I love it's arching branches and glossy leaves. It makes a perfect background plant for perennials. Once they have finished blooming this Abelia x grandiflora begins blooming near the end of June and is still going strong right now.
The new growth is this light pale pink to a deeper pink. Right now the plants are full of this colorful new growth.
I think that the fresh pink growth is almost as pretty as the flowers.
This Abelia x grandiflora is 'Edward Goucher', it gets to be a bit bigger than 'Sherwood', 3 - 5 feet tall. It's only about 3 feet tall for me and hasn't grown much in height in the last couple of years. It's arching branches spread wider than it is tall.
Here you can see some of the pale pink, fragrant flowers which the hummingbirds have been enjoying.
Abelia x grandiflora 'Francis Mason' is a more variegated variety and is in a much shadier spot. It began blooming later than the others, probably because it doesn't get as much sun.I did have one other Abelia 'Confetti' which sadly didn't survive our winter this past year. These shrubs are semi-evergreen and unless it's unusually cold like it was last year, normally keep most of their leaves all winter. It's hardy in zones 6 through 9 and is supposed to be deer resistant. It's surprising that a shrub with so many positives isn't used more. So if you're looking for summer through late fall interest in your garden I would highly recommend Abelias.
good morning, Frances! The frost is on more than the pumpkin. ;) We have an abelia right outside my studio window and the foliage is now a beautiful deep burgundy and still has blossoms.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, while reading about your hummingbirds last week, I thought how wonderful to still have them as those around here have disappeared. BUT, the next day, one came to my window.. must have been saying goodbye. What wonderful creatures they are.
Who's Frances? lol....this is a new plant to me, thanks for sharing. It looks like a little burst of spring for the beginning of winter, I love it!!
ReplyDeleteThank you for this post. I now have another wonderful item to add to my wish list. You're right about people "shrubbing" them. At first I didn't reconize it but then I started putting it together thanks to you and I too would have had a different opinion of them in a more natural condition. Shrubbing things in my wild setting just sticks out like a sore thumb so I automatically shy away from that sort of thing. Thank you for the fresh perspective.
ReplyDeleteCatherine,
ReplyDeleteGood thing you for the shorter abelias. When I did the Monarch surveys on the coast of Virginia back in 2004 the abelia hedge as we called it was huge. This hedge was a double row with each row being about 150 foot long 10 foot deep and maybe 12-15 foot tall. One day I tagged about 20 Monarchs that were nectaring on it.
Beautiful. I haven't heard of that one.
ReplyDeleteThe Abelias really are great shrubs aren't they. Like you, this summer I realized how REALLY great they are. I had started one a couple years ago and planted it for me to fill space. And last year started another - probably to give to a friend. That little sucker made it through all of our 3 digit heat and never even blinked. And as small as it was it still just kept blooming and blooming. Who knows it may be blooming up there still. But I decided then that they were way under rated.
ReplyDeleteHey I'm well (knock on wood)and ready for you to set another date and we'll try again. ;-)
What a pretty shrub! I will have to see if they will grow in zone 5. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHi Catherine, I see a lot of these used in the office parks around here. As you say, the new growth is as pretty as the blooms. I see them as a hedge but I prefer them arching naturally too. I'll have to put this on my list to look for.
ReplyDeleteI will check into this, as I have a small yard. Love the little pink flowers! The other day I was watching out the French doors and a mockingbird swooped down to an Asparagus Fern I have in a pot. The red berries have started appearing on this plant. The mockingbird sat on the edge of the pot, bit off berries one at a time, tipped his head up, and swallowed them down. I so enjoyed watching this simple act. Gave me so much pleasure that I was giving him/her sustenance. I didn't even know they were edible!
ReplyDeleteBrenda
What beautiful foliage with the soft pink colors. Very lovely.
ReplyDeleteThis is new to me too! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteSo now I'll be googling Abelia to find out even more. Are they not the perfect plant?
ReplyDeleteInformative stuff Catherine, thanks.
Rob
How beautiful, thank you for the introduction, I'm glad you found one that will fit into your landscape. :)
ReplyDeleteAnother old-fashioned plant that has made a come-back. I don't know why the ones that were here when I first laid eyes on this place in 1961 disappeared, perhaps when the fence was moved. They attract butterflies and bees.
ReplyDeleteIt is good to know it comes in a shorter variety. The glossy leaves are so pretty with the peachy pink blooms. We are always wanting new blooms especially for fall.
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting everyone!
ReplyDeleteLinda - Yes, we do have to set a new date. After the new year I'm pretty much free until spring :)
Brenda - Isn't it just amazing how much entertainment a garden can bring. I bet watching the Mockingbird was an enjoyable experience.
Randy and Nell Jean - You both reminded me of more reasons to use this shrub, butterflies and bees!
What a great bush! I don't know much about them, but it would definitely grow in my neck of the woods! Thanks for the insight.
ReplyDeleteAbelias are great looking plants but they just never come to mind when someone asks about blooming shrubs.
ReplyDeleteYours looks great Catherine.
Catherine, Aren't those beautiful? Thank you for sharing information about these beautiful plants. I wouldn't be able to grow them here, but I would love to look at yours from time-to-time! :-) My Hakuro Nishiki - Dappled Willow has light salmon/pink leaves on its new growth in the Spring. Very Pretty!
ReplyDeleteYour smaller Abelia's flowers don't seem to be trumpet shaped like Edward Goucher. I do love the pretty pale pink color. To have a small one is really nice.
ReplyDeleteHi Catherine,
ReplyDeleteI love a long-blooming shrub that you can allow to grow in it's natural shape. Abelia is just beautiful!
Abelia is a great plant. I agree, it looks best when allowed to grow in its natural arching shape. I haven't yet put it in my garden, but I've noticed that bees love the flowers.
ReplyDeleteOoh, thank you Catherine! My 'Confetti' is in a container that is still in the garden. I need to get it into a protected area, just in case.
ReplyDeleteIn a part of our front yard, there is a row of Abelia x grandiflora that were here when we bought this house 11 years ago. They've never been sheared or pruned, except for dead stuff and I love their billowy, arching branches. I concur, Abelias are definitely unsung heroes.
I have the confetti abelia, which is lovely. I can't imagine pruning these shrubs into hedges! Thanks for this post; the photos are great.
ReplyDeleteI'm so confused. I don't know much about Abelias but I always thought they were vines? Crazy. I don't know where I got that idea. I like the trumpet shaped flowers ~ I'm sure the hummingbirds find them very attractive too.
ReplyDeleteKathleen - I think you're thinking of Akebia, they do have really similar sounding names.
ReplyDeleteAbelias are very common here although I'd never grown one myself until a few years ago when I bought the one called "Frances Mason". It stays small and the foliage is a very light yellowish green. It is quite charming.
ReplyDeleteI think that they are so cute! I planted two shrubs a few years ago. Didn't have any idea how big they would be and I'm sad to say that I had to remove them last year. They where huge! I still miss those flowers / gittan
ReplyDelete