Kolkwitzia (Beauty Bush) is a genus of woody flowering plant in the honeysuckle family Caprifoliaceae, native to western Hubei Province, in Central China. Kolkwitzia amabilis is the only species in the genus. The species was discovered by Ernest Wilson and was named after a professor of botany in Berlin, Richard Kolkwitz.
Kolkwitzia is a deciduous, arching and spreading shrub, with light brown flaky bark and graceful branches. It can grow to 3 x 4 m with dark green leaves of 8 cm long, bearing light pink bell-shaped flowers, dark pink in the bud. the fruit is a hairy, ovoid capsule 0.5 cm long.
Plant Kolkwitzia in full sun, fertile and well-drained soil. The plant is easy to grow and need space for development of it's long and arching sprays. Prune the plant after flowering as the flowers are borne on shoots produced in the previous year. Propagation is by greenwood cuttings in late spring.
Kolkwitzia amabilis http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kolkwitzia_amabilis1.jpg Kurt Stüber
Kolkwitzia amabilis http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kolkwitzia_amabilis5.jpg Kurt Stüber
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kolkwitzia_amabilis1.jpg
Kurt Stüber
