Name: Deutzia gracilis ‘Duncan’ aka Deutzia Chardonnay Pearls.
Type of Plant: A colorful small shrub for full sun to part shade, hardy in zones 5 to 8.
Why I Love This: Anytime you can get color and interesting textures from shrub foliage you’re garden will look great whether things are in flower or not, right? Well here’s a shrub that has bright lemon-lime leaves and at this time of year it’s also covered with white flowers. I love the fact that this Deutzia also stays small – it’s under 3’ tall in my garden right now, which makes it perfect for foundation plantings and part of a low-maintenance flower garden.
A Word to the Wise: You don’t want to shear this shrub into a yellow beach ball, but you can clip random long stems to shape it right after the plant finishes flowering.
Random Thoughts: Because this plant tolerates clay soils, and doesn’t need a lot of water, it’s adaptable for many garden situations.
Here is how this lovely small shrub looks in my garden the last week in May. It blooms at the same time as many Rhododendrons, so can you picture this lime/yellow fine foliage that’s frosted with white flowers in front of a purple-blooming rhody?
Purple and lime green are the perfect combo, and in my garden it’s the mix of Deutzia Chardonnay Pearls and Center Glow Physocarpus (aka nine bark) that has my heart beating faster.
