However, this English-origin cultivar, developed in 1998, stands out with variegated foliage of great beauty. From spring, at bud burst period, this abelia cultivar displays colours with shoots that are almost golden-yellow. As the weeks pass, the foliage becomes more defined and bears a blue-green centre, largely margined with a golden-yellow. During summer, under the sun’s rays, the leaves continue their colour evolution: the golden yellow gradually shifts to ivory white, creating a striking contrast with the blue-green. When autumn comes, this ivory-white takes on pinkish-purple as night-time temperatures fall. These colours persist through winter in regions with mild winters. This abelia is renowned for its stable variegation despite varying cultivation or climate conditions.
The foliage evolution of Abelia ‘Hopleys’
From July to September, the small bell-shaped flowers bring a touch of delicacy with their soft pink.
With exceptionally abundant flowering, this abelia adopts a compact, bushy habit, with branches broadly arching. With medium growth, it does not exceed 1.2 m in any direction, reaching that size after about 10 years. It is hardy to -15 °C.
- Subscribe!
- Contents
Comments