Mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire'
Kalmia latifolia 'Olympic Fire' · Ericaceae
Deep red buds, like piped icing, open to soft pink flowers in late spring, against glossy, evergreen leaves.
- Size
- 6½ ft tall, 6½ ft wide
- Zones
- 5 to 9
- Light
- Part sun to part shade
- Flowers
- Late May to late June
- Pets
- Toxic (severe)
- Job in a bed
- Anchor
A bed built around mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire'
The planner designed this bed around mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' when this page was made: a 22 × 10 ft (6.7 × 3.0 m) English border in zone 6, part sun. It chose the other plants from the 708 that suit those conditions, and says below why mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' × 1, pink
- 2 Blue star creeper × 17, blue
- 3 Mouse-ear coreopsis 'Nana' × 40, yellow
- 4 White mugwort × 4, cream
- 5 Swamp milkweed × 4, white
- 6 Tufted hair grass × 3, tan
- 7 Creeping Jacob's ladder × 8, blue
- 8 Blue-eyed grass × 27, blue
- 9 Polyanthus primrose × 26, red
- 10 Hosta 'Sum and Substance' × 1, chartreuse leaves
- 11 Oriental lily 'Stargazer' × 5, pink
- 12 Camassia × 4, blue
- 13 Easter lily × 4, white
Why this plant
- Part of the bed's structure. Shrubs and grasses keep their shape when the perennials die down. So does tufted hair grass.
Why here
- Anchors a back corner. At 6½ ft it is the tallest plant here, and the tallest close the ends of the bed, where they stand in front of nothing.
- A step in the back row. Next to tufted hair grass (3 ft): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- One plant, alone. A shrub is seen as an object, and needs clear ground around it.
Why now
- In flower for four weeks. From late May to late June.
- Fills no gap. Every week it is in flower, at least three other kinds are too. It thickens a season that is already full.
- One of two evergreens. They are what the bed has to show from November to March.
Planned as an English border: 26 of the 29 groups (90%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. The flowering is at its height in late May, with 6 kinds out together. Blue is the colour seen most, on 4 of the 12 kinds grown for their flowers.
The planner's own design check: 13 Excellent, 4 Good.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' goes in a border
At 6½ ft it belongs at the back of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is very tall (5 to 6½ ft).
Its job: anchor. A shrub that gives the bed permanent structure. Planted singly, as soon as the front edge is laid; everything else is arranged around it.
The contrast between bud and open flower is the beauty of mountain laurel, and this has the strongest. It needs acid, well-drained, leafy soil and dislikes clay.
- Late-spring flowers in part shade
- Evergreen woodland structure
- Acid soil with rhododendrons
What to plant with mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Rhododendron 'PJM': flowers first, late April to mid May, so the spot is never empty; happy in the same moist soil.
- Christmas fern: its dark green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; low enough (20 in) to stand in front of it.
- Dwarf fothergilla: flowers first, late April to mid May, so the spot is never empty; spires rising out of its mound; low enough (3 ft) to stand in front of it.
Questions about mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire'
Does mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' need sun or shade?
Mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' grows in part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun) and part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' grow in?
USDA zones 5 to 9. It is hardy to zone 5, which means it survives winter nights down to about −10 °F (−23 °C).
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers late May to late June. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.
| Zone 5 | Late May to late June |
|---|---|
| Zone 6 | Late May to late June |
| Zone 7 | Mid May to mid June |
| Zone 8 | Early May to mid June |
| Zone 9 | Early May to early June |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' be planted?
6 ft (180 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 6½ ft (200 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 6½ ft (200 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' plants do I need?
Usually one. At 6 ft (180 cm) across, it is a plant you place, not one you mass. For a hedge or screen, set them 6 ft apart: two plants for a 10 ft run.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' poisonous to dogs and cats?
Yes: severe toxicity to people, dogs, cats and horses. All parts, including the nectar, are highly poisonous if eaten and can affect the heart.
Rated from NC State Extension and the ASPCA. Where references disagree, the more cautious rating is used.
Is there a pet-safe plant like mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire'?
These come closest to doing what mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' does, and no toxicity is recorded for them:
- Witherod viburnum 'Winterthur': the same job in a bed and the same flowering time; 12 in narrower, white, not pink.
- Red osier dogwood: the same job in a bed and the same flowering time; 20 in taller, 8 in wider.
- Camellia 'April Blush': the same job in a bed and the same colour; 20 in shorter, 24 in narrower.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
Do deer eat mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire'?
Mostly not. NC State lists it as resistant to deer. No plant is proof against a hungry deer in a hard winter, but this one is low on the menu.
What flowers after mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire'?
Mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' is over by late June. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Feather reed grass 'Karl Foerster': from late June to early October, 5 ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Smooth hydrangea 'Incrediball': from late June to early September, 5 ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Garden phlox: from mid July to early September, 3½ ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
What does mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' look like in winter?
Mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' keeps its dark green leaves all winter, so it is one of the plants that hold a bed together from November to March, when the perennials have gone.
Is mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' good for bees and butterflies?
Mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' is visited by pollinators, butterflies and hummingbirds.
It is native to the United States (this is a named variety of the native plant).
More Kalmia
- Mountain laurel Kalmia latifolia
- Mountain laurel 'Elf' Kalmia latifolia 'Elf'
In these guides
- Deer-resistant plants for shade
- Garden plants toxic to cats
- Garden plants toxic to dogs
- Native plants for shade
- Plants for hummingbirds
- Plants for butterflies
- Evergreen shrubs for structure
Every fact on record
- Type
- Shrub
- Size
- 6½ ft (200 cm) tall, 6½ ft (200 cm) wide
- Plant
- 6 ft (180 cm) apart
- Height class
- Very tall (5 to 6½ ft)
- Place in the bed
- Back
- Flowers
- Late May to late June; dense clusters; pink, red
- Leaves
- Medium texture, evergreen; dark green
- Shape
- Rounded, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 5 to 9
- Light
- Part sun, part shade
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Ericaceae
- Comes from
- Eastern U.S.A
- Attracts
- Pollinators, butterflies, hummingbirds
- Stands up to
- Deer
Checked against NC State Extension, ASPCA poison lists and VASCAN (plants of Canada). Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.