Callicarpa bodinieri Magical Purple Giant

The Callicarpa bodinieri Magical Purple Giant is a charming bush for several reasons. While its summer flowering is quite discreet, it produces one of the most decorative fruitings. In autumn and winter, this medium-sized bush is covered with small purple berries grouped in clusters along the branches. The deciduous foliage also takes on beautiful autumnal colours, ranging from yellow to orange and red. With its nectar-producing flowers and fruits that birds feed on in winter, this bush is as ornamental as it is beneficial to biodiversity.

The Callicarpa bodinieri, once classified among the Verbenaceae (like Verbena or Lantana), is now part of the Lamiaceae family. This large plant group includes more than 200 genera and totals about 6,000 species. It includes many herbaceous plants or shrubs with fragrant foliage, such as Mint, Lavender, Lemon Balm, Oregano, Rosemary, Basil, and Savoury, which are used in our kitchens. This family also includes many ornamental plants (some of which also have foliage rich in essential oils), including Salvias, a favourite genus of collectors with more than 900 species, Ajuga, Lamium and Stachys.

Callicarpa is also a prolific genus with about 150 species, native to North America or Asia (China, Korea, Japan). Some species are commonly cultivated as ornamentals, mainly for their numerous and colourful small fruits in autumn and winter. The Callicarpa bodinieri comes from China and its species name comes from Father Bondinier, a missionary and plant explorer in this Asian country. Bodinier's Callicarpa is also affectionately called the candy bush because of its profusion of violet, appetising but inedible berries for humans.

The 'Magical Purple Giant' variety is an improvement on the Callicarpa bodinieri, even more remarkable for its multitude of purple fruits, about 4 mm (0.2 in) in diameter, produced from September to Christmas. These berries are gathered in clusters of almost 30-40 fruit, forming violet balls along the branches. They are formed from the summer flowering (June-July) in the form of small pale lilac flowers, with protruding yellow stamens, nectar-producing and gathered in 3 to 4 cm (1.2 to 1.6 in) diameter cymes. 'Magical Purple Giant' is also distinguished by its generous autumn colours, in shades of yellow-orange turning crimson red, reminiscent of the autumn foliage of the Euonymus alatus, the famous Burning Bush.

This bush will form a medium-sized clump, about 2.50 m (8 ft 2 in), or even 3 m (9 ft 10 in) tall and 1.50 to 2.30 m (4 ft 11 in to 7 ft 6 in) wide. Easy to grow in most ordinary soils, even limestone, in a sunny position, the Callicarpa can suffer from lack of water in summer if planted in dry soil. It will therefore be necessary to water it from time to time if its leaves start to droop. They will quickly return to their normal position. Once established, it is hardy (down to -20°C (-4 °F) and even lower) and may be affected by frost in its young age, but it will recover without any problems after pruning to remove the affected branches.

This Callicarpa is a charming bush, useful for wildlife and very ornamental in autumn and winter, at a time when the often grey sky will appreciate its generous colourful fruiting. Plant it in a mixed bed with other plants with spring or summer interest to enjoy it all year round. The Abeliophyllum distichum or Korean White Forsythia, underappreciated, despite its white flowering in February-March, and would be perfect for the opening of the flowering season. The superb Japanese Quince Rubra (Chaenomeles speciosa) will then take over in April and May with its dazzling red flowering, and will give you decorative yellow fruits in autumn, which will contrast nicely with the violet berries of your Callicarpa. Then it will be the turn of the Weigelas, so easy to grow and so generous in flowers at the end of spring. And in summer, the small Caryopteris Hint of Gold will offer you its beautiful bluish flowering, while its golden foliage in spring will turn to lime green during flowering.