This is one part in a weekly series featuring the UC Davis Community Favorites, 75 can't-fail, easy-care plants well-adapted to our region and recommended by local gardeners.
Caledonia bush veronica
Hebe "Caledonia"
Size: Under 2 feet tall
Bloom season: Late spring, summer, fall
Exposure: Sun to partial shade
Pruning needs: Little or none; prune to shape in late winter
Water needs: Once established, water deeply once a week
Snapshot: This attractive evergreen shrub puts up with almost anything. It can tolerate salt, pollution and poor soil – and still look beautiful. Its striking glossy foliage is bordered with red-purple margins. Staying compact, the shrub is covered with purple flowers from late spring into October, making it a favorite for bees. Hardy in winter, bush veronica can make an attractive border or container plant year-round. In Sacramento, it can get sunburned in full-sun locations, particularly in summer, but thrives with morning or filtered sun. It does particularly well with a northern exposure where other blooming shrubs may struggle. You can see specimens in the arboretum's Ruth Risdon Storer Valley-Wise Garden on the UC Davis campus.
Why it's a Favorite: "The mature green leaves look gorgeous and unique with the purple-red stems, new growth and flowers," said Francesca Claverie, the arboretum's assistant nursery manager. "There's nothing 'jeebie' about this Hebe! Dainty, but tough."
• Read more about the Arboretum's 75th anniversary at arboretum75th.ucdavis.edu. For more on the Community Favorites and Arboretum All-Stars, click on arboretum.ucdavis.edu.
See a photo gallery of the Community Favorites online at www.sacbee.com/ home_garden.
© Copyright The Sacramento Bee. All rights reserved.
What You Should Know About Comments on Sacbee.com
Sacbee.com is happy to provide a forum for reader interaction, discussion, feedback and reaction to our stories. However, we reserve the right to delete inappropriate comments or ban users who can't play nice. (See our full terms of service here.)
Here are some rules of the road:
• Keep your comments civil. Don't insult one another or the subjects of our articles. If you think a comment violates our guidelines click the "Report Abuse" link to notify the moderators. Responding to the comment will only encourage bad behavior.
• Don't use profanities, vulgarities or hate speech. This is a general interest news site. Sometimes, there are children present. Don't say anything in a way you wouldn't want your own child to hear.
• Do not attack other users; focus your comments on issues, not individuals.
• Stay on topic. Only post comments relevant to the article at hand.
• Do not copy and paste outside material into the comment box.
• Don't repeat the same comment over and over. We heard you the first time.
• Do not use the commenting system for advertising. That's spam and it isn't allowed.
• Don't use all capital letters. That's akin to yelling and not appreciated by the audience.
• Don't flag other users' comments just because you don't agree with their point of view. Please only flag comments that violate these guidelines.
You should also know that The Sacramento Bee does not screen comments before they are posted. You are more likely to see inappropriate comments before our staff does, so we ask that you click the "Report Abuse" link to submit those comments for moderator review. You also may notify us via email at feedback@sacbee.com. Note the headline on which the comment is made and tell us the profile name of the user who made the comment. Remember, comment moderation is subjective. You may find some material objectionable that we won't and vice versa.
If you submit a comment, the user name of your account will appear along with it. Users cannot remove their own comments once they have submitted them.
Order Reprint
About Comments
Reader comments on Sacbee.com are the opinions of the writer, not The Sacramento Bee. If you see an objectionable comment, click the "Report Abuse" link below it. We will delete comments containing inappropriate links, obscenities, hate speech, and personal attacks. Flagrant or repeat violators will be banned. See more about comments here.