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Lophomyrtus ralphii 'Red Dragon' (New Zealand Red Myrtle)
Striking Evergreen Shrub with Year-Round Red Foliage and Architectural Interest
Transform your garden with Lophomyrtus ralphii 'Red Dragon', a remarkable evergreen shrub that delivers stunning red foliage throughout the year. This exceptional New Zealand native produces brilliant red new shoots that mature to deeper burgundy-red, creating a spectacular display that intensifies in cooler weather. Combined with delicate white fragrant flowers in summer and attractive black berries, this architectural shrub provides year-round interest with striking colour that few plants can match.
Key Features
- Plant Type: Evergreen shrub
- Height: 1.6m
- Spread: 1.2m
- Flowering Period: June to July
- Flower Size: Small, cup-shaped white flowers
- Flower Colour: White to pale pink, sweetly scented
- Foliage: Bright red to deep burgundy, year-round
- Hardiness: Hardy in the UK down to temperatures of -5 to 1 degrees Celcius (RHS hardiness rating H3)
- Growth Habit: Upright, bushy, rounded form
Exceptional Year-Round Red Foliage
'Red Dragon' is one of the very few plants that maintains its brilliant red foliage throughout the entire year. The striking reddish-purple foliage deepens in colour when exposed to full sunlight, whilst the reddish-pink foliage becomes blood-red as the weather cools. This remarkable colour consistency makes it invaluable for creating permanent colour impact in garden designs where seasonal variation is desired.
Distinctive Architectural Interest
New shoots emerge brilliant red, maturing to darker red, creating a striking two-toned effect that provides architectural interest throughout the growing season. The small, round, slightly puckered leaves add textural interest, whilst the compact, bushy growth habit creates excellent structural value in both formal and informal garden settings.
Beautiful Fragrant Summer Flowers
Mature plants produce small, white, scented, cup-shaped flowers with a mass of stamens in late summer. These delicate blooms provide a stunning contrast against the deep red foliage, creating a particularly attractive display that adds seasonal flowering interest to the year-round foliage spectacle.
Attractive Berry Display
The fragrant summer flowers are followed by black berries, which provide additional seasonal interest and wildlife value. The berries create an attractive contrast against the red foliage, extending the ornamental season well into autumn and winter.
Excellent Cut Flower Performance
The reddish-pink foliage is excellent for floral arrangements, providing valuable material for indoor displays throughout the year. The distinctive red colouring and small, glossy leaves make it particularly sought after for contemporary floral designs and seasonal arrangements.
Versatile Garden Applications
A fine hedge, background shrub or patio container subject, 'Red Dragon' offers exceptional versatility in garden design applications. Ideal as a low-growing hedge and suitable for maritime exposure, making it valuable for coastal gardens and challenging growing conditions.
Growing Requirements
- Soil and Position: Thrives in well-drained soil in partial shade to full sun. Protect from harsh afternoon sun in extremely hot climates. Prefers a sheltered position away from cold winds, particularly in borderline hardy areas.
- Light Requirements: Performs well in full sun to partial shade, with the red foliage colour intensifying in brighter conditions. Full sun exposure enhances the depth of red colouring, whilst partial shade provides protection in hotter climates.
- Soil Preferences: Adapts to various soil types but performs best in moist, well-drained soil with good organic content. Tolerates slightly alkaline to acidic conditions but struggles in waterlogged or extremely dry soils.
Care and Maintenance
- Pruning Requirements: Requires minimal pruning due to its naturally compact growth habit. Light pruning in spring can help maintain shape and encourage bushy growth. Deadhead spent flowers to encourage further blooming and maintain appearance.
- Watering Requirements: Moderate water requirements once established. Water regularly during establishment and dry periods, but avoid waterlogging. In containers, maintain consistent moisture levels without allowing the soil to become soggy.
- Fertilising Programme: Apply a balanced slow-release fertiliser in spring to support healthy growth and enhance foliage colour. Avoid high-nitrogen fertilisers which may reduce the intensity of the red foliage colouring.
Design Applications
- Mixed Borders: Perfect for adding year-round colour to mixed borders where the striking red foliage provides a dramatic backdrop for other plants. The compact size makes it suitable for middle ground planting in larger borders.
- Specimen Plantings: Excellent as a standalone specimen where the spectacular red foliage and architectural form can be fully appreciated. The year-round colour makes it perfect for creating permanent focal points.
- Hedge and Screen Plantings: Ideal for creating low, colourful hedges that provide privacy whilst delivering spectacular year-round colour. The evergreen nature ensures consistent screening value throughout the seasons.
- Container Gardens: Exceptional for large containers and patio displays where the striking foliage can be appreciated at close quarters. The compact size and evergreen nature make it perfect for year-round container interest.
Seasonal Interest
- Spring Growth: New shoots emerge in brilliant red, creating a stunning display of fresh growth that contrasts beautifully with the darker mature foliage, providing early season excitement.
- Summer Spectacle: The fragrant white flowers appear in late summer, creating a beautiful contrast against the deep red foliage whilst filling the garden with sweet scent.
- Autumn Intensity: The foliage colour deepens as temperatures fall, creating the most intense red displays of the year, whilst black berries provide additional seasonal interest.
- Winter Structure: The evergreen red foliage provides valuable winter colour and structure, making it one of the most valuable plants for winter garden interest.
Maritime Tolerance
Particularly suitable for coastal gardens where the tolerance to salt spray and maritime conditions makes it valuable for seaside plantings. The robust nature and wind tolerance ensure reliable performance in challenging coastal environments.
Hardiness and Protection
Hardy in mild areas but may require protection in colder regions. In borderline hardy areas, choose a sheltered position and consider container growing to allow protection during extreme cold periods. The evergreen nature provides year-round structure where hardy.
Mature Size Expectations
The plant reaches approximately 1.6m in height and 1.2m in spread within 3-4 years. The naturally compact, rounded growth habit develops without intervention, making it ideal for precise garden design applications where consistent sizing is important.
Why Choose 'Red Dragon'?
Lophomyrtus ralphii 'Red Dragon' represents the perfect combination of year-round colour, architectural interest, and garden versatility. The exceptional red foliage that intensifies with seasonal changes, combined with fragrant summer flowers and attractive berries, creates a shrub that provides constant garden interest with minimal maintenance requirements.
This outstanding variety offers exceptional value for gardeners seeking permanent colour impact with the added benefits of fragrant flowers and wildlife value. Whether used as specimen plantings, hedging, or container displays, 'Red Dragon' provides the perfect balance of dramatic foliage colour, architectural form, and garden reliability that makes it an essential addition to any garden seeking truly remarkable year-round colour with contemporary appeal.
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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