Leucothoe 'Zebenard' LOVITA leucothoe
Leucothoe
Quite new in our gardens, leucothoe is undoubtedly winning its way to our hearts. It belongs to the same family as for example rhododendrons. Many breeders are hybridizing its species in order to achieve more beautiful, hardier, and healthier plants. One of them is Alex J.Zebehazy from Ohio, USA. In 1984 he came up with 3 new varieties, one of which has conquered the world under the trade name SCARLETTA® (“Zeblid”), and other two followed: CARINELLA (“Zebekot”) and LOVITA (“Zebonard”). The latter one is our subject of today – it is a cross of leucothoe fontanesiana and leucothoe axillaris. It is healthier and more compact than the first one, and hardier with larger leaves than the second parent.
LOVITA is a unique variety of leucothoe. Its evergreen leaves are narrowly ovate to short lanceolate with a distinct tip. Their colour is bright burgundy red as they emerge, maturing to dark olive green in summer, and turning crimson red and burgundy red with brown hues in autumn and winter. This colour remains on the plant until the first hot days of spring. In the leaf axils numerous flower buds are borne, opening to short racemes of urn-shaped, creamy white flowers which consume a lot of plant’s energy, therefore we suggest removing most of the flowering branches at any time from spring until the end of flowering to encourage new growths.
LOVITA grows slowly or moderately into a mounded shrub that is about 60-70 tall and almost a meter wide in 15 years. It is used both as a groundcover suitable for planting beneath taller shrubs, or in a mixed border, and even a small specimen plant. It remains dense and does not suffer from die back of branches and other diseases common for leucothoe fontanesiana.
This leucothoe will grow anywhere from full sun to full shade where it will keep its beautiful winter colour, too. All it needs is evenly moist, acid soil that is reasonably fertile and well-drained. It proved hardy to min. -26°C (USDA zone 5b), and is recommended for growing in outdoor pots.
Last update 24-02-2012
