Photinia × fraseri 'Red Robin'
Photinia Red Robin

Photinia × fraseri 'Red Robin'

£15.99
Hardy in the UKSun-lovingEvergreenRHS award winner
Pot size
17cm / 2L £15.99

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Description

Photinia × fraseri 'Red Robin' is the best known of the red-tipped photinias, an evergreen shrub prized for its bright red new growth. Fresh shoots open a glossy, vivid red and slowly turn a deep, shiny green, so a well-kept plant shows both colours together through much of the year. It holds the RHS Award of Garden Merit, and it is the larger of the two popular photinias, reaching several times the size of the compact 'Carré Rouge', which makes it the one to choose for a tall screen or a substantial hedge.

Hardiness and seasons. Rated H5 by the RHS, it is hardy in most of the UK, even in cold winters, and keeps its leaves all year. The strongest burst of red comes in spring, and every trim through the growing season prompts another flush. Those soft young shoots can be scorched by a late spring frost, so some shelter gives the best display. Plants that are not clipped hard carry clusters of small, creamy-white flowers in mid to late spring, sometimes followed by red berries.

How and where to grow. Plant it in full sun or partial shade, in a sheltered position. It is happy on loam, sand or chalk, in acid, neutral or alkaline ground, provided the soil drains well or is moist but well drained. Left unpruned, the RHS gives an eventual size of 4 to 8m tall and 2.5 to 4m wide over 10 to 20 years, but it responds well to clipping, so it is simple to keep at hedge height. Once established, expect 30cm or more of new growth a year. Like all red-tipped photinias it can suffer from photinia leaf spot in wet seasons, so give plants room for air to move, water at the base and clear away fallen spotted leaves.

Using it in the garden. 'Red Robin' makes a dense, colourful evergreen hedge or screen for boundaries and for dividing up the garden, and a single plant becomes a bold specimen shrub at the back of a border. The RHS also recommends it for city and courtyard gardens and cottage-style planting, and in colder areas it can be trained against a wall for extra shelter. The red new growth looks striking beside plain green hedging, dark-leaved shrubs and white or silver planting.

Live Arrival Guarantee

All plants are covered by our 7-day live arrival guarantee. We pack every order in protective, sustainable packaging designed to keep your plants safe in transit, and every plant is checked before it ships. On the rare occasion something is not right on arrival, we will make it good, provided the plant is still in its original nursery pot.

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What to Expect

Seasonal by nature: what to expect

  • Grown outdoors, the way nature intended. Weather-tested and hardened in real UK conditions, so they thrive in your garden. A few marks on the older leaves are normal, the sign of a tough, real plant rather than a flaw.
  • It follows the seasons. Depending on when you order, your plant may arrive cut back, dormant or leafless. That's healthy: dormancy is the ideal time to plant.
  • Posted, not posed. Big leafy plants like bananas and gingers may be trimmed or gently folded to travel safely. It does the plant no harm, and it powers away again in spring.

Not sure what to expect from yours? Dormant, cut-back or weather-marked plants are all perfectly healthy and normal. Read what to expect through the seasons

Delivery & returns

Order by 1pm Monday to Friday for same day dispatch. Every plant travels in protective, plant-safe packaging with tracked delivery.

Changed your mind? See our Return Policy.

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How to care for Photinia Red Robin

Plant me in full sun and I will stand a UK winter outdoors.

In their words

What our customers say

Arrived just like the photos - maybe even fuller. Healthy, well-acclimated, and straight into my collection with no issues.

Emily P.

Flawless leaves, stunning variegation, and clearly cared for by experts. It’s already a talking point in my home office.

James R.

Hard to find rare plants that are pet-safe. Ours arrived in perfect condition and looks amazing without any worry.

Sophie L.
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About Photinia Red Robin

Photinia × fraseri 'Red Robin' needs full sun or partial shade and moist but well-drained soil. It is hardy to around −15°C and stands a UK winter outdoors.

Good for

Screening & Privacy

Hardiness

TenderVery hardy

Hardy Exotic (H5): down to around −15°C. Hardy through a cold UK winter.

H5, hardy in most of the UK. Evergreen. Young red shoots can be scorched by late spring frosts, so give some shelter. Read moreShow less

H5, hardy in most of the UK. Evergreen. Young red shoots can be scorched by late spring frosts, so give some shelter.

Position

Full sunPartial shadeEast-facingSouth-facingWest-facingSheltered
Full sun or partial shade, in a sheltered spot facing south, west or east. Read moreShow less

Full sun or partial shade, in a sheltered spot facing south, west or east.

Soil

ChalkLoamSandMoist but well-drainedWell-drainedAcid pHAlkaline pHNeutral pH
Well-drained or moist but well-drained loam, sand or chalk; acid, neutral or alkaline. Read moreShow less

Well-drained or moist but well-drained loam, sand or chalk; acid, neutral or alkaline.

Watering

Water regularly through the first growing season and in dry spells, then only in prolonged drought. Water at the base rather than over the foliage to help prevent leaf spot. Read moreShow less

Water regularly through the first growing season and in dry spells, then only in prolonged drought. Water at the base rather than over the foliage to help prevent leaf spot.

Mature size

Height4 to 8m unpruned (easily kept lower as a hedge)
Spread2.5 to 4m

Reaches full size in 10 to 20 years

Growth habit

Bushy

Flowering

Mid to late spring (on unclipped plants) · White

Seasonal colour

Foliage

Evergreen

Pruning

For hedges, trim two or three times during the growing season; each cut brings a fresh flush of red shoots. Old or leggy plants can be cut back hard in spring to regenerate. In wet summers, or once leaf spot has appeared, trim less often and clear away spotted leaves, because the soft new growth is the part most prone to infection.

Toxicity

The RHS advises that the fruit are ornamental and not to be eaten by people or pets, and recommends wearing gloves when handling. Photinia is recorded as toxic to horses and other grazing animals, so keep livestock away from the plant and its clippings.

Native range

Garden hybrid of Photinia glabra and Photinia serratifolia, both East Asian species; 'Red Robin' is a garden cultivar. Not native to the UK.

Family

Rosaceae

Also known as

Photinia × fraseri 'Red Robin'

Genus

Photinia
Good to know

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between Photinia 'Red Robin' and 'Carré Rouge'?

'Carré Rouge' is a compact selection of 'Red Robin'. It has a denser, more upright habit, smaller leaves and a more intense red to its new growth, and the RHS gives it an ultimate size of 1.5 to 2.5m. 'Red Robin' is much bigger, reaching 4 to 8m if left unpruned, and holds the RHS Award of Garden Merit. Both are H5 hardy evergreens and both can be affected by photinia leaf spot. Choose 'Red Robin' for a tall screen and 'Carré Rouge' for a smaller, easier to manage hedge.

When should I prune Photinia 'Red Robin' to keep it red?

Trim it two or three times during the growing season. Every cut encourages a new flush of bright red shoots, so light, regular trims keep the colour coming. Soft new growth is tender, so avoid encouraging it just before a late frost is likely, and trim less often in wet spells if leaf spot is a problem, as young leaves are the most vulnerable. A hard cut back in spring will rejuvenate an old, leggy plant.

Why does my photinia have red or black spots on its leaves?

The usual cause is photinia leaf spot, a fungal disease caused by Entomosporium mespili (also called Diplocarpon mespili). It starts as small red spots on young leaves that enlarge and darken, often with grey centres, and a bad attack causes leaves to drop. It thrives when foliage stays wet during cool, damp weather. Rake up and dispose of fallen leaves, cut out badly spotted shoots, water at the base rather than over the plant, allow air to move around it, and avoid heavy clipping or feeding in wet spells, since both push out vulnerable new growth.

How big does Photinia 'Red Robin' get, and how fast does it grow?

Left unpruned it can reach 4 to 8m tall and 2.5 to 4m wide over 10 to 20 years. It is quick to establish, typically putting on 30cm or more a year, but it responds well to clipping and is easily kept as a hedge at whatever height suits you.

Is Photinia 'Red Robin' hardy and evergreen?

Yes. It is rated H5, so it is hardy in most of the UK even in severe winters, and it keeps its leaves all year. The one weak point is the tender red new growth, which can be damaged by late spring frosts in exposed spots.

Does my plant come with a pot?
Your plant will arrive in its nursery grow pot — the plastic pot it's been growing in. We don't include a decorative pot as standard, and there's a good reason for that: it means you get to choose one that fits your space and style, rather than being stuck with something that doesn't suit your home.

It also means you're not paying extra for a pot you might not want. The nursery pot is perfectly fine to keep your plant in for a while, just pop it inside a decorative cover pot or cache pot and you're good to go. When you're ready to repot (usually after a growing season or when roots start poking out the bottom), you can move it into something more permanent with fresh soil.

If you're not sure what size cover pot to go for, check the pot selector tool listed above, you'll want a decorative pot that's a centimetre or two wider than that to give it a comfortable fit.
How big will my plant be when it arrives?
Every plant on our site includes the pot size (e.g. 12cm) and, where possible, an approximate height. That's the most reliable way to set your expectations, photos can sometimes make a plant look larger or smaller than it really is.

If you're thinking "that sounds quite small for the price," here's something worth knowing: younger, smaller plants almost always adapt better to your home than larger ones. They adjust faster to your light and humidity, put out new growth more quickly, and tend to establish stronger root systems long-term. A plant that grows into your space will usually outperform one that was already big when it arrived.

That said, every plant is an individual. The one you receive may vary slightly in height, shape, or fullness compared to the photo, that's the nature of living things, not a quality issue. We select healthy, well-established specimens, and if you ever feel your plant doesn't match what you were expecting, just get in touch and we'll take a look.
What makes your plants different from the supermarket or garden centre?
There's a big difference between a plant that's been sitting under on a retail shelf and one that's been looked after and cared for by people who specialise in exactly this.

Our plants are grown in house or sourced from specialist nurseries, many of them varieties you simply won't find at your local garden centre or supermarket. Before anything leaves us, it's checked over by our horticultural team to make sure it's healthy, well-rooted, and ready to thrive in your home. We're not shifting volume off a pallet, we're choosing plants we'd want to keep ourselves.

When you buy from a supermarket, you get a plant and a generic care label. When you buy from us, you get the knowledge that comes with it, detailed care guidance, a team you can actually contact if something isn't going right, and the confidence that what's arriving has been looked after properly from the moment it was grown to the moment it reaches your door.

We're a specialist nursery first, not a retailer that happens to sell plants. That's the difference, and you'll see it the moment you open the box.
What should I do when my plant arrives?
First things first, unbox it as soon as you can. Plants don't love being in dark boxes any more than you would, and the sooner yours is out and breathing, the better.

Remove all the packaging carefully, give the soil a check with your finger, and water lightly if it feels dry. Then find it a spot with appropriate light, but avoid putting it straight into harsh direct sun or next to a radiator. Think of it like arriving somewhere new after a long journey: it needs a moment to adjust.

It's completely normal for your plant to look a little tired or droopy after transit. This is called transit stress, and most plants bounce back within a week or two. You might see a yellow leaf or some drooping, don't panic, and resist the urge to overwater or start repotting straight away.

Our advice for the first couple of weeks: leave it in its nursery pot, water it only when the top layer of soil feels dry, and let it acclimatise to your home's light, temperature, and humidity. Once it's settled in and showing signs of new growth, you can think about repotting or moving it to its permanent spot.

Every plant we sell comes with a care guide on the product page so you'll know exactly what it needs going forward. And if anything doesn't look right, get in touch with our team, we're always happy to help.
Will my plant survive being shipped?
Yes! and we go to serious lengths to make sure of it. Every plant is hand-packed by our team with protective wrapping and secure, custom-designed boxes to keep it stable and safe in transit. We've shipped hundreds of thousands of plants across the UK and our packaging methods have been refined over years to handle the bumps and jolts of delivery.

During colder months, we monitor weather forecasts and offer heat packs where needed to protect against frost. In extreme conditions, we may hold your order for a day or two rather than risk sending it out, we'd rather you wait an extra day than receive a stressed plant.

That said, plants are living things, and the occasional transit wobble can happen. If your plant arrives damaged or isn't in the condition you'd expect, just get in touch within 48 hours with a photo, and we'll make it right, whether that's a replacement or a full refund. No fuss.

The short version: we treat every box like it's going to someone who really cares about what's inside, because it is.
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From rare collector’s pieces to easy-care favourites, our plants arrive fully potted and ready to enjoy. Add a personalised note at checkout for a thoughtful finishing touch.

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All plants are ethically sourced from trusted growers, never wild-collected. Every order ships carbon-neutral in minimal-waste packaging.

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Photinia × fraseri 'Red Robin'
£15.99