Hypericum androsaemum 'Albury Purple'

'Albury Purple' is a nice form of St. Johnswort that is generally grown for its purple-tinged summer foliage and yellow flowers.  It is much more purple on the new growth, turning more green as the summer progresses.  Seed pods start out a beautiful shiny black and change to gray.  One thing I hadn't read about before planting was the fantastic dark purple fall color.  It holds its color well into the fall, and still looks great in my garden.

While Hypericum androsaemum 'Albury Purple'

is a woody shrub in zones 6 and above, it is root hardy to at least zone 5.  For me it dies back mostly to the ground in the winter, and returns in the spring.  It has been a little bit slower to establish than most of the other plants in my garden, but is growing fairly well now.  I have it growing in full sun for the best color, but H. androsaemum is reportedly quite shade tolerant.  Hypericum species in general appreciate well drained soils, but I haven't had any problems with growing a number of them in clay-loam.  As long as the soil isn't too wet in the winter, 'Albury Purple' seems fairly adaptable.