Escallonia C.F. Ball

The Escallonia 'C.F. Ball' is a variety sought after for its uninterrupted summer flowering of short clusters of bright cherry red tubular flowers! It has a beautiful bushy, compact habit that offers dense, tough foliage of a dark glossy green throughout the year. Perfectly resistant to seaside conditions, it is a species that loves the sun and well-drained to dry, even chalky soils, but thanks to its robustness and hardiness it can also be planted in gardens far from the coast. Reaching a height of 2m (6.6ft), it is a good choice for creating medium-sized windbreak hedges or for complementing a shrub border in a small urban garden.

The Escallonia 'C.F. Ball' is a vigorous horticultural cultivar distinguished by its long-lasting bright red flowering. Escallonias belong to the Escalloniaceae family and are native to temperate areas of South America and Chile. In the wild, these shrubs grow among the scrub covering the hillsides or in exposed coastal areas.

The 'C.F. Ball' variety forms a bushy and dense branching habit, with relatively fast growth, reaching an average height of 2m (6.6ft) and a width of 2m (6.6ft) at maturity. Its small, tough, alternate, ovate leaves with serrated edges are a shiny dark green, measuring 2 to 6cm (2.4in) in length. They grow very densely towards the terminal part of the branches. The flowering takes place from June-July to September, for about a month, earlier or later depending on the climate, sometimes as early as May in warm climates. At the end of each branch, a cluster of 3 to 10cm (3.9in) is formed, composed of small five-petaled bell-shaped flowers in a bright cherry red colour turning dark carmine pink, measuring 1 to 2cm (0.8in), enclosed at the base in a red to purple-brown calyx.

The Escallonia 'C.F. Ball', an excellent shrub for contrasting and enhancing white or pink roses, dislikes only icy winds and excessively harsh winters. Well-known to gardeners in Brittany, Ireland, and England, it is also comfortable in Mediterranean climates, after careful planting and regular watering for the first two or three years. It is tolerant of heat and dry summers, once established, and chalky soils. It can flower in hot or shady situations. It is essential in coastal gardens, as its flowering, just like that of Olearias, would brighten up the grey foliage of Atriplex, Bupleurum fruticosum, or Correa alba rosea. In a large mass planting, it can be combined with cistus, lavenders, Hebe, or spring-flowering shrubs like lilacs, Kolkwitzia amabilis, or deutzias.