Cordyline australis Purpurea

Cordyline australis 'Purpurea' is a variety with large development, shorter and narrower than the species but larger than many cultivars. Native to New Zealand, it has purple-coloured foliage and can reach a height of 5m with slow growth. This large perennial plant with a shrubby habit resembles a small palm tree with long, slightly arched leaves. It occasionally blooms in summer with large, fragrant panicles of ivory flowers that remain decorative for a long time.

Cordyline australis is an arborescent perennial plant of the Agavaceae family endemic to New Zealand. In nature, it reaches a height of 20m and forms a robust trunk that branches into numerous leafy-headed branches that can reach 1m in length. The cordyline is found in diverse habitats, such as forest edges, riverbanks, and open areas, especially near marshes.

The Cordyline australis 'Purpurea' has slower growth than the species and offers remarkably coloured dark foliage. The plant has a rosette-like leafy habit in its juvenile state (for several years), then it forms a small tree with a single trunk and branches adorned with leafy tufts. This variety reaches a height of 4 to 6m, with a spread of 2m. Its evergreen leaves are long and narrow, sword-shaped, pointed, and slightly arched, and measure 40 to 90 cm in length and 3 to 7 cm in width at the base. Flowering occurs in summer on mature plants. Each branch can branch out once it has produced a flower stalk. The small ivory-coloured, melliferous and delicately scented flowers are on large, dense panicles measuring 60 to 100 cm long. The fruit, a white round berry measuring 5 to 7 mm in diameter, is highly appreciated by birds. On mature plants, the bark of the trunk, pale grey to dark grey, corky and fissured in appearance, is spongy to the touch.

The Cordyline australis 'Purpurea' tolerates frost down to -9°C under good growing conditions, in a warm, sunny location sheltered from cold north winds, in well-drained soil. It is resistant to less freezing winds and sea spray and is well suited to coastal areas. Plant it in the centre of a bed, as a small specimen tree, or as a standalone plant. You can also grow it in a pot, especially if you want to protect it in winter in a conservatory. In a pot, paying attention to watering and fertilisation is necessary. It alone gives an exotic look to the terrace or garden, and its architectural silhouette pairs well with the Royal Protea and the Dasylirion glaucophyllum to enhance the exoticism or with the Pseudopanax Ferox, bamboos, and giant miscanthus in a garden with modern lines.