Dawnglitters's Garden
Photinia 'Red Robin'
Genus: Photinia.
Species: Photinia x fraseri.
Other names: Christmas berry
Form: evergreen shrub
Leaves:
- lance-shaped, to 8 inches long
- lush, glossy, green foliage, topped by spectacular new red foliage
- shows the bright new red shoots in spring/early summer
Flowers:
- creams, whites
- flowers are sometimes followed by spherical red fruit
Bloom Time: April to May
Height: 4 m
Spread: 4 m
Exposure:
- full sun, partial shade
- it colours up best in full sun, and will usually only flower in sunny conditions, although it makes a handsome background evergreen shrub in partial shade, too
Water needs:
- dry to moist
Soil:
- well-drained/light, moist
- sandy loam to some clay
Hardiness:
- hardy
- tolerates: deer, drought, heat & humidity, pollution, rabbits, slope, wind
Growth rate:
- quite fast-growing once established
Cuttings Time: late March/early April
- pruning throughout the year helps to encourage this spectacular foliage. Prune back quite hard after the foliage has faded to a dull bronze. This will ensure a further 'crop' of new growth
- it can cope with hard pruning, so can be trimmed to form an informal hedge or clipped into strong shapes
- the best time to Prune Photinia Red Robin is at the start of the growing season - late March/early April in UK. It will soon re-grow, and then can be kept under control by pruning as and when required - above.
- a further flush of red growths can be persuaded to shoot out, either by cutting back hard or by light prune with shears. When doing this type of pruning, remember that you are taking a lot of growth from the shrub, so help the Photinia to put on a colourful display for you after pruning, by giving a feed of Fish Blood & Bone or other general fertilizer.
- to encourage a profusion of bright young leaves in late-spring or summer shorten the stems of established specimens by up to 15cm (6in), to just above an outward-facing bud.
- apply a generous 5-7cm (2-3in) mulch of well-rotted garden compost or manure around the base of the plant in early spring
Other:
In frost-prone areas, train as a wall shrub against a south or west-facing wall
