Deutzia compacta Lavender Time

Deutzia compacta 'Lavender Time' is a small, round, compact and very floriferous shrub with trailing branch tips. This rare variety will charm you with the cup-shaped form of its rounded petals. It offers a romantic flowering in late spring-summer with its round bouquets of small, pale pink flowers that turn lavender over time. This variety, discovered in nature, is as easy to grow as other deutzias, in sunny exposure and in any soil that is not too dry. Plant it in isolation, in a bed or in a free hedge.

Deutzia 'Lavender Time' is characterised by its compact and round habit. It reaches a height of 1 to 1.5 m (3 ft 4 in to 4 ft 11 in) and a width of 1 m (3 ft 4 in), and has a medium growth. Its summer flowering is another characteristic of this species. It appears during the months of June and July and consists of bouquets of cup-shaped flowers, white tinged with pink, resembling lilac flowers. The flower buds take on the appearance of a delicate pink cloud, highlighted by spring-green foliage followed by an explosion of round bouquets marked by the golden shimmer of the stamens.

The hybrid Deutzia 'Lavender Time' is a wild variety derived from the Himalayan species compacta, itself introduced to Europe in 1905. The typical form reaches a height of 2 m (6 ft 7 in) and has rounded panicles of white flowers measuring 15 mm (0.6 in) in diameter. Deutzias belong to the Hydrangeaceae family (formerly Saxifragaceae), just like hydrangeas, recognisable by their upright stems with thick pith, their opposite leaves with stiff hairs, and their corymbs or panicles of flowers. 'Lavender Time' forms a medium-sized and compact bush with lanceolate leaves carried by a short petiole and prominent veins. Its growth is moderately fast. Its tiny star-shaped flowers with 5 petals are grouped in dense panicles along the branches. They attract pollinating insects and stand out beautifully against its small ovate leaves, which are very dark green and strongly veined, turning bronze and purple-violet at the end of the season.

Somewhat out-dated survivors of older gardens, deutzias, like lilacs and old roses, are among those almost indestructible shrubs that require little effort but in return bring a lot of satisfaction to the gardener. In the garden, Deutzia 'Lavender Time' is an excellent landscaping plant that stands out for the elegance of its pinkish bouquets turning lavender-blue in early summer when most deutzias have finished flowering. It can be used in mixed borders, in flower beds, on a sunny slope, alone or mixed with grasses like Nassella tenuissima, upright shrubs like Vitex agnus-castus, evergreen graphic foliage to prolong the interest of the flower bed like Mahonia 'Soft Caress', or with landscape roses like Rosa The Fairy with long-lasting flowering. Create medium hedges with compact abelias, Mexican orange blossoms, etc. Placed next to grasses, its upright stems bring an interesting graphic effect to the garden. It also combines well with perennials that do not exceed 1 m (3 ft 4 in) in height.

Deutzia will be at its optimum flowering capacity when planted in a limestone, humus-rich, moist soil.