Daphne There's nothing more impressive than daphnes for winter fragrance and a profusion of flowers.

In this article

Varieties Tall daphnes

Small daphnes for the rockery Growing tips

Where to see them

There are both deciduous and evergreen forms of daphne, originating from Europe, Asia and North Africa. The size of this winter-flowering shrub can vary from alpine-sized plants suitable for a rockery, to larger, upright plants suitable for a woodland garden or shrub border.

D. laureola, the spurge laurel, is native to the UK and therefore very easy to grow. It isn't the most spectacular plant, but its polished evergreen leaves make it an ideal candidate for ground cover in shade. Plus, the strong perfume from its demure green flowers is particularly welcome in late winter and early spring.

Most people can recognise the purple-red flowered form with its glossy red berries throughout summer. Not so many are familiar with the white-flowered variety, D. mezereum f.alba.

Daphne mezereum 'Bowles' Variety' has white flowers and yellow berries.

D. x burkwoodii forms a neat dome topped with flowers in early summer. Two other excellent forms with large flowers are D. mezereum var. autumnalis, which starts flowering in September, and the rose-pink 'Rosea'.

Most of us tend to think of daphnes as small shrubs, but some plants can grow up to 1.8m (6ft).

D. mezereum can reach 1.2m (4ft) in favourable conditions. For this reason, it should be sited with care. The plant doesn't respond well to pruning and, once established, resents being moved. So it's especially important to get the positioning right from the start.
D.x burkwoodii is an early summer-flowering species which grows to a similar size. In mild winters it's an evergreen. The most easily obtainable varieties are 'Somerset', with purple-pink flowers that are paler on the outside, or 'Astrid', which has leaves that are attractively edged with white.
D. bholua var.glacialis 'Gurkha' is a much larger, hardy, deciduous variety which can reach 2m (6ft) high and bears gorgeous, heavily scented, purplish-pink and white flowers in late winter.
D. odora 'Aureomarginata' is a lovely variety from China and Japan that slowly grows to around 1.2m to 1.5m (4ft to 5ft) tall, producing purple-red flowers during early spring and narrow leaves with a yellow or cream edge. It isn't particularly hardy, so you should grow it in a container and overwinter it in a conservatory in cold areas. This plant fills the room with fragrance during February, then makes an attractive patio plant for the summer and autumn.

D. alpina is a deciduous, white-flowered form with orange berries.
D. tangutica , Retusa Group, is evergreen, flowering in May and June, before producing red berries.
D. sericea, Collina Group, is another evergreen shrub that flowers in May. It has a particularly fine scent.
D. blagayana is a beautiful, cream-flowered prostate plant for the cool, damp, shady side of a rock garden. It spreads, unusually for this genus, by underground stems.
D. cneorum is very popular. It has a prostrate habit, bears abundant clusters of strongly scented flowers in April and May, and is fully evergreen. It can be a difficult plant to establish, although, unlike some daphnes, will tolerate a limey soil.

Beware: poisonous berries

If there's one drawback with daphnes, it's that all parts of the shrubs are poisonous, particularly the berries. These often look very tempting, so it's advisable to plant with care if there are going to be small children around.

Daphnes can be layered quite successfully in spring. Simply hold a low-growing branch against the soil with a peg and leave to root.

Brandy Mount House
Alresford, Hampshire SO24 9EG
Tel: (01962) 732189
Website: www.brandymount.co.uk