Buddleja madagascariensis, also known as smokebush, is a tender evergreen shrub or climbing vine endemic to Madagascar.^[1] The species was first named and described by Lamarck in 1792, and introduced to cultivation in 1827.^[2] It was accorded the Award of Garden Merit by the RHS in 2002.^[3]

The shrub grows amongst scrub on mountain slopes at elevations of 600–2,000 metres (2,000–6,600 ft). It has widely naturalized, and now grows wild in southern China and along the Mediterranean coast in southern France. ^[3] It is classified as an invasive species in Hawaii and New Zealand. ^[4]

Description

Buddleja madagascariensis makes a sparse, lax shrub < 4 metres (13 ft) in height. The leaves are opposite, narrowly ovate, <12 cm long, with petioles < 20 cm long. The surface of the dark green leaves bears impressed reticulate venation, and is densely pubescent. The fragrant flowers form slender terminal panicles < 25 centimetres (9.8 in) long, and range in colour from deep yellow, through orange, to pink. ^[3]

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  Flower close-up

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  Form as shrub

Cultivation

Buddleja madagascariensis is cultivated as an ornamental plant. Intolerant of 'sub-zero' (< 32°F) temperatures, it can only reliably be grown outdoors in subtropical and tropical climate gardens, such as those of Southern California and Florida in the USA, although in temperate coastal regions it can survive on south-facing walls, with added winter frost protection. Elsewhere, it is essentially a conservatory and greenhouse plant. The shrub is grown under glass as part of the NCCPG National Collection of Buddleja held by the Longstock Park Nursery, near Stockbridge, Hampshire, England.^[3]

Hybrids

The species Buddleja madagascariensis was crossed with Buddleja asiatica to create the hybrid cultivars Buddleja 'Lewisiana' and 'Margaret Pike'.^[3] It was also found to have naturally hybridized with Buddleja indica in the Grand Bassin of Réunion, an island 200 kilometres (120 mi) east of Madagascar ^[5]

References

• ITIS Report Page: Buddleja madagascariensis