Hebe "patty's Purple"

I planted quite a number of these in my Tsawwassen garden last year, thinking they would provide some nice winter interest.

I see that one is completely dead, and most are largely dead, presenting very unsightly masses of dried up twiggy foliage.

Is this borderline hardiness typical of hebes in general and this cultivar in particular?

Regards,
Janet

 

As a rule the bigger the leaf the less hardy, although this is not always the case. All appreciate full sun and good drainage. As with other southern hemisphere plants a site not fully exposed to Arctic winds will be expected to produce better results.

 

I note that 'Patty's Purple' is zoned 9-10, that is not very hardy. Hebe's are borderline on both cold and heat. Here is an interesting link:
http://oregonstate.edu/dept/NWREC/Hebe/page3.html

 

Janet--I have quite a few hebe varieties in a much harsher climate than yours, doing fine after the last several winters. Some good ones include salicifolia, anomala, pinguifolia and Mrs. Winder.

Patty's Purple is not one of them (gave up after a couple attempts, definitely more tender). Nor is the variegata type that is often sold around here. Both look real nice in the garden centre, esp. in full bloom...but regularly die out in my arctic outbreak-prone garden in South Surrey.

If at all possible, come to the UBC alpine garden, and check out some of the many hebe varieties there...must be 15-20 of them doing okay for many years now. Many are, as Ron mentioned, smaller leaved... but there really is an amazing variety of these things!

 

I have grown ones commonly available over the years and all have died over the winters so it is time to check out some hardy varieties.

 

Thanks everyone for the excellent information...me and my gardener got zapped on this one! I will definitely visit the alpine garden and see what looks good for my situation. I think I saw some nice Mrs. Winders at Phoenix (who are usually pretty careful about hardiness). I like the hebe foliage form so would prefer to stay in the family, rather than going to my usual backup, small rhodo's.