A short, narrow spreading shrub with light pink flowers.
Plant Type
All Plants, Shrubs Deciduous
Hardiness Zone
3-8
Sunlight
full sun, tolerates some shade but flower production is reduced
Moisture
average
Soil & Site
average
Flowers
not a real strong color, a washed out pink
Leaves
Fall color can be multicolored with a few pinks, wine-red and purple. Green during growing season.
Dimensions
Reaches 18-24 inches tall by 3 foot spread, space 3 feet on center
Maintenance
All of the Spirea x bumalda and japonica group needs to be pruned back on a yearly or every other year cycle. If not they will become scraggly, and flower production will decrease. There are two good methods of pruning these. First is cutting the shrub flush with the ground. This is a good no brainier method and the plant will quickly recover with fresh, new growth. This method will set the flowering back, since the shrub has to totally regrow. Another method is using pruning shears, cut the shrub back about ½ in a shape that will resemble the natural form of the shrub and remove the old gnarly stems from the shrub. Flowering isn’t delayed as long as in the previous method. The earlier in the spring this is done, the sooner the plant will flower. One of my clients has me prune back these shrubs each year, since she likes the fresh, new growth of the shrub. Removal of the dead flower heads can result in a minor rebloom.
Propagation
cuttings
Native Site
Originated in Holland and first cultivated in 1870.
Author's Notes
I find this a very useful shrub for smaller spaces. In good years the entire small globular shrub will be covered with flowers. A very twiggy shrub.
Notes & Reference
#01-Manual of Woody Landscape Plants (Michael Dirr)