Amelanchier laevis 'R J Hilton' 12Ltr pot

Amelanchier laevis 'R.J. Hilton' — 12Ltr Pot

Holder of the RHS Award of Garden Merit, Amelanchier laevis 'R.J. Hilton' opens the season with a striking sequence of colour: deep bronze-red young leaves emerge alongside large pink buds that unfurl into star-shaped white flowers in April and May. As the foliage matures it settles into dark green through summer, before turning a rich orange-red in autumn. Edible purple to blue-black berries follow the flowers, providing valuable food for garden birds.

This selection has a distinctively narrow, upright, vase-shaped habit, making it a neat, well-mannered choice for gardens where a spreading shrub-form amelanchier would take up too much room. It's a naturally occurring selection first found among wild seedlings in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, and works equally well as a garden specimen, in a large container, or on a roof garden.

Grow in full sun or partial shade, in moist, lime-free, well-drained soil — this variety prefers slightly acid conditions and colours best in full sun. It's fully hardy (RHS H7), tolerates strong wind and urban pollution well, and copes with both exposed and sheltered positions, needing only minimal pruning once established.

Each tree is hand-selected before dispatch, supplied in a 12-litre pot ready for planting straight into its final position.