Choisya 'AZTEC PEARL'

We were so thrilled to hear that there was a hardy version of such an unusual and beautiful shrub like evergreen Mexican orange. It is an interspecific hybrid between choisya ternata with wider leaves that is often cultivated in South Europe and in England, and hardier choisya dumosa var. arizonica which has narrow leaves and comes from Arizona and Texas where, though used to hot weather, it withstands all sorts of unpleasant conditions including the ability to grow in elevations up to some 1200m. Choisya name was chosen in honour of Swiss botanist Jacques Denis Choisy (1799-1859), and the hybrid was named choisya x dewitteana (official approval of new botanical name pending).

This variety called Aztec Pearl was bred by Peter Moore and introduced in 1989, when Hiller Nurseries celebrated their 125th anniversary. Its name perfectly describes this evergreen plant from the moment it begins to show flower buds. They are pearl-shaped, very light pink, and open into simple, star-shaped, pure white, and very fragrant flowers with yellow stamens in the centre. Their perfume is similar to that of orange flowers hence its name Mexican orange or Mexican blossom.

The evergreen leaves are rich and juicy green in acid soil, palmately divided into 3-5 linear, narrow leaflets that release a spicy scent when crushed. They are very resistant to winter sun scorch even in winters of zone 6 and remain lush and handsome all year round. Also, the branches keep them for several years which helps the plant look dense without pruning, and which led some landscape designers to using it for informal evergreen hedges with unusual foliage. Great idea!

This hybrid was sold predominantly in England, where it was among the top ten best selling plants for 20 years, later in the Netherlands and France, and now in Italy where it battles with the original c. ternata. Only recently it was introduced to slightly colder parts of Europe as it proved to be hardier than older varieties of cherry laurels and photinias which had a problem during the cold winter of 2010, and a few more afterwards. So far it survived -23°C without any damage which makes it hardy to USDA zone 6.

Grow choisya the same way as a sun loving rhododendron. It has shallow and delicate root system which must never stand in wet ground. Drainage is crucial for its happy life, and so is acid, fertile soil for its healthy look. We highly recommend using mycorrhiza that will help the plant establish sooner and provide enough nutrients. As it flowers from mid spring (on last year’s wood) pruning of any kind should happen immediately after flowering in early summer. If you follow these instruction you can enjoy a gorgeous plant for many years had without virtually any maintenance.

Last update 07-05-2013; 17-01-2019