# Harlequin Glorybower (*clerodendrum trichotomum*)

The Harlequin Glorybower is a colorful plant that grows beautiful flowers! Its unique leaves and vibrant blooms make it a fun addition to gardens and parks.

- **Category:** [Plants](https://www.snappit.app/explore/categories/plant)
- **Rarity:** Common
- **Danger:** 0/5 · No known danger
- **Habitat:** Harlequin Glorybower thrives in gardens, parks, and along forest edges.
- **Also known as:** Clerodendrum, Glorybower, Harlequin Plant

![Harlequin Glorybower](https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Redirect/file/Clerodendrum_trichotomum3.jpg&width=800)

Photo: CC BY-SA 2.5 · [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Clerodendrum_trichotomum3.jpg)

## Appearance

The Harlequin Glorybower has fragrant white flowers emerging from reddish-purple buds. These are followed by striking metallic blue berries, each held within a star-shaped, vibrant red calyx, making it visually distinct.

## Taxonomy

- **Kingdom:** Plantae
- **Phylum:** Tracheophyta
- **Class:** Magnoliopsida
- **Order:** Lamiales
- **Family:** Lamiaceae
- **Genus:** Clerodendrum

## Interesting facts

- After flowers fade, vibrant red cups hold shining blue berries for months!
- It blooms late summer, bringing beauty when other garden plants are fading.
- Its flowers release a powerful, sweet scent, especially at dusk on warm evenings!
- Its metallic blue berries look like tiny jewels in bright red star-shaped cups!

## Special abilities

- **Colourful Fruit Display:** Harlequin Glorybower has brilliant blue berries in vibrant red, star-shaped cups, attracting birds to disperse its seeds.
- **Evening Perfume:** Harlequin Glorybower can release a strong, sweet fragrance from its flowers, especially in the evening, to attract nocturnal pollinators.
- **Persistent Beauty:** Harlequin Glorybower has a showy red calyx that persists after flowers fade, highlighting its unique blue fruit.

## Measurements & details

- **Height:** 300-600 cm
- **Spread:** 200-500 cm
- **Flower Size:** 1-2 cm
- **Bloom Season:** Late summer to fall
- **Edible:** No
- **Toxicity:** None
- **Lifecycle:** Perennial
- **Pollination Method:** Insect

## Ecological connections

- **Pollinates:** Honeybee (*Apis mellifera*) — Attracted to the flowers' nectar and pollen.
- **Pollinates:** [Monarch butterfly](https://www.snappit.app/explore/monarch-butterfly) (*Danaus plexippus*) — Visits the fragrant flowers for their nectar.
- **Eaten by:** Brown-eared Bulbul (*Hypsipetes amaurotis*) — Birds consume the plant's distinctive blue berries.

## Traits

- [Social](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/social): Social animals live in organized groups, cooperating for survival benefits such as foraging, defense, and raising offspring.
- [Colorful](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/colorful): Colorful describes organisms or objects displaying a wide range of bright and distinct colors.
- [Herbivorous](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/herbivorous): This trait characterizes organisms whose diet consists entirely or primarily of plant material.
- [Forest](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/forest): Forest habitats are terrestrial environments dominated by dense tree cover, supporting a high diversity of plant and animal life.
- [Pollinator](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/pollinator): Describes organisms that transfer pollen, enabling the fertilization and reproduction of plants.

## Collections

- [Plants](https://www.snappit.app/explore/collections/plants)

## Safety

**Danger:** 0/5 · No known danger

No special safety notes yet.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### How to identify Harlequin Glorybower?

Start with the whole plant, then compare leaf arrangement, leaf edges, stems and any flowers or fruit. Opposite leaves grow in pairs; alternate leaves come one at a time along the stem. These details tell you far more together than a single green leaf does. Plant Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details.

### How tall is Harlequin Glorybower?

300-600 cm

### How wide does Harlequin Glorybower spread?

200-500 cm

### How big are the flowers on Harlequin Glorybower?

1-2 cm

### When does Harlequin Glorybower bloom?

Late summer to fall

### Is Harlequin Glorybower edible?

No

### Is Harlequin Glorybower toxic?

None

### What is Harlequin Glorybower's lifecycle?

Perennial

## Where to spot

- [Ise-Shima National Park](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/ise-shima-national-park) — Kansai / Tokai, JP · Park
- [Lakewood Park](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/lakewood-park) — Virginia, US · Park

## More Plants

- [white snakeroot](https://www.snappit.app/explore/white-snakeroot) (*Ageratina altissima*)
- [tree-of-heaven](https://www.snappit.app/explore/tree-of-heaven) (*Ailanthus altissima*)
- [western sword fern](https://www.snappit.app/explore/western-sword-fern) (*Polystichum munitum*)
- [common milkweed](https://www.snappit.app/explore/common-milkweed) (*Asclepias syriaca*)

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Source: [Harlequin Glorybower: Facts & Places to See — Snappit](https://www.snappit.app/explore/harlequin-glorybower)