Clerodendrum macrostegium, a potentially beautiful shrub for the garden

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Whilst walking along a trail to an abandoned limestone quarry in Oriental Mindoro with my nephew and stepbrother, I observed several blooming plants of Clerodendrum macrostegium, a large tree-like shrub growing to around 4 m tall, with stems terminating in masses of large, purple-pink bracts where the white flowers appear. I have been on this trail several times before and could not remember these plants being not in bloom, although I must admit that these are far from their best; summer and autumn seem to be their peak blooming period.




The vestite, four-angled stems bear large, cordate leaves that are covered in short, white hairs which lend these a velvety feel. Like the popular C. quadriloculare, this species suckers at the base though not as extensively. Large plants look very gangly, with the lowermost portions of stems being devoid of foliage. Additionally, the leaves are often either frayed or chewed on by herbivorous insects, although there are times of the year when no such damage is evident, possibly due to their tormentors not having reached their more destructive stages yet.

Clerodendrum macrostegium is also found in the Moluccas. In the Philippines, it is found in a number of provinces in both Luzon and the Visayas, but appears to be absent on Mindanao- an anomaly considering that the island is an intervening area between the Moluccas and the Visayan islands. These plants are known under a variety of local names, including bagauak (a catch-all term that is also applied to C. minahassae and C. quadriloculare), kasopangil-na-puti, and pai-at.




I would guess that this plant may make a very nice alternative to C. quadriloculare. Don't get me wrong- it IS a very attractive species, but C. macrostegium does not seem to stop flowering, whereas C. quadriloculare has a definite blooming period. However, I have so far not seen C. macrostegium being grown in gardens, despite its potential. The only downside I see of this species is the eventual lanky growth but that would be easily checked by aggressive pruning after the termination of each flowering shoot.

But wait, there is another stumbling block: you don't know where to get one 😁


A blurry photo taken very late in the afternoon.

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