Culture
Easily grown in average, medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun to light shade. Best flowering in full sun. Wide range of soil tolerance. Prefers moist, rich, humusy loams. Established shrubs have some drought tolerance. Annual pruning of dead branches in late winter to early spring is usually necessary. Additional renewal pruning may be done immediately after flowering (flowers bloom on old wood). Flower buds are susceptible to damage from late spring frosts. Plants will naturalize to form a shrubby ground cover in optimum conditions (arching branches root where they touch the ground).
Noteworthy Characteristics
Deutzia is a genus of about 60 species of mostly deciduous shrubs which are primarily native to temperate Asia with a much smaller presence in Mexico/Central America. These shrubs have hollow shoots with exfoliating bark, but are primarily noted for producing an abundant bloom of 5-petaled, white, pink or lavender spring flowers which bloom in panicles or clusters on stems clad with opposite, lanceolate, often serrate-margined green leaves.
Genus name honors Johan van der Deutz (1743-1788), amateur botanist from Amsterdam.
‘NCDX2’, usually sold under the trade name of YUKI CHERRY BLOSSOM, is a compact, bushy, multi-stemmed, upright-rounded, deciduous shrub that typically matures to only 1-2’ tall but spreads by arching stems which root where they touch the ground. It is a hybrid cross between D. gracilis ‘Nikko’ (female parent) and D. x rosea ‘Carminea’ (male parent) which was bred and developed by Thomas Green Ranney at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, North Carolina. U. S. Plant Patent Applied For (PPAF).
Tiny, 5-petaled flowers (to 5/8” across) bloom in late spring (May-June) in short panicles along the branches. Petals are a soft pink with white along the margins on the outside and white with light violet tinting on the inside. Flowers purportedly resemble showy cherry blossoms hence the trade name. Ovate, dark green leaves (to 3” long) have acuminate apices, cuneate bases and serrate margins. Many of the deutzias have no fall color, but the leaves of this species turn an attractive purple-bronze.
Problems
No serious insect or disease problems. Aphids and leaf spots may appear. Susceptible to tip dieback in cold winters.
Uses
Group in shrub borders, foundations or open woodland areas. Informal hedge. Mass as an informal shrubby ground cover.