Spiraea Hybrid, Van Houtte Spiraea

This is an old-fashioned plant that was very commonly planted at the corner foundation of old houses of the 1890's through the 1920's. It...Read More is a hybrid of two Chinese spireas: the Cantonese x the Three-lobed Spireas. It is what most think of as "the Bridalwreath." There is another species that is called the Bridalwreath Spirea, S. prunifolia also from China. A few conventional nurseries still offer the Vanhoutte, as Hinsdale Nursery that is west of Chicago, but it is not commonly sold anymore. Some similar but shorter spireas have taken its place.

I thought I bought the Double Bridal Wreath Spiraea, but the pictures of that and the Van Houttei look so much alike that I'm not sure. ...Read MoreI planted my one-gallon shrub in the front yard about 1998, in an eastern exposure. It was doing well, but I decided I wanted the area for roses, so I dug it up and moved it to the backyard, around the year 2000. The roots were considerable, but it survived and got even larger in the backyard, where it had to deal with some hours of shade from trees (until we had them taken out for fear of having them fall and hit the house). Now (early spring 2009) I have to dig it up and move it to another spot in the front yard: I hope it makes the transition again. It is exquisite when it is in full bloom, and pleasant enough when it is not. I haven't noticed it to suffer from diseases, cold, heat, and while it gets hit sometimes by the sprinkler when I am watering some adjacent potted plants, I have not particularly ever made an effort to water it.

A lovely shrub when in full bloom but coarse afterwards. The branches are somewhat droopy when weighed down by the many rounded clusters...Read More of white flowers. Some people call this one the Bridalswreath spirea, but that plant is really a different cultivar called S. 'Arguta'. It flowers just after the real Bridalswreath fades.

This species is apparently a hybrid between Spiraea trilobata and Spiraea cantoniensis