Kalmia: the most beautiful varieties

Kalmia latifolia 'Minuet'

The Kalmia latifolia ‘Minuet’ is a much-loved variety, and for good reason. This small specimen, reaching 1 m in all directions at maturity, first develops its famous, highly veined flower buds, which resemble little meringues, before dazzling us with a meticulous flowering, akin to a piece of English porcelain. In shades of white-pink and deep red, its flowers, adorned with a crown of wine-coloured hues, feature ten purple stamens nestled within the petals. Shaped like campanulate corollas with five sides, they are very flared and measure no more than 2 to 2.5 cm in diameter.

This broad-leaved Kalmia, of reduced size, forms a bushy, compact, and slightly upright shrub, with a well-ramified trunk. Its evergreen foliage, similar to other varieties of Kalmia latifolia, ensures decorative interest throughout the year. Its miniature yet countless flowers, from May to June, captivate us with their fleshy texture, colours, shape, and intricate patterns.

The Kalmia latifolia ‘Minuet’ thrives in a rather shaded position, where one can better appreciate the delicacy of its flowering, perhaps in a pot on a terrace full of greenery, where it will benefit from a favourable ambient humidity. Indeed, this is not a plant suited for a mineral terrace, with high solar reflection and a drier atmosphere.

Kalmia latifolia ‘Minuet’

Kalmia latifolia 'You Can'

As one of the largest varieties, the Kalmia latifolia ‘You Can’ reaches 2 m in height at ripeness. Unique, this kalmia features a matte green, evergreen foliage with elliptical leaves that are distinctly lanceolate and slightly acuminate, resembling those of Eucalyptus, ending in an elongated and very acute tip. In a fresh blend of pink and white, its flowering, with changing hues, emerges from purplish-pink buds and opens to light pink before deepening to a more intense shade at maturity.

This upright and narrow variety, only 1 m wide when its height doubles, is very hardy. Like all Kalmias, its planting requirements are related to the type of climate it prefers, which is rather cool and rainy. Perennials such as Rodgersia, Cimicifugas, and ferns accompany it in woodland or partial shade.

Kalmia latifolia ‘You Can’

Kalmia latifolia 'Madeline'

The Kalmia latifolia ‘Madeline’ is a unique variety: its flowers are double, with a bright pink exterior and a white interior, adorned with a central ring and red to brown spots. They are very wide, slightly incurved, becoming almost flat at ripeness. They are large, measuring up to 5 cm in diameter. Each branch bears terminal clusters with an abundance of ribbed, geometric buds that open into its delightful waxy flowers. The light pink buds and flowers alternate, competing for ornamental interest.

The plant reaches a height of 1.20 m and a width of 90 cm at maturity. Its evergreen foliage is dark, dark green, composed of small, glossy, leathery, and thick leaves, alternate and lanceolate (similar to those of Rhododendrons or Laurels), with a lighter underside.

Plant it in partial shade, in woodland, alongside plants with similar conditions, such as hydrangeas of the aspera, involucrata, serrata, or macrophylla, which prefer shaded exposures. Japanese maples, camellias, and rhododendrons will also be good companions to alternate texture, foliage, and flowering periods.

Kalmia latifolia ‘Madeline’ with double flowers

Kalmia polifolia

Little known, the Kalmia polifolia is a botanical species known as “Andromeda-leaved”. Its particularly fine, shiny dark green foliage, with a whitish underside, is formed of small, leathery, thick leaves with almost rolled edges. They are arranged oppositely on the branches. Of modest dimensions, it forms a bush with a spreading habit, not exceeding 60 cm in height and 1 m in width. Its lightly branched trunk gives it a nonchalant, somewhat loose and languid appearance. Native to Canada, as well as New England and the Great Lakes region in the United States, this botanical species grows in humid, shaded places such as turf moors and peat forests.

Its flowering unfolds in terminal corymbs of 8 to 12 flowers, 1 to 2 cm wide, small but vibrant, in colours ranging from deep purplish pink to pale pink. The delicacy of these features makes this species a light, graceful, and cheerful plant. It thrives out of the scorching sun, for example alongside a Fuchsia magellanica, which is also graceful and fine, or a Fuchsia microphylla, with its adorable miniature tubular flowers. However, the latter is not very hardy and will need protection for winter in the coldest regions. At their feet, plant bulbs of Cyclamens.

The Kalmia polifolia

Kalmia latifolia 'Latchmin'

The flowers of the Kalmia latifolia ‘Latchmin’ are dressed in a very dark, chic robe: a deep purple, surrounded by a lighter margin and a lilac pink centre. The reverse of the flower is pink, like the lovely buds, plicate like little jewels, in a candy pink. The contrast between the unopened flowers and those fully open is particularly refined. The dense corymbs of numerous flowers measure about ten centimetres in diameter. This kalmia develops a bushy habit and reaches between 1.30 and 1.50 m in height and width at 10 years.

Imagine it in a shaded bed, in shades of pink and purple, preceded by the fragrant flowering of a Daphne mezereum var. rubra and accompanied by the long-lasting flowering of a Daphne transatlantica ‘Pink Fragrance’, with bulbs of fritillaries at its base.

The Kalmia latifolia ‘Latchmin’

Kalmia latifolia 'Peppermint'

White suits kalmias, as this colour enhances their delicate aura. All the white varieties are worthy of interest, each possessing its own unique charm. The Kalmia latifolia ‘Peppermint’ boasts a lovely geometric pattern, with fine dark red rays punctuated towards the edges of the petals by small spots of the same colour. This pronounced graphic design in this variety creates a distinct visual impression, even from a distance. The charming little meringues that are the flower buds are a pale pink here. It is also attractive for its foliage, which emerges with a coppery bronze hue in spring.

The Kalmia ‘Peppermint’ forms a bush of 1.5 m in all directions at ripeness, and its bright white flowering illuminates a woodland border, alongside white or pale pink Azaleas, for example.

The Kalmia latifolia ‘Peppermint’