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Lonicera × purpusii Rehd.

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Credits

Article from Bean's Trees and Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles

Recommended citation
'Lonicera × purpusii' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/lonicera/lonicera-x-purpusii/). Accessed 2024-04-18.

Glossary

axillary
Situated in an axil.
corolla
The inner whorl of the perianth. Composed of free or united petals often showy.
glabrous
Lacking hairs smooth. glabrescent Becoming hairless.
hybrid
Plant originating from the cross-fertilisation of genetically distinct individuals (e.g. two species or two subspecies).
midrib
midveinCentral and principal vein in a leaf.
ovate
Egg-shaped; broadest towards the stem.
reflexed
Folded backwards.

References

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Credits

Article from Bean's Trees and Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles

Recommended citation
'Lonicera × purpusii' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/lonicera/lonicera-x-purpusii/). Accessed 2024-04-18.

A deciduous shrub of dense, rounded habit, up to 10 ft high, more in diameter; young stems glabrous or almost so. Leaves ovate to oval, 2 to 31⁄2 in. long, 1 to 13⁄4 in. wide, pointed, broadly tapered to rounded at the base, glabrous above, slightly hairy on the midrib and veins beneath, margins bristly. Flowers white, fragrant, in axillary clusters of two to four; corolla 5⁄8 in. long, 1⁄2 in. wide, the short rounded lobes reflexed; stamens glistening white, anthers bright yellow, conspicuously exposed. Bot. Mag., n.s., t. 323.

A hybrid between L. fragrantissima and L. standishii. Flowering like them early in February, it makes an attractive addition to early flowering shrubs.

This hybrid resembles L. fragrantissima in having the branchlets almost glabrous and the corollas glabrous on the outside; but the leaves are edged with bristly hairs as in L. standishii.

'Winter Beauty'

Awards
AGM

RHS Hardiness Rating: H6

Now a classic,scented winter-flowering shrub that has been widely planted, ‘Winter Beauty’ was raised at the Hillier Nurseries, by Alf Alford, selected from a backcross of L. × purpusii with L. standishii made in 1966 (Edwards & Marshall 2019). It forms a dense, twiggy bush, which benefits from regular thinning of old wood and light pruning to stimuale new growth, on which it flowers. The foliage is a slightly yellowish pale green. The prolific creamy-white flowers are strongly and delightfully lemon-scented.

Lonicera × purpusii 'Winter Beauty'

Lonicera × purpusii 'Winter Beauty' (Colesbourne Park, Gloucestershire, March 2022). Image John Grimshaw.

Lonicera × purpusii 'Winter Beauty'

Planted either side of a gateway, on a sunny day the scent from two bushes of Lonicera × purpusii 'Winter Beauty' forms a fragrant 'barrier' (Colesbourne Park, Gloucestershire, March 2022). Image John Grimshaw.

Lonicera × purpusii 'Winter Beauty'

Lonicera × purpusii 'Winter Beauty' usually produces a smattering of flowers over a long time, but in this case a period of settled frost-free weather has enabled many buds to open simultaneously, giving an unusually abundant crop of flowers (private garden, North Yorkshire, early March 2023). Image John Grimshaw.

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