Diervilla splendens Honey Surprise

The Diervilla x splendens 'Honey Surprise' is a variety with remarkably colourful and changing variegated foliage throughout the seasons. This small deciduous bush also offers abundant summer flowering with golden yellow flowers and beautiful autumn colours that are popular with bees, and butterflies. It will be ideal for adding life to the front of shrub borders and creating large, vibrant borders. It is a lovely plant suitable for small gardens and container gardening.

The Diervilla x splendens 'Honey Surprise' Diwibru02 is a recently selected horticultural hybrid from the Netherlands. This bush, belonging to the Caprifoliaceae family, has a low and wide habit and dense foliage. When fully grown, it reaches a height of 80 cm (32in) and a spread of 1 m (3ft). Its leaves are composed of ovate, elongated leaflets with pointed ends. In spring, they are variegated with green and silver, and in summer, yellow and orange. The young shoots are orange in colour. In September-October, as the temperatures drop, the foliage takes on warm shades ranging from yellow to coppery red. The flowering, loved by pollinating insects, takes place in July-August. The small yellow flowers, clustered together, bloom on the previous year's wood. This Diervilla blooms profusely, even in semi-shaded conditions. Vibrant and warm colours that bring a lot of personality to the whole. The deciduous foliage is absent in winter.

A low-maintenance ground cover, colourful and full of surprises, the 'Honey Surprise' Diervilla is suitable for a wide range of soils and exposures. It will thrive in neither dry soil in summer nor waterlogged in winter. Its compact growth is ideal for small gardens, enclosed spaces, or decorating patios. It will blend perfectly with perennials such as periwinkles, shrubs like dwarf abelias, or multicoloured spireas like 'Double Play Big Bang'.