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| Category: Shrub |
| Family: Verbenaceae (Vervains) |
| Origin: West Indies (North America) |
| Evergreen: Yes |
| Flower Color: White |
| Bloomtime: Summer |
| Synonyms: [Duranta repens 'Alba'] |
| Height: 15-20 feet |
| Width: 8-12 feet |
| Exposure: Full Sun |
| Irrigation (H2O Info): High Water Needs |
| Winter Hardiness: 20-25° F |
| May be Poisonous (More Info): Yes |
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Duranta erecta 'Alba' (White Sky Flower) - Grown for its summer flowers and ornamental fruit, this evergreen shrub spreads and arches to 25 feet tall and wide. In the summer, cascading clusters of white tubular flowers appear followed by wonderfully contrasting orange-yellow berries. In mild climates this plant can be in flower nearly year round with flowers and fruit appearing at the same time. It does best in full sun with frequent deep watering and is hardy to about 20-25 ° F. A good choice for espaliers, as a small tree or large bush; all forms benefit from frequent selective pruning. Flowers are very attractive to butterflies. Duranta erecta, long grown as D. repens is native to the New World from Florida, the Caribbean south to Brazil and has many common names, including golden dewdrop, pigeon-berry and sky-flower. The attractive fruits and the foliage have saponins that are poisonous to humans. Both are considered to be bitter and while poisonings in the US were unreported in 1986 when Poisonous Plants of California was published (Thomas C. Fuller and Elizabeth McClintock, University of California Press, 1986), there were reports of children becoming ill from eating berries in Australia.
The information about Duranta erecta 'Alba' that is displayed on this web page is based on research conducted in our nursery's horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We will also include observations made about this plant as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens that we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We also incorporate comments that we receive from others and welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they share cultural information that aids others growing this plant.
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