It's the last stunted blossom of the season for the beautiful 'Santana' butterfly bush now that freezing temperatures have arrived.
I have written about my Santana before - I just can't seem to say enough good things about it. The blooms are a glowing magenta purple, and the variegated foliage is beautifully edged with gold.
The Santana has been full of blooms all summer thanks to regular deadheading every couple of weeks. Out of all of my pollinator friendly flowers and bushes, this one seemed to attract the most butterflies and bees by far. Here in zone 7b, it also keeps a lot of its beautiful leaves throughout our mild winters.
A bush that blooms for months, has beautiful foliage, and attracts butterflies? No wonder it's my favorite shrub!
In its second year, my Santana is 4' tall and 7' wide. Yep, 7' wide - one of the only things I don't care for about this bush is its rather messy and splaying habit.
It is also rumored to be a short lived cultivar, sadly.
This Buddleja davidii 'Santana' is in full sun and in one of the best drained spots in my clay yard, which is good, as they can be prone to rot. Now that it is established, I hardly ever water it. Buddleja davidii (also spelled Buddleia davidii) bloom on new wood, so I will prune it down to a couple feet tall in late winter. We'll see if some pruning can help the splaying habit somewhat.
But either way, I love this bush..
.. and I don't think I'm the only one.
