{"product_id":"calliandra-surinamensis","title":"Calliandra surinamensis","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCalliandra surinamensis\u003c\/strong\u003e, the pink powder puff, is a tender \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/hardy-exotics\"\u003eevergreen shrub\u003c\/a\u003e whose flowers look like nothing else in the garden: rounded heads of tiny blooms whose long silky stamens are white at the base and flush to rose pink at the tips, so each cluster opens into a soft, glowing pompom. The ferny, bipinnate leaves fold up at night, and on a mature plant the flowers keep coming over many months rather than in one flush. At 23cm this is a substantial plant that earns its place on a \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/plants-for-pots\"\u003ewarm patio\u003c\/a\u003e all summer.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHardiness and seasons.\u003c\/strong\u003e This is not a frost-hardy plant. The RHS rates it H1B, which means it can stand outside in a sheltered, sunny spot from around June to September but needs a year-round minimum of about 13C, tolerating brief dips to 10C at most. \u003ca href=\"\/pages\/hardy-exotics-what-to-expect\"\u003eProtect it in winter\u003c\/a\u003e: bring it into a conservatory, greenhouse or bright frost-free room well before the first cold nights of autumn, and move it back out once nights are reliably warm. Under glass it often flowers from winter into spring, so the winter quarters earn their keep.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHow and where to grow.\u003c\/strong\u003e Grow it in a large pot of free-draining, loam-based compost so it can be moved with the seasons. Give it the sunniest, most sheltered position you have, ideally south or west facing and out of cold winds. Water freely in growth once the top few centimetres of compost have dried, feed monthly through spring and summer, and keep the rootball only just moist through winter. In the tropics it becomes a broad small tree of 4 to 8m; in a UK pot it stays a manageable shrub of roughly 1.5 to 2.5m and flowers freely when it gets enough warmth and light.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eUsing it in the garden.\u003c\/strong\u003e Use it as a summer centrepiece on a sunny terrace or balcony, beside bananas, cannas and other \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/exotic-border-plants\"\u003ebold exotics\u003c\/a\u003e, where the silky pink pompoms can be enjoyed close up. It sits naturally with its relatives \u003ca href=\"\/products\/albizia-julibrissin-summer-chocolate\"\u003eAlbizia\u003c\/a\u003e and Mimosa, whose foliage it closely resembles. Prune lightly after flowering to keep it compact, and watch for red spider mite and mealybug while it is under glass.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"GROW TROPICALS","offers":[{"title":"23cm \/ 5L","offer_id":58254039679359,"sku":"CALLISURI23","price":42.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0361\/9645\/0348\/files\/rn-image_picker_lib_temp_f5f703aa-c13a-438a-b56a-7883dde35e18.jpg?v=1787934868","url":"https:\/\/growtropicals.com\/products\/calliandra-surinamensis","provider":"GrowTropicals","version":"1.0","type":"link"}