Escallonia rubra var. macrantha

Escallonia rubra 'Macrantha' is a form of the native Escallonia rubra from Chile with large leaves and large flowers. This excellent evergreen hedge bush, whether left to grow freely or pruned, shows strong vigour and rapid growth, and provides long summer flowering in the form of tubular, fleshy bells, mostly a shining carmine pink colour, sometimes white or red. A vibrant colour enhanced by its fragrant, beautiful dark green foliage. Essential in coastal gardens, it loves the sun, prefers slightly acidic soils and tolerates partial shade in warm climates, sea spray, and summer drought once well established. Its only weakness is its poor hardiness, as it fails when winter temperatures drop below -10°C. 

Escallonia rubra var. Macrantha is one of the many forms that the Escallonia rubra takes in its natural environment. The latter is a Chilean species extensively used in hybridization by horticulturists due to the extreme spontaneous variability of its habit, foliage, and flowering. The Macrantha form stands out from the species with its vigour and the large size of its flowers and leaves. All these plants belong to the family of escalloniacées. Botanical escallonias are all native to temperate areas of South America and Chile. The rubra species is widespread from Argentina to the extreme south of Chile, in the Andes Mountains up to 1500 m (4921 ft 4 in) altitude.

It is a naturally branching bushy shrub with an upright habit. Its flexible and woody climbing stems tend to arch over time. Prune regularly to densify the vegetation and maintain a beautiful habit. This vigorous plant will quickly reach an average size of 3 m (9 ft 10 in) in all directions. Its rather large leaves, from 3.5 to 8 cm (1.4 to 3.1 in) in length, are rounded, leathery, alternate, with irregularly dentate edges, shiny and fairly dark green. They are aromatic, have a succulent appearance, and are sometimes sticky. The flowering takes place from June-July to August-September, earlier or later depending on the climate, for at least two months. At the end of each branch, a cluster of 3 to 10 cm (1.2 to 3.9 in) is formed, composed of tubular bell-shaped flowers measuring up to 2.5 cm (1 in). They have a thick, waxy, shiny texture, and are white to deep pink or even crimson in some strains, enclosed at the base in a purple calyx.

Escallonia Macrantha is a superb evergreen hedge plant which only dislikes excessively chalky soils, icy winds, and cold winters. Well known to gardeners in Brittany, Ireland, or England, it is also comfortable in Mediterranean climates, after careful planting and regular watering for the first two or three years. In a hedge, it advantageously replaces conifers with its long-lasting flowering, decorative evergreen foliage, and natural resistance to diseases and parasites. It can be combined with many other shrubs (ceanothus, chalef, bay laurel, olearias, Griselinia, or even Eucalyptus in hedges), thus promoting biodiversity in the garden. It is essential in coastal gardens, as its flowering, like that of Olearias, brightens the foliage of Atriplex, Bupleurum fruticosum, or Correa alba rosea. In a large bed, it can be associated with large cistus, Phyllirea, Pistacia, Callistemons, Grevillea, or with spring-flowering shrubs such as lilacs, Kolkwitzia amabilis, Cassia, Leptospermum, or deutzias.