Tetrapanax papyrifer ‘Di Sue Shan’ was voted as the winner in the People’s Choice award by visitors to the Plant Heritage stand throughout show week. A lesser-known cultivar, and often overshadowed by the well-known ‘Rex’ (an exotic architectural woody shrub, known as the ‘rice paper plant’), ‘Di Sue Shan’ is much bigger, more upright, faster growing and matures quicker, implying improved hardiness. It was collected at Dasyueshan, Taiwan, and named after Diane Doughty and nursery partner Sue Wynn-Jones. It is now grown at English Heritage’s Walmer Castle in Kent.
