Hebe Raspberry Ripple

Hebe 'Raspberry Ripple' is a particularly floriferous hybrid shrubby veronica, relatively hardy and easy to grow in regions where winter is not too harsh. This variety naturally forms a beautiful evergreen, compact and dense cushion, adorned with red young shoots and leaves of a beautiful glossy dark green, and disappears in summer under numerous raspberry pink flowers, white at the base. The plant is disease-resistant, not demanding on the nature of the soil and water-efficient once established in the garden. It is also an excellent plant for the terrace 

Hebe 'Raspberry Ripple' is a fairly recent Irish cultivar, distinguished by its compact habit and ease of cultivation in temperate to mild climates. Like all Hebes, it belongs to the family of Plantaginaceae and is related to perennial veronicas. It forms a small regular and rounded bush of 50 cm (19.7 in) in all directions. Its stems, which lignify with age, bear thin elliptical leaves, small in size, thick and leathery, of a shiny dark green colour. Flowering begins in June and ends in September, in the form of simple lateral inflorescences resembling thin and long spikes of 5 cm (2 in). Each cluster has a powdery appearance, due to the long stamens that protrude from a multitude of small white flowers at the base of the inflorescence, dark pink to its tip. Pruning after flowering is recommended to maintain a compact habit and a neat appearance for this shrubby veronica.

Of relatively slow growth, and relatively hardy (down to -12°C (10.4 °F) for 'Raspberry Ripple'), Hebes are generally offered alongside perennial plants because their use is closer to these than to shrubs. The 'Raspberry Ripple' variety, on the other hand, has a naturally compact and dense development that is well suited for ornamenting terraces and balconies, mixed with e.g. heathers or creeping rosemary. In favourable climates it can create neat and flowering borders throughout the summer. In cold regions Hebes can be grown in large pots on the terrace, to be stored in a bright and unheated room during winter.