The work of modern breeders can be compared to the activities of underground revolutionaries. In any case, conspiracy is an integral part of their activities. It is understandable, the work on the variety is painstaking and time-consuming. A variety, unless of course it is an accidental find in nature, cannot be created overnight. Its creation is not a one-time act, but a long-term work. The variety must first be thoroughly checked and tested. It is possible that the first impression from him is deceiving, and this is not a very stable mutation, prone to reversion - a return to the wild form. In general, it makes sense to ring the whole world, to attract attention, when no one and nothing can prevent the author from making money on a newbie.

Be that as it may, the viburnum-leaved vesicle "Diabolo" entered the garden use as a mysterious Mister X. In fact, there was nothing supernatural about his appearance. After all, purple and yellow colors by nature itself are inherent in the green leaves, just as white light absorbs all the colors of the rainbow. The most striking example of this phenomenon is still the Thunberg barberry. But everything goes to the fact that the vesicle will soon press him on the podium.

The history of the appearance of "Diabolo" is still very vague. It is only known that he appeared in Germany, was selected by H.T. Schadendorf in Ellerbek. In Europe, Diabolo began to glow in the mid-1990s. And the first Diabolo seedlings appeared on the Russian market at the very beginning of the 21st century. He immediately declared himself a contender for the title of the brightest of the purples. But its absolute winter hardiness, undoubtedly, turned out to be no less significant.

So you know

Shrub height varieties«Diabolo"(" Diabolo ") reaches 2.5 m, with a normal width of just over 1.5 m. The crown is quite dense, slightly spreading. Leaves are similar in shape and size to viburnum. In the open sun, they turn to beetroot and dark purple hues. In moderate shade they turn brown, and in strong shade they become brownish-green.

For its decorative merit "Diabolo" has been awarded several awards. In 2002, he was awarded the AGM (Award of Garden Merit) by the English Royal Society of Gardeners, which is awarded to the most outstanding decorative and at the same time unpretentious varieties. It is interesting to know that two more vesicles received this award in different years: «Dart’sGold» - in 1993 and «LadyinRed» - in 2012.

"Diabolo" has been in the center of attention of gardeners for about a decade and a half. Thanks to this variety, renewed interest in its yellow-leaved relative "Luteus", with whom, as it turned out, they form unusually colorful combinations.

The main varieties of the bladder

Before the appearance of the bladder, the main decorative deciduous shrub in the Russian front garden was the Thunberg barberry. By the time Diabolo appeared, the barberry already had several dozen varieties with a wide variety of data. The bubble plant was already initially devoid of the main defect of the barberry - the insufficient winter hardiness of most varieties. Thus, in order to beat his opponent, he only had to acquire a line of varieties. But this is easy to say - no one could have imagined that this was possible, because the barberry also did not stand still. Breeders have long been keen to bake its new varieties with enviable regularity.

Barberry is still ahead in terms of the number of varieties, but the gap between its rivals has significantly decreased. And no one will undertake to predict the result of their rivalry. By 2016, the number of bladder varieties has already exceeded three dozen. And, of course, this is just the beginning, as the shrub has a lot of untapped genetic potential. The selection of the vesicle is being intensively pursued on both sides of the Atlantic. Holland, Germany, France, England, USA have already noted in this case. Obviously, they are working on the bush in other countries as well. Therefore, in the coming years, new varieties with characteristics that do not exist at present are expected to appear.

• Diabolo (Diabolo) - a dense shrub up to 2.5 m high, with a usual width of about 1.5 m. Leaves in shape and size resemble viburnum, with different illumination and in different parts of the crown dark purple, burgundy, red, brown-green. It recovers well after pruning. Can be shaped and cut.
• Luteus(Luteus) syn. Aureus(Aureus) - shrub up to 2.5-3.0 m high, growing rapidly. Leaves when blooming are yellow-orange, then yellow.

• Dart’sGold (Darts Gold), Holland - a hybrid of varieties "Nanus" and "Luteus". Shrub up to 1.5 m high with a dense rounded crown. The leaves are yellow, they steadily retain their color for almost the entire season. In the second half of summer they turn slightly green, in autumn they acquire a bronze-orange hue. The flowers are creamy white.
• Summer Wine (SummerVine) syn. Seward - a bush with a height of about 1.5 m. Young leaves are maroon or wine-red, with a metallic sheen. They turn slightly green in summer.

• GoldSpirit (Gold Spirit) - shrub up to 2 m high. Leaves are golden yellow all season. She has a good haircut. An excellent alternative to varieties "Aurea" and "Luteus».
• RedBaron (Red Baron) - graceful openwork shrub up to 1.5 (2) m high. Leaves are the same shades as those of Diabolo - from red-purple to burgundy-brown, but slightly smaller and with more pronounced blades. It grows relatively slowly. Shears well and forms well. Promising for low decorative trimmed hedges.
• DiableD'Or(Diable D'Or) - bush up to 2 m high. The leaves are reddish-purple with dark orange veins. Young growth and leaves at the beginning of dissolution are entirely orange. The back of the leaves is brownish green.
• RedEsquire (Red Esquire) - a relatively low bush 1.5 m high. The leaves are medium-sized, shiny, dark purple, burgundy, brownish-red. The flowers are pinkish.
• AmberJubilee (Amber Jubilee) - an unusually bright, "festive" colored variety. Shrub up to 2 m high, with a width of about 1.5 m. The leaves at the ends of the branches are fiery red, red-orange. Closer to the center of the crown, they gradually acquire yellow and green shades with many transitions. When the wind blows, the leaves sway, creating a kaleidoscope effect. The shrub looks most vivid when planted in the open sun. English variety, named in honor of the diamond anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II.
• AngelGold (Angel Gold) - a sprawling bush with a maximum height of about 2.0 m. The leaves are like those of the natural form or that of Diabolo, yellow when dissolved, then slightly green, yellow again in autumn. Flowers are white.
• LadyinRed (Lady in Red) - shrub about 1.5 m high. The leaves are bright red when blooming, darken to beet by the middle of summer. Flowers of a pleasant pinkish shade, in dense "caps".

• CenterGlow (Center Glow) - the bush is up to 2 m high. The leaves are light burgundy or dark red. When dissolved with a golden sheen, then gradually darken. Unusually bright in the light.
• LittleDevil (Little Devil) - dense bush up to 0.8-1.0 m high and about 70 cm wide. Shoots are mostly vertical. The leaves are palmate, up to 4 cm in diameter, maroon throughout the season, graceful. The flowers are small, pinkish, in rather loose corymbose inflorescences about 3-4 cm in diameter. It is promising for geometric borders up to 40-50 cm in height.

• Coppertina (Coppertina), syn. Mindia (France) - shrub with a height and crown diameter of about 2 m. Leaves in the initial stages of deployment of yellowish-orange, orange-red and bronze-red shades. Subsequently cherry, maroon, brown. In the shaded parts of the crown are brownish-green. It is considered one of the most "red" varieties.
• Chameleon (Chameleon) - a low, slightly spreading bush up to 1.5 m high. The leaves are dark green, palmate, with red, yellow, orange spots. Young leaves have a purple border, which then becomes a salad. Reversions are possible - the leaves return to a dark red color. Such shoots should be cut out.
• Andre (Andre) - shrub with a height of 2-2.5 m and a width of up to 1.5-2.0 m. The leaves are orange-red and pinkish-red in dissolution, later bronze-red.

• Nugget (Nugget), USA - bush up to 2.5 m high. The leaves are initially bright yellow, and by the middle of summer a light yellow component appears in them.The flowers are creamy white.
• GoldenAnny (Golden Annie) - shrub with a height of just over 1.5 meters. The leaves are pastel green with an uneven creamy yellow border around the edge, and minor spots.
• Midnight (Midnight) - shrub about 1.5 m high, with a crown width of up to 1.8 m. The leaves at the ends of the branches are dark purple, closer to the center of the crown, almost black. The darkest of the purple-leaved varieties.
• Schuch (Just kidding) - shrub about 1.5 m high, with the same crown width. Young leaves are cherry, then dark purple.
• LittleAngel (Little Angel) - dwarf variety, 60 cm high and about 70 cm wide. Bred in Holland. The crown is dense, cushion-shaped. Leaves are small, initially orange, brownish-beetroot in full dissolution. She has a good haircut. Promising for topiary compositions based on combinations of color and shape.
• TildenPark (Tilden Park) - dense, slightly spreading multi-stemmed shrub up to 150 cm high. Leaves are light green, medium-sized, corrugated. The flowers are white. Shears well and forms well. Promising for curbs, low hedges and other trimmed shapes.
• LittleRedJoker (Little Red Joker) - shrub 90-100 cm high, up to 70 cm wide. The leaves are small, corrugated, at first cherry, later purple-brown. Promising for low trimmed curbs.

Plants for the garden by mail

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