Potentilla fruticosa Red Lady - Shrubby Cinquefoil

Potentilla fruticosa Red Lady is a small, bushy and compact shrub with deciduous, fine, dense foliage of a silver-green colour, whose generous bright red flowers will beautifully colour gardens and balconies all summer long until autumn! A charming flowering shurb, ideal for budding gardeners!

Originating from the Northern Hemisphere and belonging to the Rosaceae family, Potentilla fruticosa Red Lady is a small-sized shrub, measuring at maturity, 60 cm (24in) in height and 1 m (3ft) in spread. It forms a shrub with a low and compact habit, with numerous branches. Its deciduous foliage is composed of 3 cm (1in) long pinnate leaves with narrow greyish-green leaflets that turn yellow in autumn. This elegantly cut foliage is covered with white hairs, giving it a silky and silver appearance. Its delicate flowers, resembling those of single-flowered roses, are cup-shaped with a diameter of 3 cm (1in), with five petals and golden stamens. The abundant flowering, starting in May-June and ending with the first frost if the autumn is mild, is of a beautiful bright cherry red colour that does not fade in the sun.

Potentilla fruticosa Red Lady, which is very easy to grow, appreciates being planted in a sunny, not scorching, or semi-shady position, and in a well-drained ordinary soil.

In full sun, potentillas will deliver flowers with a dazzling colour, although in partial shade the colour will be slightly less intense. asy-to-grow plants, generously flowering and beautifully coloured, potentillas are ideal for brightening up the garden or balcony. With their wild rose-like appearance and their very modest requirements, they can be used in multiple ways: in flower beds, rock gardens, borders, low hedges, containers etc.

By placing them at the front of your flower beds, they will be perfect for quickly obtaining brightly coloured flower beds, worthy of a Van Gogh or Claude Monet painting. They will be very effective when paired with Dahlias, Iris germanica, Achilleas, Rudbeckias. They will ideally blend with Mediterranean plants (Lavender, Cistus, Fennel), for a warm and fragrant atmosphere. To create a contemporary scene, they can be paired with plants with a more slender or tousled habit (Phormiums, Grasses, Euphorbias, Crocosmias). On a slope or rockery, where they will be ideally placed if your garden soil is heavy or clay, they can also be associated with dwarf or creeping conifers, creeping Ceanothus or even groundcover, landscape roses or perennial geraniums. Growing them in containers on a balcony or patio is also very suitable due to their small size: combine them with Lavenders, Thymes, Creeping Junipers, Convolvulus.