Abutilon 'Lucky Lantern Pink'

A petite little shrub with incredible flower power. Growing to just 70cm, this new, Australian bred Abutilon is a gem with a naturally bushy, rounded habit. Useful in a pot, or small garden spot, it flowers forever and a day.

It is fast to establish with luxuriant, evergreen foliage covered in blooms for much of the year. It is tolerant of heat and dry conditions once established.

Low maintenance and versatile, Abutilon 'Lucky Lantern Pink' lends well to both a cottage and a tropical setting, the leaves are similar to a maple in form. It has admirable vigour and is trouble free. One makes a nice feature, more could create a dense screen. You could even them in a pot.

Birds and bees love the flowers and, as an added benefit, we can eat them too, they have a sweet flavour.

Plant into moderately fertile to humus rich, well drained soil in a full sun to semi shaded position, ideally out of the hot afternoon rays. In too much shade they can be a bit leggy and less handsome than they could be, you will also have less flowers.

They don't have a super long life (lasting around five years) but they will usually produce offspring in the meantime, to succeed their throne, I have never been left wanting in my garden and never have to do a thing to help them on their way. They are fairly tolerant of frost, but don't like to be frozen.

Water well to establish, as you should with all plants, it takes around four weeks for the roots to be able to penetrate the soil and access its hydration and nutrients. So it is ideal to water regularly during that early time. Once established you will only need to water when rainfall is seriously low.

A light prune in winter, when the flowering slows will help keep them bushy and healthy - of course you could always prune more to control their size, they won't mind a bit. Ideally you could add some fertiliser and mulch in spring to keep them looking good.

Common names for Abutilon include Chinese Lantern, Chinese Bellflower and Flowering Maple. They are endemic to areas of Central and South America, Africa and Australia.

Supplied as: Pots
Size: 10 cm