Astelia nivicola Red Devil

The Astelia nivicola 'Red Devil' is an architectural perennial plant that resembles a small phormium in its habit and will appreciate similar growing conditions. This horticultural selection stands out for its purple-tinged foliage, especially at the tips of the leaves, a colour that intensifies in winter due to the cold. Its broad linear leaves are slightly trailing and completely covered in bristles that play with the light. This evergreen plant is a marvel with its own requirements: it prefers acidic to neutral soils, stays moist in summer, and dislikes severe frost. Beautiful in many gardens, it will also be a centrepiece when planted in a pot on the patio during the warmer seasons in colder regions.

According to classification, the Astelia nivicola belongs to the Asteliaceae family, or the Liliaceae family. It is a botanical species endemic to the South Island of New Zealand. It grows in high-altitude wet meadows where snow is expected in winter. Like other astelias, male and female flowers are borne on separate plants (dioecious). The specific epithet "nivicola" comes from the Latin words "nivi" or "nivos", meaning "snow", and "cola", meaning "inhabitant", about the natural habitat of this plant.

'Red Devil', remarkable for its purple-coloured foliage, was selected by Kaikoura Nurseries in New Zealand and introduced to the United States in 2010. This rhizomatous perennial grows in a dense clump and does not spread. It has an upright and arching habit, reaching about 50 cm (20in) in all directions, depending on growing conditions. Its long leaves are covered in bristles on the top and have a velvety texture on the underside. The leaves, which are very long and 5 cm (2in) wide, slightly stiff, slightly arching, and pointed at their tips, show a more green-grey colour at the base and centre of the clump but violet-purple at their tips. The numerous bristles enhance the colour of the lamina, giving the overall appearance of various shades of plum, bronze, grey, almond green, and iridescent in the sunlight. Flowering stems, rarely seen in cultivation, appear in spring, depending on the climate. They bear inconspicuous but fragrant brown flowers, followed by the formation of small fruits on female plants, which are drupes of bright orange colour. Its relatively underdeveloped root system allows it to adapt well to container cultivation.

With its purple foliage, thisAstelia 'Red Devil' makes an excellent contrast to the beautifully silvered Astelia 'Silver Shadow'. It is a plant suited for borders or rockeries, preferably in mild oceanic climates. Indeed, it dislikes the heat and prolonged drought of Mediterranean summers and calcareous soils when planted in the ground. Used as a specimen plant or planted in groups, Astelia structures the space and gives the garden an exotic charm. In colder regions, it will thrive in a large pot on the terrace or balcony, allowing for admiration of its presence during the warmer seasons and allowing it to overwinter frost-free in a cold greenhouse or a minimally heated conservatory. For example, it can be paired with heucheras, hellebores, or astrantias with pink flowers. In a more exotic setting, consider Helichrysum rosmarinifolium 'Silver Jubilee', Pittosporum tenuifolium Tom Thumb, or Olearia macrodonta 'Major', which are also plants from Oceania, perfect like Astelia for coastal areas. Like tall grasses, it is also an excellent perennial for a modern garden with clean lines: a clump of Muhlenbergia capillaris, a true pink cloud at the end of summer, or Eragrostis trichodes Summer Strain, resembling a golden to coppery mist, should be combined with this Astelia for a trio of great beauty.