At a Glance Feature ‘Hoffmannii’ Botanical name Acalypha wilkesiana ‘Hoffmannii’ Family Euphorbiaceae, the spurge family Common names Jacob’s coat ‘Hoffmannii’, green copperleaf, Hoffmann’s copperleaf Habit Bushy, erect, rounded shrub Typical mature size Up to about 2.5 m tall and 1.5 m wide in favourable tropical conditions; often smaller in containers or cooler climates Foliage Large,…
Spill glowing scarlet texture over your containers with Acalypha pendula ‘Firetail’, the ultimate low-profile, heat-loving tropical trailer. The chenille-plant family is famous for its eccentric, fuzzy visual drama, but Acalypha pendula ‘Firetail’ brings that exotic flair down to earth. Rather than stretching upward, this compact, trailing tropical perennial forms a low, spreading carpet. Its bright…
Few tropical shrubs command attention quite like Acalypha hispida. Cultivated not for its leaves but for one of the most theatrical floral displays in the botanical world, this tender evergreen produces long, weeping, scarlet catkins that mimic strands of plush chenille yarn or a playful cat’s tail. Far from a mere copperleaf cultivar, this distinct…
Few genera inject the raw, electric energy of the tropics into a landscape quite like Acalypha. Grown either for the kaleidoscopic, molten foliage of the copperleaf or the bizarre, plush crimson tassels of the chenille plant, these showstoppers command attention wherever they are planted. In frost-free climates, they mature into muscular shrubs and striking structural…
Look closely at the foot of a well-designed rockery or along the crisp edges of a stone path, and you might spot the low, intricate tapestry of the copper and bronze Acaena group. While these pint-sized powerhouses do bloom, they are celebrated far more for their dense mats of finely divided, fern-like foliage. As summer…
Look closely at the foot of a well-designed rockery or along the crisp edges of a stone path, and you might spot the low, intricate tapestry of the copper and bronze Acaena group. While these pint-sized powerhouses do bloom, they are celebrated far more for their dense mats of finely divided, fern-like foliage. As summer…
For gardeners hunting down a pewter, steel-blue, or glaucous groundcover, these New Zealand burrs offer an extraordinarily architectural alternative to ordinary green mats. Their delicate pinnate leaves, creeping stems, and small, burr-like flower heads inject a wild, alpine character directly into the landscape. While Acaena caesiiglauca and the nursery favorite sold as Acaena ‘Blue Haze’…
Acaena inermis ‘Purpurea’ is a masterclass in subtlety. This low, evergreen, mat-forming perennial weaves a dense carpet of finely divided foliage that shifts beautifully through tones of plum, bronze-purple, and smoky grey-green. For small-scale garden design, it is easily one of our most versatile dark-foliage groundcovers. It remains neat enough to tuck into narrow paving…
What is Acaena? Prized for their fine-textured foliage and dense, weave-like growth habits, Acaena offer gardeners a tough, weed-suppressing groundcover. Commonly referred to as New Zealand bur or bidibid, this genus consists of creeping, predominantly evergreen perennials and subshrubs belonging to the rose family. While their summer flowers are understated, the real magic happens later…
The lesser-known Acacia forms gathered here are united less by strict botany than by their dramatic visual impact in the landscape. These weeping silhouettes, prostrate carpets, unusual foliage tones, and exceptionally generous flowering seasons set them apart from mainstream choices. Treat them as specialist, high-impact design elements—perfect for an engineered slope, a raised stone wall,…