Sycoparrotia Semidecidua Purple Haze Ironwood

Sycoparrotia Semidecidua Purple Haze is a hybrid semi-evergreen shrub with outstanding foliage colour. It has pretty red flowers on bare branches in spring and a rainbow of colours in autumn. It suits large mixed borders and needs room to thrive.

Sycoparrotia Semidecidua Purple Haze is a hybrid of Sycopsis and Parrotia Persica. Sycopsis is a hardy evergreen tree native to central China and Taiwan, and Parrotia Persica is a deciduous tree native to Iran and Azerbaijan. Crossing the two has resulted in a large bush with an open spreading habit and excellent semi-evergreen colour, particularily outstanding autumn colour. 

More commonly known as Ironwood Purple Haze this rare tree is related to Witch Hazel through the Parrotia Persica side and produces pretty red scented flowers on bare branches in early spring. By summer, red flushed yellow and purple foliage has emerged and in autumn it turns a multitude of red, orange, yellow and purple shades. Some of these leaves will drop, but many remain throughout winter.

This is a rare shrub in the UK that’s sure to become popular for its glorious year-round colour.

Height And Spread of Sycoparrotia Semidecidua Purple Haze
Ironwood Purple Haze grows wider than its height. It’ll reach approximately four metres in height and six metres in spread.

How Hardy Is  Sycoparrotia Semidecidua Purple Haze
The name Ironwood indicates this is a hardy shrub. It withstands UK winters if the roots are well-drained and it tolerates some drought.

How To Use Sycoparrotia Semidecidua Purple Haze
Ironwood Purple Haze needs room to grow, so it best suits a large garden or a border with space to spread.
It’s a good screening tree used to separate garden areas or block out neighbours, and it creates a spectacular focal point as a specimen tree in the lawn.

How To Care For Sycoparrotia Semidecidua Purple Haze
This is an easy-to-grow shrub that prefers a sunny spot but it will cope with a partially shady position too. Neutral to acid soil is best in a sheltered or exposed area.
Pruning isn’t required unless you want to restrict its size in which case cut it back after the flowers have faded in early spring.
Apply plenty of mulch to the base in early spring and water well until it’s established. Lack of water is the number one reason why young trees fail.