Potentilla fruticosa Daydawn - Shrubby cinquefoil

Shrubby cinquefoil 'Daydawn' has captivating, single, cream to peachy-pink flowers, which renew themselves for months atop a dome of fine grey-green foliage. This compact, hardy, and tolerant variety is easy to grow both in the ground and in containers. It can be used to edge a path, enliven a bank, or form a very floriferous swathe in front of taller bushes.

Potentilla fruticosa and its cultivars belong to the Rosaceae family; the accepted name for the species is now Dasiphora fruticosa. It is widely distributed across the Northern Hemisphere, from the mountains of Asia to the boreal zones of Europe and North America.
'Daydawn' is descended from the cinquefoil 'Tangerine', an old selection famous for its orange hues; this spontaneous mutation is characterised by its petals, which are cream at the base and broadly shaded with peach-pink, with a more stable colour than its parent, and a very prolonged flowering period.
This plant has a bushy, quite spreading and dense habit, with moderate growth; it forms a clump 80 cm to 1 m tall and 1 m to 1.20 m wide in the ground after 10 years; in a large container, expect about 60–80 cm. Its stems have a brownish bark, becoming somewhat scaly with age; the plant produces low branches but does not sucker. The deciduous leaves are divided into 5 to 7 small linear to oblong, 1 to 3 cm long leaflets, green to grey-green on top, lighter and finely hairy underneath. The single, cup-shaped flowers are 2–3 cm in diameter, with 5 petals, and open from June to October; their colour evolves from cream to peachy-pink, sometimes showing a darker edge depending on light and temperature; they are nectar-rich.
The root system is rather shallow and very fibrous, sensitive to waterlogged soils. This very hardy plant withstands temperatures close to −30 °C; it tolerates drought once established, as well as poor and calcareous soils.

Shrubby Cinquefoil 'Daydawn' is interesting for a long period in beds, borders, and terraces. Its flowering harmonises with medium-sized grasses and understated perennials. Pair it, for example, with Perovskia atriplicifolia 'Blue Spire' and Nepeta faassenii 'Walker's Low' in a light, drought-tolerant display; it also pairs well with landscape roses in matching colours such as Peach Drift® and Street Colors® Rêve de Paris. In a large border, mix it with other cinquefoils like 'Abbotswood' (white), 'Goldfinger' (yellow) or 'Red Ace' (orange-red).

The botanical species is known in Eurasia for infusions of "Kuril tea", traditionally prepared from its leaves.