Allamanda

                            Allamanda

Allamanda includes approximately and species of shrubs and shrubby climbers from tropical America. Several are among the most com-monly cultivated summer- bloom-ing plants. Cultivar names, of dubi-ous merit, vary from country to country. Allamandas thrive in moist, coastal regions but are only slightly salt tolerant at best. Some are night fragrant. Prune them in early spring to keep shrubby or tie to a support for climbing. Plant in deep, humus-rich soil. Cool night temperatures, lack of water in summer, or spider mite infestation in-duce leaf loss and sparse appear-ance. Propagate from cuttings of better selections. Allamandas are superb when landscaped with com- plementary dark purple foliage plants.

Allamanda blanchetii

Purple allamanda

Alamanda morada

Synonym: A. violacea. Brazin. Ever-green clambering shrub, 5-10 ft, zones 10-11. Blooms summer, fall. Regular moisture when hot, moder- ate moisture when cool. Fertile, well-drained soil. Full sun. Flowers: bell -shaped, ascending, mauve-purple, throat dark red, lobes 1.5 in. wide, 3 in. long, light-green, with short, stiff hairs (his-pid), petiole very short (subses-sile) , usually in whorls of 4. Stems: bristly, red -tinged.

Allmanda cathartica

Yellow allamanda, golden

Trumpet, alamanda, canario

Brazin to northeastern South America. Evergreen climber, 10-20ft, zones 10-11. Blooms warm months. Moist when hot, mederate moisture when cool. Fertile, well- drained soil. Full sun. Flowers: trumpet – shaped, bright yellow, lobes 3-5 in. wide, white spot at notch between the lobes, throat streaked with orange, buds and outer floral tube bronze. Leaves: elliptic, 4-5 in. long, glossy, tips obtuse, hairs on underside of mid-rib and on stems, in whorls of 3-6. The type seems to be a more vigorous climber than cultivars. Large- flowered cultivar names include “williamsii” and’Hendersonii” but no verifiable descriptions have been foud. Dou-ble-flowered sports, though very at tractive, are unusual in cultivation.

Allamanda ‘Cherries jubilee”

Giant purple allamanda

Alamanda morada grande

Garden origin, unknown parentage. Evergreen climbing shrub, 5-10 ft, zones 10-11. Blooms warm months. Regular moisture when hot, less when cool. Fertile, well-drained soil. Full sun. Flowers: bell-shaped, lobes to 6 in. wide, pur-plish pink, throat dark red, tube mauve, yellow to bronze toward the base, calyx and pedicel downy(pu-bescent). Leaves ovate, to 6 in. long, pointed, dull light – green, cov-ered with short, stiff hairs or scales, mostly in whorls of 3, sessile. A spec-tacular, clambering blant with large flowers. Commonly but incorrectly listed as a cultivar of A. cathartica.

Allamanda, dwarf selections

Dware allamanda

shrub allamanda

Garden origin. Evergreen shrubs or semi-clambiring shrubs 3-5 ft. high. Bloom warm months. Moist when hot, moderate moisture when cool. Full sun. There are sevaral shrubby hybrids or selections in cultivation variously referred to as A. Schottii or dwarfforms of A. cathartica. Ancestry is uncertain.