Why do the leaf undersides of pink-flowered Endless Summer hydrangeas turn silver?

About the author: One Hand Brush One Hand Flower: landscape architecture major, has deeply loved plants and nature since childhood, hopes to always work in plant-related fields. In this world, only beautiful flowers and good food are not to be let down. Weibo @One Hand Brush One Hand Flower

Rondeletia leucophylla, of the genus Rondeletia in the family Rubiaceae, is a plant I first got to know this year.

Sometimes you get this feeling that once you know a plant, you run into it everywhere. Rondeletia leucophylla has a long flowering period, blooming tirelessly with great effort, and every time I see it, it is smiling brightly under its pink flowers, as if saying: "Come on, write about me!"

Alright then, let me introduce you to everyone.

Rondeletia leucophylla is native to Mexico and is cultivated in places such as Guangxi and Guangdong in China. Its leaves are slender and soft. Since it is called silverleaf, yet the upper leaf surface is not silver, then it must be the leaf underside that is silver. I turned one over, and sure enough! If I had known its other name, white-backed rondeletia, first, I would have turned the leaves over to look even more directly.

Sometimes I see it used as a groundcover plant, with a bit of the temperament of Pentas lanceolata (star flower) from the same family, except that it is not a "five-star" but a "four-star": its flowers have four petals, and the cymes are terminal or axillary, painting the ground pink.

The picture shows Pentas lanceolata

As a shrub, it is naturally not content to be only a groundcover; it can grow taller than you in no time. Paired with stones and other plants, it is also a beautiful sight, and it is widely used in flower borders. Rondeletia leucophylla is also a good nectar plant, a little expert at attracting bees and butterflies.

However, there is one rather troublesome thing about this flower: its dried calyxes and pedicels do not fall off on their own and can remain on the branches for several years without dropping. New flowers mixed with old flowers ruin its appearance. The denser its blooms are today, the more troublesome the pruning will be tomorrow. And when a seller cannot be bothered to prune and hands you a Rondeletia leucophylla covered in dead flowers, you will feel absolutely devastated inside.

Rondeletia odorata, of the same genus as Rondeletia leucophylla, has orange-red flowers and blooms in summer. Let us see whether my luck is good and whether I get a chance to meet it this year and write a companion piece.

Pink flowers are endless, and the plants of nature are even more infinite. I hope to always be on the road of getting to know new companions.

Author: One Hand Brush One Hand Flower

Images: One Hand Brush One Hand Flower, Jiang Mouren

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