Abelia × grandiflora (Glossy Abelia) is a hybrid Abelia, raised by hybridising Abelia chinensis with A. uniflora.
They feed on nectar from various flowers, including Abelia species.
Abelia × grandiflora was first raised in 1886 at the Rovelli nursery at Pallanza (now Verbania), on Lake Maggiore in Italy.
From 1986 to 2000 he was the managing director of the employers' organisation Abelia, and from 2000 to 2004 he was vice director of the employers' organisation Norwegian Electricity Industry Association.
William and Mildred Lasdon Memorial Garden (0.4 ha / 1 acre) - an entrance court with a fragrance garden; a formal garden with boxwood hedges, heather, flowering annuals and bulbs, and a central fountain; and a synoptic garden featuring hundreds of shrubs whose names represent every letter in the alphabet, from "A" (Abelia) through "Z" (Zenobia).