x Chitalpa tashkentensis 'SUMMER BELLS^®'

Need a tree flowering in summer, ideally with an exotic look? Then chitalpa is the best choice! This beautiful and hardy hybrid was created in 1964 in Uzbekistan. It is a cross between Desert Willow with rather exotic flowers and northern Catalpa.

The orchid-like flowers are pale to bright pink with a yellow throat and frilled margins. Flowers have a lovely, sweet scent. Summer Bells^® is a chitalpa variety repeating flowering. It starts in early summer and last for 2-3 weeks, and then again in second half of August for further 2 weeks. Under good weather conditions if the summer is sunny and hot it can bloom non stop.

Narrowly elongated leaves are 10-20 cm long, mid green, and look like peach tree leaves. They are very attractive and suitable for summer-style or exotic looking gardens as in the landscape they can do the same job as oleander leaves. In rapid temperature swings and humid weather in early summer they may suffer from powdery mildew. When you see the first signs apply a suitable fungicide to prevent from spreading the disease. One application is usually enough for the rest of the year.

Chitalpa does not require pruning but should you want to prune, trim or shape the tree, cut no more than a third of last year’s branches, in early spring as it flowers on current year’s wood. It grows medium slow to medium fast. If injured in winter or pruned hard it grows rapidly and makes strong, non-breaking branches that seldom bear flowers the same summer.

It needs direct sunlight and a hot summer for abundant flowering. Withstands drought once established. No special soil required. Some sources say it freezes in zone 6, however, it has proved no damage in -25°C with any injury in our garden. Fully hardy to -27°C (USDA zone 5b).

Last update 05-12-2008; 25-02-2010