Dodonaea viscosa ‘Purpurea’

purple hopseed bush
Fast growing tough burgundy shrub has color that intensifies with cold or sun. Insignificant summer flowers followed by papery seedpods in fall. Summer sheering maintains size and density.
Dodonaea viscosa 'Purpurea'
height 10–15ft
width 9–13ft
tolerates Cold, Cool Summers, Fog, Heat, Pots, Wind
water
needs		 Low – Moderate
water
info		 Water this plant regularly, when the top inch or so of soil feels dry. If you establish this pattern over several years, then you can cut back to watering every week or two in dry weather. Use drippers, emitters, or a slow stream of water so that it doesn’t run off; allow the water to trickle all the way down through the deepest layers of soil. In a pot slowly water the entire surface until water comes out of the bottom of your pot.
hardy
to		 15F
exposure Part Shade – Full Sun
indoor
outdoor		 Outdoor
drainage In Ground: Planting Mix, In Pots: Potting Soil, Tolerates Heavy Soil, Tolerates Sandy Soil
fertilizing All Purpose
origin Tropics and Subtropics
california
native		 No
sunset
zones		 7–H2

Sunset Zones Map

Outdoor Exposure Guide

OUTDOOR EXPOSURE GUIDE

Full Sun
Six or more hours of sun beams directly landing on the plant's leaves.

Part Shade
Three to five hours of sun beams directly landing on the plant's leaves.

Part Sun
One to two hours of sun beams directly landing on the plants leaves.

Full Shade
The plant is never fully lit by sun beams, but is in a bright spot or has dappled sunbeams playing over the leaves throughout the day.

Deep Shade
The plant never has dappled light on the leaves, and is in a place that feels dim, even on a nice sunny day.

SUNSET ZONES MAP

Growing Notes

Purple color intensifies in full sun and also with cold weather.
Upright when young, but broadens with age.

Special Interest

Papery winged seeds add summer interest, but often need to be swept up after they mature in the fall. Occasionally these will sprout in the garden and, while they aren’t particularly invasive, be ready to pull out a couple here or there.

This cultivar is rumored to be from seed collected in the 1890s by Thomas Wilkins, who saw the purple parent tree in the Wairau River watershed outside Marlborough on the South Island of New Zealand.

Since seed produces variable purple plants they are often grown by cutting off of particularly handsome purple parents.