Kolkwitzia amabilis Seeds | Linnaea
LATIN NAME: Kolkwitzia amabilis
COMMON NAME: Beauty Bush
Plant Profile
Beauty bush is a deciduous shrub of two to three metres with arching stems, oval leaves and masses of small pink bell flowers in late spring. The bark peels in long strips on old stems, and the whole plant has a soft, fountain shape.
It grows on rocky slopes and in thickets in the mountains of central China, in Hubei, Sichuan and Shaanxi, and it was introduced to the West in 1901 by the plant collector Frank Meyer. It is the only species in its genus, which makes it a curiosity as well as a garden plant. The leaves are opposite, oval and slightly hairy, and they turn a dull yellow before they fall.
Science & Biotechnology
The genus contains a single species, and its nearest relatives are in Kolkwitzia’s own family rather than in any other genus, which is why it has been left alone in classification while others have been merged. The flowers are borne in pairs at the end of short shoots, and each pair is subtended by two bracts that persist after flowering.
The fruit is a leathery capsule containing two seeds, one of which usually aborts, so a plant sets far less viable seed than the flower count suggests. That is one reason the shrub is propagated from cuttings rather than from seed in the nursery trade. The plant also sets seed in a dry autumn better than in a wet one, since the capsules need to dry before they split.
Uses & Benefits
The plant is grown as a specimen in mixed borders and in wild gardens, where its arching habit and its late-spring flower are the attraction. It is one of the best shrubs for a bank, since the stems layer where they touch the soil.
The cut stems are used in floristry, and the dried stems with their peeling bark are used in winter arrangements. There is no crop or medicinal use in modern practice, though the plant was grown in Chinese gardens long before it was described by Western botany. The shrub is also one of the few that flowers well on a north-facing bank, which is where it is most often planted in a small garden.
Growing from Seed
Sow seed in autumn and leave the pot outdoors, since it needs cold. Germination is poor and uneven, so cuttings of soft wood in early summer are the practical route to a new plant.
Plant out in full sun in any reasonable soil, and prune after flowering by cutting a third of the oldest stems to the base, since the plant flowers on young wood and becomes congested without renewal. It tolerates drought once established and is hardy to minus twenty. In a container the plant needs a large pot and a yearly mulch, since it resents drying out at the root.
Our Take
A graceful arching shrub with a late-spring flower and peeling bark, and the only species in its genus. Renew the old stems or it will stop flowering.
Related Reading
More species in the same orbit as Beauty Bush: