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Leucothoe Scarletta - Switch Ivy
Overview
The Leucothoe Scarletta is a remarkable evergreen shrub that brings year-round colour drama to shaded gardens. This compact, low-growing variety is celebrated for its spectacular seasonal colour transformations, beginning with brilliant scarlet-red new growth in spring that matures to glossy deep green in summer, before turning burgundy-red in autumn and winter. Perfect for woodland gardens and shade borders, this hardy shrub provides four seasons of interest whilst requiring minimal care once established.
Distinctive Features
Dramatic Colour Changes: Bright scarlet new growth matures to deep, dark glossy green, then turns burgundy-red for autumn and winter. This continuous colour evolution makes it one of the most dynamic foliage plants for year-round interest.
Compact Growth Habit: A more dense, symmetrical, and slower growing variety that reaches around 1.2m tall and 2m wide, with arching branches, making it ideal for smaller gardens and controlled plantings.
Evergreen Structure: Evergreen foliage provides permanent garden structure, ensuring the garden remains attractive throughout winter months when many other plants are dormant.
Shade Tolerance: An easy shrub to grow in shady borders, making it invaluable for those difficult darker areas of the garden where many plants struggle.
Natural Woodland Appeal: A beautiful, natural woodland companion to rhododendrons and ferns, and a superb groundcover.
Growing Conditions
Aspect: Part to full shade, though can be grown in full sun, but must have consistent moisture. Performs best in dappled shade or morning sun with afternoon shade.
Soil Requirements: Best grown in moist, acidic, organically rich, cool, sandy to clay, well-drained loams. Prefers acidic conditions (pH 4.5-6.0) and benefits from humus-rich soil similar to woodland conditions.
Hardiness: Winter hardy to USDA Zone 5, fully hardy in most of the UK. In exposed locations, benefits from shelter and winter mulching for optimal performance.
Water Needs: Requires consistent moisture throughout the growing season. Does not tolerate drought or windy conditions, making adequate watering and shelter essential for success.
Planting and Care
Planting: Best planted in spring or early autumn when soil conditions are favourable. Plants will sucker to form colonies over time, so allow adequate space for natural spreading or plan for regular division.
Soil Preparation: Incorporate plenty of acidic organic matter such as leaf mould, pine needles, or ericaceous compost. Ensure good drainage whilst maintaining moisture retention.
Feeding: Apply an ericaceous fertiliser in early spring to maintain soil acidity and provide essential nutrients. A slow-release, acid-loving plant fertiliser works best.
Pruning: Minimal pruning required. Remove any dead, damaged, or wayward growth in late winter or early spring. Light shaping can be done after the spring colour display if needed.
Mulching: Apply a 5-7cm layer of acidic organic mulch annually, such as bark chips or leaf mould, to retain moisture, suppress weeds, and maintain soil acidity.
Garden Uses
Shade Borders: In the UK, it's an easy shrub to grow in shady borders, where it complements other acid-loving plants like skimmia and euonymus, creating attractive seasonal displays in challenging conditions.
Woodland Gardens: Perfect for naturalised plantings in woodland settings where its arching habit and colour changes can be appreciated throughout the seasons.
Groundcover Planting: A superb groundcover for larger areas, particularly effective on slopes or beneath taller shrubs and trees.
Focal Point: Leucothoe Scarletta makes a striking focal point with its dramatic seasonal colour changes, perfect for prominent positions in shade gardens.
Container Growing: Suitable for large containers on patios and terraces, particularly in areas that receive partial shade.
Companion Plants
A beautiful, natural woodland companion to rhododendrons and ferns. Also pairs well with other acid-loving plants such as camellias, pieris, azaleas, and heathers. Underplant with shade-tolerant perennials like hostas, astilbe, and hellebores for extended seasonal interest.
Seasonal Interest
Spring: Bright scarlet red new growth creates dramatic early season colour, often the most vibrant display in shade gardens.
Summer: Glossy green foliage provides attractive structure and backdrop for other shade plants.
Autumn: Burgundy fall colour adds rich, warm tones to autumn garden displays.
Winter: Tinges bronze to purple in winter, ensuring year-round visual interest even in the darkest months.
Maintenance Tips
Moisture Management: Ensure consistent soil moisture, especially during dry periods. Install soaker hoses or drip irrigation for reliable water delivery in summer.
Wind Protection: Does not tolerate windy conditions, so plant in sheltered locations or provide windbreak protection.
Winter Care: Should be planted in a protected location and given a good winter mulch in colder areas to ensure reliable winter survival.
Colony Management: Plants will sucker to form colonies over time. Remove unwanted suckers or divide established clumps every 3-4 years to control spread.
Why Choose Leucothoe Scarletta?
This outstanding evergreen shrub offers exceptional value for shade gardens with its spectacular year-round colour display and low maintenance requirements. Its ability to thrive in challenging shaded conditions where many plants struggle makes it invaluable for difficult garden areas. The continuous colour evolution from spring scarlet through summer green to autumn burgundy provides four seasons of interest, whilst the compact, manageable size suits modern gardens perfectly. For gardeners seeking a reliable, dramatic foliage plant that excels in shade, Leucothoe Scarletta delivers outstanding performance with minimal care requirements.
Buying Shrubs from Jacksons Nurseries
At Jacksons Nurseries we sell a variety of shrubs both evergreen and deciduous with a variety of flowering times throughout the year. At certain times of the year our shrubs you buy from us may not look like the images shown on our website when deciduous leaves have fallen, the shrub has finished flowering or has been trimmed back.
Some leaves on evergreen shrubs can be damaged in winter by frost or harsh winds but in spring new leaves will readily replace those damaged. This is quite normal on many evergreen varieties and is preferable to plants grown with excessive protection that show cold shock once planted out and establish less satisfactory initially.
Availability: Stock availability figures are provided as a guide only. There is a delay between orders being placed and the plants being gathered by our pulling team. During this time it may be possible for a member of the public to purchase these plants from our Garden Centre, while this is rare it is a possibility and we will notify you of any problems as soon as possible. This figure may also include plants that have not yet be flagged as unsaleable.
Pre-order: Pre-order times are given as a guide only and may vary dependent on the growing season. Orders containing Pre-ordered products will be shipped as a single order when all items become available. Large orders may be part shipped, please contact us on 01782 502741 or email sales@jacksonsnurseries.co.uk.
* Please Note: Shrubs in 20 litre pots and above might require a pallet delivery starting at £79.99 per pallet. Depending on the exact pot size and height it may be possible to get approximately 5 plants per pallet at no extra cost. The maximum height we can dispatch on a pallet is 2.0m, this includes the height of the pallet and pot.
Shrubs are deciduous or evergreen woody plants, and often provide fragrant flowers, berries and foliage. They are good for structural framework, and they can provide a wonderful shelter and food source for wildlife.
Planting and Conditions
Container grown shrubs can be grown at any time of year. It is a little known fact that shrubs planted in the autumn and winter will be easier to look after than those planted in the spring and summer, because they will have time to establish and become hardy in the cooler months.
Plant the shrub at the same depth as it was in its original pot. Planting too deeply can result in root and stem rot.
One of the biggest causes of death in new shrubs is drought stress, so keep it well watered until it’s established.
Make sure you loosen the soil prior to planting. Most shrubs are tolerant of most soil types as long as it is fairly well draining.
Most shrubs will grow happily in containers, but they will be much more demanding on feeding and watering than shrubs in the ground would be. They will also need potting on every couple of years so that they don’t suffocate or become stunted in their pot.
Aftercare and Pruning
Once established, shrubs generally do not require much water. However, at first they need careful, frequent watering and should not be left to dry out.
Shrubs in the ground are generally not demanding and in most cases, annual feeding with general purpose fertilizer will suffice. Shrubs in containers may need more feeding; usually from early spring until late summer.
Shrubs also benefit from mulching in order to supress weeds, conserve moisture and provide vital nutrients. Mulch also greatly improves soil conditions. Shrubs can be mulched in late winter, after fertiliser has been applied, but it can be mulched through autumn to late spring as long as the ground is damp.
All shrubs benefit from dead-heading once spent flowers become apparent. Rhododendrons and Lilac especially benefit from the removal of dead flowers.
Some shrubs may show signs of reverted growth or ‘sporting’. This is where random shoots of different leaves associated with the plant’s parentage begin to appear. Most commonly this is where plants with variegated leaves sprout pure green growths instead of variegated ones.
To control reversion, remove reverted shoots promptly to discourage them. Reverted shoots are usually much more vigorous than the variegated ones, and thus should be completely pruned out and cut back into wood containing variegated foliage.
Potential Issues
Although shrubs are usually very robust garden plants, they can sometimes start to decline with no apparent or obvious reason.
This will start with browning leaves, which could indicate plant stress due to lack of water or waterlogging, an establishment failure or, in the worst case scenario, honey fungus. Another cause of leaf browning is a high salt content in the soil. This could be a natural occurrence, especially if you live near the ocean, or it could be from over fertilisation.
To remedy a high salt content, cut back on fertiliser and step up your watering regime for the next few weeks. If you live by the ocean, this will be harder to remedy—but stepping up your watering will help to wash some of the salt away all the same.
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