Nurseries have been turning their attention to cordylines this last
year or two, and both introducing brand new varieties and picking up
existing varieties from other parts of the world and bringing them to
British gardeners. One of them, ‘Southern Splendour', was introduced at
Chelsea and there's also been another.
Pink Passion (‘Seipin'), which
appeared for the first time in the latest RHS PlantFinder and is now
turning up in garden centres and even on eBay.
Time it got its mention here.
Pink Passion (‘Seipin') is, I have
to say, rather a startling colour. Each long and slender leaf is a
combination of greyish purple in the centre and pink at the edges with
the addition of white and/or beige at the tip and on older leaves and
with rich magenta tones. ‘Pacific Coral' may be thought to be similar,
but has olive green foliage with pink edges. Spectacular as a container
specimen, Pink Passion (‘Seipin') occupies a similar place at the
dazzling end of the colour spectrum as the Pennisetum setaceum
‘Fireworks' that I featured last time.
Best used as a specimen
in containers - although many cordylines are hardy in many areas, the
variegated ones tend to be less hardy and after this week's weather...
Containers can be moved into the porch, the conservatory or the garage
in this fierce winter weather.
Pink Passion (‘Seipin') was found by Paul
Hummel of wholesale growers Seiont Nurseries as a sport on a batch of
the old favourite Cordyline australis ‘Red Star' at a tissue culture
laboratory at Myerscough College in Lancashire in 2002.
Cordyline
australis ‘Pink Passion' is available from these RHS PlantFinder
nurseries, from gardencentre.co.uk and, as I write at least, on
eBay.co.uk.