Culture
Easily grown in average, medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun. Tolerant of clay soils. Needs full sun for best flowering and foliage color, but will tolerate some light shade or sun dappled shade. Prune to shape if needed immediately after flowering. Propagate by stem cuttings.
Noteworthy Characteristics
Weigela florida is native to northern China, Korea and Japan. It is a dense, rounded, deciduous shrub that typically grows to 6-10’ tall and may spread over time to as much as 12’ wide. Branching is somewhat coarse, and branches on mature shrubs tend to arch toward the ground. Funnel-shaped, rose pink flowers (each to 1.25” long) bloom profusely in spring, with a sparse and scattered repeat bloom often occurring in mid to late summer. Elliptic to obovate, medium green leaves (to 4.5” long) with serrate margins retain good color throughout the growing season. Insignificant fall color. Fruit is inconspicuous. Flowers are attractive to hummingbirds.
The genus name Weigela honors Christian Ehrenfried Weigel (1748-1831), German professor at the University of Geifswald.
The specific epithet florida means "freely flowering", in reference to the flowering habit of this species.
‘Verweig’, commonly sold under the trade name of MY MONET, is a dwarf, rounded, deciduous weigela that typically grows to only 12-18” tall and as wide. It is noted for its small size, pink flowers and variegated (pink, cream and green) foliage. It was discovered as a sport (branch mutation) of Weigela florida ‘Tango’. Campanulate, soft pink flowers bloom in late spring, with scattered repeat bloom occurring throughout summer. Elliptic to ovate leaves (to 3” long) have green centers surrounded by creamy white with pink on the margins. The impressionistic leaves are purportedly reminiscent of the work of Monet, hence the trade name. U.S. Plant Patent PP16,824 was issued on July 18, 2006.
Problems
No serious insect or disease problems.
Uses
Dwarf weigela for edging, border fronts, foundations or containers. Mass for small area ground cover.