Buddleja crispa
Encyclopedia
Buddleja crispa - sometimes called the Himalayan Butterfly Bush - is native to Afghanistan
, Bhutan
, North India
, Nepal
, Pakistan
and China
(Gansu
, Sichuan
, Xizang), where it grows on dry river beds, slopes with boulders, exposed cliffs, and in thickets, at an elevation of 1400 – 4300 m. Named by Bentham
in 1835, B. crispa was introduced to cultivation in 1850 .
shrub
of bushy habit, reaching 3,5 m high, more in spread. Young twigs and both sides of the leaves are covered with a white or tawny loose felt. The leaves are ovate-lanceolate
, 5 – 12 cm long by 2 - 4,5 cm wide, with petioles
0,6 - 2,5 cm. The shrub flowers from February to August .
The flowers are fragrant, in terminal panicle
s 7 – 10 cm long by 5 cm wide, formed of axillary whorls. The corolla is lilac, with an orange throat. The flowers are attractive to butterflies, bees and other insects.
: 8. Buddleja crispa needs a well-drained soil and full sun. The species was first introduced to Western gardens in 1850 , but it is not often seen in cultivation. Bean says that it is at its best when grown on a wall ; it was given the Award of Merit of the Royal Horticultural Society
in 1961.
http://apps.rhs.org.uk/rhsplantfinder/plantfinder2.asp?crit=buddleja&Genus=Buddleja.
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, Bhutan
Bhutan
Bhutan , officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked state in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalayas and bordered to the south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by the People's Republic of China...
, North India
North India
North India, known natively as Uttar Bhārat or Shumālī Hindustān , is a loosely defined region in the northern part of India. The exact meaning of the term varies by usage...
, Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
(Gansu
Gansu
' is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China.It lies between the Tibetan and Huangtu plateaus, and borders Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south, and Shaanxi to the east...
, Sichuan
Sichuan
' , known formerly in the West by its postal map spellings of Szechwan or Szechuan is a province in Southwest China with its capital in Chengdu...
, Xizang), where it grows on dry river beds, slopes with boulders, exposed cliffs, and in thickets, at an elevation of 1400 – 4300 m. Named by Bentham
George Bentham
George Bentham CMG FRS was an English botanist, characterized by Duane Isely as "the premier systematic botanist of the nineteenth century".- Formative years :...
in 1835, B. crispa was introduced to cultivation in 1850 .
Description
B. crispa is a comparatively slow growing deciduousDeciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
of bushy habit, reaching 3,5 m high, more in spread. Young twigs and both sides of the leaves are covered with a white or tawny loose felt. The leaves are ovate-lanceolate
Leaf shape
In botany, leaf shape is characterised with the following terms :* Acicular : Slender and pointed, needle-like* Acuminate : Tapering to a long point...
, 5 – 12 cm long by 2 - 4,5 cm wide, with petioles
Petiole (botany)
In botany, the petiole is the stalk attaching the leaf blade to the stem. The petiole usually has the same internal structure as the stem. Outgrowths appearing on each side of the petiole are called stipules. Leaves lacking a petiole are called sessile, or clasping when they partly surround the...
0,6 - 2,5 cm. The shrub flowers from February to August .
The flowers are fragrant, in terminal panicle
Panicle
A panicle is a compound raceme, a loose, much-branched indeterminate inflorescence with pedicellate flowers attached along the secondary branches; in other words, a branched cluster of flowers in which the branches are racemes....
s 7 – 10 cm long by 5 cm wide, formed of axillary whorls. The corolla is lilac, with an orange throat. The flowers are attractive to butterflies, bees and other insects.
Cultivation
Hardiness zoneHardiness zone
A hardiness zone is a geographically defined area in which a specific category of plant life is capable of growing, as defined by climatic conditions, including its ability to withstand the minimum temperatures of the zone...
: 8. Buddleja crispa needs a well-drained soil and full sun. The species was first introduced to Western gardens in 1850 , but it is not often seen in cultivation. Bean says that it is at its best when grown on a wall ; it was given the Award of Merit of the Royal Horticultural Society
Royal Horticultural Society
The Royal Horticultural Society was founded in 1804 in London, England as the Horticultural Society of London, and gained its present name in a Royal Charter granted in 1861 by Prince Albert...
in 1961.
Notable specimens
A particularly tall example of tree-like form > 4.5 m high is grown near an entrance to the grassland and aquatic gardens at the Royal Botanic Gardens, KewRoyal Botanic Gardens, Kew
The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, usually referred to as Kew Gardens, is 121 hectares of gardens and botanical glasshouses between Richmond and Kew in southwest London, England. "The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew" and the brand name "Kew" are also used as umbrella terms for the institution that runs...
Varieties
A number of Asiatic buddleja originally treated as species were controversially sunk as Buddleja crispa by Leeuwenberg in 1979 . Some remain treated in commerce as varieties of B. crispa:- var. agathosmaBuddleja crispa var. agathosmaAgathosma is a variety of Buddleja crispa found in China.-Description:Var. agathosma is a deciduous shrub of sparse habit which, left unpruned, grows to a large size...
(formerly B. agathosma Diels.) - var. farreriBuddleja crispa var. farreriFarreri is a variety of Buddleja crispa collected in Kansu, China, by Reginald Farrer in 1915. Seed was sent to the UK shortly afterwards, and it is from this consignment that all the British specimens have been derived.-Description:...
(formerly B. farreri Balf. fIsaac Bayley BalfourSir Isaac Bayley Balfour FRS FRSE was a Scottish botanist. He was the son of John Hutton Balfour who was also a botanist.-Biography:...
& W. W. SmWilliam Wright SmithSir William Wright Smith FRS FRSE DèsSc FLS VMH was a Scottish botanist and horticulturalist....
) - var. sternianaBuddleja crispa var. sternianaSterniana is a variety of Buddleja crispa. Its origin is uncertain but, as it was originally collected by Forrest, may reasonably be assumed to be from Yunnan, China. Seed was distributed in the UK by Reginald Cory in 1922.-Description:...
(formerly B. sterniana CottonArthur Disbrowe CottonArthur Disbrowe Cotton was an English plant pathologist, mycologist, phycologist, and botanist.A.D. Cotton was born in London and educated at King's College School and the Royal College of Science, where he completed a degree in botany in 1901...
) - var. tibeticaBuddleja crispa var. tibeticaTibetica is a xerophytic variety of Buddleja crispa discovered and collected in 1904 in the Llalung Valley , Tibet, by H. J. Walton, a member of the Tibet Frontier Commission, whilst travelling from Sikkim to Lhasa...
(formerly B. tibetica W. W. SmWilliam Wright SmithSir William Wright Smith FRS FRSE DèsSc FLS VMH was a Scottish botanist and horticulturalist....
)
Suppliers
UK nurseries stocking the plant can be found in the RHS Plantfinderhttp://apps.rhs.org.uk/rhsplantfinder/plantfinder2.asp?crit=buddleja&Genus=Buddleja.
Literature
- Bean, W. J. (1970). Trees & Shrubs Hardy in the British Isles, 8th ed., Vol. 1.. (2nd impression 1976) London
- Brown, R. (ex C. Martius). (1996). Loganiceae, in Wu, Z. & Raven, P. (eds) Flora of China, Vol. 15. Science Press, Beijing, and Missouri Botanical Garden Press, St. Louis, USA. ISBN 10-193-072340-15 vol. 15 (1996): online at www.efloras.org
- Hillier's Manual of Trees & Shrubs, 5th ed.. (1990). David & Charles, Newton Abbot.
- Krüssmann, G. (1984). Manual of Cultivated Broad-leaved Trees & Shrubs, Vol. 1. Engl. transl. London, 1984.
- Phillips, R. & Rix, M. (1989). Shrubs, Pan Books, London.
- Stuart, D. (2006). Buddlejas. Timber Press, Oregon, USA. ISBN 9780881926880