Characteristics
| Hardiness zone | 9a |
|---|---|
| Flower color | red |
| Foliage type | evergreen |
| Plant form | upright spreading |
| Mature height | 6 feet |
| Spread | 4 feet |
| Light requirements | full sun |
| Moisture requirements | average to moist |
| Plant origin | import |
Dwarf Powderpuff
Botanical name: Calliandra haematocephala ‘Nana’
This is a slow growing, dwarf variety producing coppery pink new foliage that matures to dark green; showy red powderpuff blooms in fall and winter, with some blooming year round; a great selection for containers.
Ornamental Features
Dwarf Powderpuff features showy red pincushion flowers along the branches from early fall to late winter. It has attractive dark green foliage which emerges coppery-bronze in spring. The small oval bipinnately compound leaves are highly ornamental and remain dark green throughout the winter. The fruit is not ornamentally significant.
Landscape Attributes
Dwarf Powderpuff is a multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with an upright spreading habit of growth. It lends an extremely fine and delicate texture to the landscape composition which can make it a great accent feature on this basis alone.
This is a relatively low maintenance shrub, and is best pruned in late winter once the threat of extreme cold has passed. It is a good choice for attracting birds and butterflies to your yard. It has no significant negative characteristics.
Dwarf Powderpuff is recommended for the following landscape applications;
Accent, Mass Planting, General Garden Use, Container Planting
Planting and Growing
Dwarf Powderpuff will grow to be about 6 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 4 feet. It has a low canopy, and is suitable for planting under power lines. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 30 years.
This shrub should only be grown in full sunlight. It prefers to grow in average to moist conditions, and shouldn't be allowed to dry out. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.
Dwarf Powderpuff makes a fine choice for the outdoor landscape, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. With its upright habit of growth, it is best suited for use as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when grown in a container, it may not perform exactly as indicated on the tag - this is to be expected. Also note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.
