We Plant a Spirea
At the first house I ever lived in, the house from which we moved when I was between second and third grades, there was a large bush that my mother called a "bridal-wreath spirea". I liked that shrub; in my nostalgic memory I adored that shrub, but that may be recovered emotion due to advancing old age. I was buoyed to discover that Isaac, too, had known one in his youth and was longing to have one, too.*
Regardless, I now have a firm emotional attachment to the bridal-wreath spirea. Recently I began longing to have one somewhere in our slowly unfolding year-to-garden conversion. The slight drawback is that it is a large shrub and can grow to perhaps eight or twelve feet high and in spread. Still, I had a place in mind.
The interesting question, as I did a bit of online research, was trying to discover what botanical name went with the bridal-wreath spirea that I knew. Online I found at least three distinct plants that, it was claimed, were all the "bridal-wreath spirea".
However, Isaac and I both remembered the flowers of our bridal-wreath spirea quite vivedly and only one plant fit that memory: Spiraea x vanhouttei. That's a picture of it up top. (photo source)
So we asked around and quickly discovered that Elizabeth, one of our more generous gardening friends, said she thought she had a volunteer in her yard and she was certain that it was Spiraea x vanhouttei. She'd be happy to dig it up and bring it over for us to plant in a few days.
That turned out to be the same Saturday morning, about a month ago now, when our new garage doors were being installed. Let's make it a party!
In my mind, when she had said she had a volunteer coming up in her yard from her main plant, I pictured, basically, a tall twig that we would be planting. I hardly expected a vigorous, large young shrub that already had a dozen six-foot long branches. The thing filled most of her Prius that wasn't already filled with Elizabeth.
Planting was successful, and that was right in the middle of our unusual rainy season, so the bush has been kept thoroughly watered and nary a leaf wilted. It now appears to be quite happily settled in, as you can see from this photograph that I took (with a bit of yard for context):
This is the "white" area of the garden. On the left is a Crepe Myrtle 'Natchez', which has very bright white flowers; in front of it is a smallish Philadelphus ("Mock Orange"). In the background, just in front of the fence is the golden deodar cedar we planted a year ago; don't let the image deceive you: it's about 12 feet tall. On the right side behind the fence is a plane tree. The new Spiraea x vanhouttei is in front just right of center. Admittedly the green-on-green color scheme doesn't provide a lot of contrast, but it was spring after all, and everything was green. Nevertheless, you can see that it wasn't a twig! The right blotch in the upper right is a patch of daisies.
I had a couple of links left over from my research, too. I expect I was going to write about this wonderful plant, which the U Arkansas Extension Service called: "Plant of the Week : Vanhoutte Spirea"; they give an excellent historic profile. And, in case the description doesn't bring the blooms to mind, here's a lovely photo of bridal-wreath spirea's flowers. I hope we'll be seeing some of those next spring!
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* This is no surprise, really, since we seem to share a brain and are usually found to be thinking the same thoughts at the same time.
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on Monday, 29 June 2009 at 13.32
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How beautiful! This is my favourite kind of spirea as well; we have 3 spireas but they are all the small purply flowered ones, which aren't nearly as beautiful. (the bees like them, though) What a lot of space you have – I am jealous!
on Monday, 29 June 2009 at 15.16
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Jealousy can be squelched easily: this shrub is apparently readily available and you could have one of your own!
It is our second spirea, in fact. For some years we've had a Japanese yellow spirea (Spirea japonica 'something-suggesting-yellow') whose name I no longer remember; it has tiny yellow-green leaves that are beautiful all year, and is delightfully covered with tiny, individual white flowers in the spring. After my experiment last fall I can also tell you that it takes well to hard pruning. Perhaps we should collect more.
on Monday, 29 June 2009 at 16.08
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My childhood memories are of the Spiraea prunifolia, another of the bridal wreaths, whose flowers are in little clumps and are fuller than the vanhouttei. I always thought of them as little bridal bouquets. Because of the double nature of the flower, you don't see the yellow center as much as in the vanhouttei.
In later life I became aware of the baby's breath spirea, Spiraea thunbergii, which is graceful and wispy and has tiny single flowers. It is a real treat in the springtime, because it is one of the early bloomers.
Summer spirea, probably Spiraea japonica, produces pink flowers in the summer and the foliage turns golden after flowering. What a treat for summer color.
I have an offer to transplant a Spiraea prunifolia, but it is about 5 feet across and 5 feet tall. I just don't know if I can handle such a task. I'd rather have one the size of the one you got from your friend Elizabeth.
Enjoyed reading your post entitled "We Plant a Spirea" .
William
on Tuesday, 30 June 2009 at 14.28
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William, now that you mention Spiraea thungerbii, it sounds so familiar. Could our yellow-leaved spirea be thunbergii? Online photos always seem so indecisive, but our's has leaves much narrower and thinner like thunbergii than japonica, and it has tiny white flowers like thunbergii, not the pink, multiple inflorescences of japonica. Perhaps I'm remember a label that claimed a common name like "Japanese spirea", but a botanical Spiraea thungerbii. I'll ask Isaac if he remembers the variety name–"lemon something"?
Whichever it is, I'm still very fond of it and it's always a delight when it blooms in spring.