Photinia fraseri 'Carre Rouge' (Red Robin)
Hardy Evergreen Shrub with Brilliant Red New Growth
Create spectacular year-round colour and structure with Photinia fraseri 'Carre Rouge', an exceptional evergreen shrub that delivers outstanding garden performance through its brilliant red new growth and glossy mature foliage. This vigorous and reliable shrub produces waves of stunning bright red young leaves throughout the growing season, creating a constantly changing display of vibrant colour that matures to rich, glossy green, whilst maintaining excellent evergreen structure and serving as an outstanding hedge or specimen plant in contemporary and traditional garden settings.
Key Features
- Plant Type: Hardy evergreen shrub
- Height: 2.5m
- Spread: 2m
- Flowering Period: April to May
- Flower Colour: Creamy white clusters
- Foliage: Glossy green mature leaves with brilliant red new growth
- Hardiness: Hardy in the UK down to temperatures of -15 to -10 degrees Celcius (RHS hardiness rating H5)
- Growth Habit: Upright, dense, vigorous growing
Spectacular Red New Growth
The crowning glory of Photinia fraseri 'Carre Rouge' lies in its extraordinary new growth display that provides continuous colour throughout the growing season. Each flush of new growth emerges in brilliant scarlet-red tones that create stunning contrast against the mature glossy green foliage. The intensity of the red colouration is particularly striking in spring and early summer, with subsequent flushes providing waves of colour that keep the plant visually exciting from March through to October.
Glossy Evergreen Foliage
The mature leaves develop into an attractive glossy dark green that provides excellent year-round structure and backdrop for the dramatic red new growth. Each leaf measures 5-10cm in length with a leathery texture and slightly serrated margins that catch and reflect light beautifully. The contrast between the established green foliage and the bright red new growth creates a sophisticated two-tone effect that adds depth and visual interest to the plant throughout the growing season.
Attractive Spring Flowering
During late spring, the shrub produces clusters of small, creamy white flowers that create an attractive display against the red and green foliage. These lightly fragrant blooms appear in dense corymbs and provide additional seasonal interest, often coinciding with the most intense period of red new growth to create a spectacular multi-coloured display that enhances the plant's overall garden appeal.
Vigorous Growth and Adaptability
This robust shrub demonstrates excellent vigour and adaptability, establishing quickly in most garden conditions whilst maintaining its spectacular colour display. The naturally dense growth habit ensures effective screening and structural presence from an early age, whilst the vigorous nature allows for regular pruning to maintain desired size and shape without compromising the continuous production of colourful new growth.
Exceptional Hedging Performance
Photinia fraseri 'Carre Rouge' makes an outstanding hedge plant, providing year-round structure with spectacular colour interest that far exceeds traditional evergreen hedging options. The ability to withstand regular trimming whilst continuing to produce waves of red new growth makes it ideal for formal hedging, screening, and topiary work where both structure and colour are desired.
Growing Requirements
- Soil and Position: Thrives in well-drained soil conditions and prefers full sun to partial shade positions. Adaptable to various soil types including sandy, loamy, and clay soils, provided drainage is adequate. Tolerates urban pollution and coastal conditions when provided with shelter from strong winds.
- Light Requirements: Performs best in full sun to partial shade where the red new growth develops most intensely. Tolerates shadier conditions though colour intensity may be reduced and growth may become more open. Maximum colour development occurs in bright positions with good air circulation.
- Soil Preferences: Adaptable to most soil types but performs best in fertile, well-drained conditions with good organic content. Tolerates slightly alkaline to slightly acidic soil conditions and benefits from mulching to maintain consistent moisture levels without waterlogging.
Care and Maintenance
- Pruning Requirements: Responds excellently to regular pruning which encourages continuous flushes of colourful new growth. Light pruning can be carried out throughout the growing season, with heavier pruning best done in late winter or early spring. Regular trimming maintains desired shape and maximises colour production.
- Watering Requirements: Requires regular watering during establishment and dry periods, particularly in the first growing season. Once established, demonstrates good drought tolerance though benefits from consistent moisture during extended dry spells to maintain vigorous growth and colour intensity.
- Fertilising Programme: Apply a balanced slow-release fertiliser in spring to support vigorous growth and enhance colour intensity of new growth. Benefits from annual mulching with organic matter to maintain soil fertility and moisture retention.
Design Applications
- Hedge and Screen Plantings: Outstanding for formal and informal hedging where year-round structure combined with spectacular colour creates superior screening with ornamental value. The dense growth habit ensures effective privacy whilst the continuous colour display provides ongoing visual interest.
- Specimen Plantings: Excellent as a standalone specimen where the dramatic colour contrast between red new growth and green mature foliage can be fully appreciated. Plant in prominent positions where the changing colour display can be enjoyed throughout the growing season.
- Mixed Borders: Provides excellent evergreen structure and colour contrast in mixed shrub borders, particularly effective when planted alongside other evergreens and flowering shrubs. The red new growth creates striking combinations with purple-flowered plants and silver-leaved specimens.
- Container Plantings: Suitable for large containers where it provides year-round structure with spectacular colour interest. Regular pruning maintains appropriate size whilst encouraging continuous colour production in patio and courtyard displays.
Seasonal Interest
- Spring Spectacular: Peak period for red new growth coinciding with creamy white flower clusters creates an unforgettable display of colour and texture that signals the start of the growing season.
- Summer Continuity: Ongoing flushes of red new growth throughout summer maintain colour interest whilst established foliage provides consistent evergreen structure and backdrop for seasonal plantings.
- Autumn Reliability: Continued production of colourful new growth extends the season of interest whilst mature foliage maintains its glossy green appearance and structural value.
- Winter Framework: Dense evergreen structure provides essential winter interest and garden framework, with the glossy foliage maintaining its attractive appearance throughout the dormant season.
Hardiness and Reliability
Hardy in most UK locations with excellent garden performance and reliability. Young plants benefit from protection during their first winter, after which established specimens demonstrate good cold tolerance and resilience. The vigorous growth habit ensures quick establishment and recovery from any winter damage, whilst the continuous colour production makes it one of the most rewarding evergreen shrubs for year-round garden interest.
Mature Size Expectations
Naturally reaches 2.5m in height and 2-3m in spread, though size can be easily controlled through regular pruning without compromising colour production. The vigorous growth rate allows for quick establishment and rapid development of screening effect, whilst the responsive nature to pruning makes it suitable for various space requirements and design applications.
Why Choose Photinia fraseri 'Carre Rouge'?
This exceptional evergreen shrub represents the perfect combination of structural reliability, spectacular colour, and versatile garden performance. The brilliant red new growth creates continuous colour interest throughout the growing season, whilst the glossy evergreen foliage provides essential year-round structure. The vigorous growth habit combined with excellent response to pruning makes it ideal for both formal hedging and specimen plantings.
Whether used for spectacular hedge displays, structural elements in mixed borders, or dramatic specimen plantings, Photinia fraseri 'Carre Rouge' offers exceptional value for gardeners seeking a plant that combines reliable evergreen performance with outstanding colour interest. This remarkable shrub provides the perfect balance of structural presence, continuous colour display, and garden versatility that makes it an essential addition to any garden seeking truly memorable year-round interest with spectacular seasonal colour.
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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