If you're looking for a perfect garden plant then 'Rubella' has it all - it's compact, low-maintenance, grows in dappled shade, looks good all year, has fragrant flowers and is wildlife-friendly. It's one of those 'plant it and leave it' shrubs, so there's little wonder why they sell out so quickly! Skimmia japonica 'Rubella' is a compact, bushy evergreen shrub with cones of red buds which open to fragrant white flowers in early spring - A classic plant for winter or spring containers where the dark, leathery leaves provide a super background for its showy flowers. All parts of this award-winning plant have a pleasant fragrance when crushed, not unlike ..... so, position them near doorways, entrances or windows so that you can appreciate the scent too. Most individual varieties of Skimmias are either male or female - 'Rubella' is male so will not produce berries - but when you see and smell the gorgeous scented flowers, they more than make up for that. Skimmia plants are slow growing, so little pruning is needed - which is great if you have little time to be messing around with secateurs and pruning manuals - in fact, it is better not to trim them at all, if possible. Add to this the fact that 'Rubella' holds an RHS award of garden merit and you can be assured that it will perform in your garden.
A great choice if you're looking for a plant that looks good all through the year, 'Perosa' will deliver. Compact and easy to grow, it'll always give you something beautiful to see, whatever the month. Growing in light shade, the evergreen foliage is grey-green with a creamy edge. Red stems bear clusters of tiny maroon buds by the dozen which open to scented creamy-white flowers in the spring and are loved by bees, butterflies and other pollinators. 'Perosa' is a male Skimmia, so it won't produce any berries, but the gorgeous flowers and striking foliage more than make up for that. Slow growing, so little pruning is needed, this will keep itself neat and bushy. Perfect for growing in containers, especially near doors and windows or on the terrace so that you can appreciate the spring fragrance. Supplied in a 13cm pot for you to plant out, eventually reaching 75cm (3ft) in height and spread. Flowering from April to June.
Skimmia japonica 'Rubella' is a plant that offers year round interest with glossy evergreen foliage, and during summer, dense panicles of small, fragrant white flowers, followed by clusters of red buds in autumn and winter. It is a hassle free plant suitable for woodland gardens, and patio planters, or borders in shaded parts of the garden. Height and spread: 80cm (31).