Buddleja 'Salmon Spheres'

This hybrid was raised by Steve Nevard in London, UK, from a cross of B. globosa and B. crispa, two species originating from different continents. It’s not recorded which was the pollen parent and which the seed, nor which of the several forms of B. crispa was involved. The resultant ‘Salmon Spheres’ is a large spreading shrub with heavily felted grey foliage reminiscent of B. crispa except for its shape (Stuart 2006).

The terminal inflorescences consist of 3–9 loose balls, each of 30–40 individual flowers, whose parts are also covered in a grey indumentum. The flower colour is variable, being mostly a salmon-pink which later gives way to an underlying orange pigment. Summer flowers in warm conditions are more intensely and persistently pink, while winter flowers may be yellow or orange from opening. ‘Salmon Spheres’ flowers in the spring following a mild winter, and also from late summer through the autumn until the first hard frosts. It does not set seed. It is semi-evergreen and hardy down to at least –10ºC, possibly root-hardy to lower temperatures. As a hybrid of B. crispa, it is intolerant of wet soils and is best planted in sharply drained soils in full sun against a wall sheltered from the harshest winds.