Why deutzias are having a comeback

Deutzia is a bit retro. Like knitted loo-roll covers and paper doilies, it hasn’t thrown off its old-fashioned Seventies mantle, and yet it deserves to be better known. Similar to the Philadelphia, it really is a shrub, not a tree, with most species growing no taller than three metres with an unstructured branching habit. Thrown thoughtlessly into a general shrubby planting, it can look dull. But its slightly scented white or pink flowers are its crowning glory, lasting for three or four weeks through June and into July – precisely the time when some gar­dens start to lose steam – and positioned imaginatively at the back of a herbaceous border, it can be effectively woven into a summer planting scheme to add an extra stratum of colour. In addition to that, it is undemanding, easy to grow and always reliable in flower.

Most of the deutzia species we grow are from China and Japan. Discovered in the wild by the botanist Carl Peter Thunberg – and named after his patron, Dutchman Johann van der Deutz – these decid­uous shrubs were introduced to  Europe in the nineteenth century and were popular with the Victorians. Deutzia gracilis was the first to appear in Britain, followed by Deutzia scabra – then known as D. crenata – and these are still two of the most commonly grown species today. In the mid-nineteenth century, a new form of D. scabra was introduced by the Scottish plant hunter Robert Fortune, even earning a mention in the Gardener's Chronicle of 1863: “There were a few very interesting new hardy plants shown. First a Deutzia crenata ‘Flore Pleno’, one of Fortune's novelties; this looked like a fine addition to hardy shrubs with copious terminal racemes of double white flowers deeply tinged externally with rose.” Now known as D. scabra ‘Plena’, it is still available today. The real heyday of the deutzia was in late nineteenth and early twentieth century, when the French nurseryman Victor Lemoine developed a range of excellent hybrids, many of which are still in cultivation today.  

What type of deutzia to grow

For smaller gardens the slender deutzia, D. gracilis, is ideal, as it grows no taller than 1.5 metres, with equal spread. It makes a rounded bush with arching stems and, in late May or early June, small, starry blooms appear, clustered together on upright panicles. The dwarf cultivar ‘Nikko’ seems to be the most widely available, growing only 60cm tall and spreading out in gentle hummocks, ideal for the edge of a bed or to soften a low retaining wall. Its slightly serrated leaves are attractive enough in summer, and unlike other forms, they can be tinged with purple in autumn. D. monbeigii, another white-flowered species, introduced in 1917, is taller at about two metres, similar in size to D. scabra, which is known as fuzzy deutzia because of its rough, hairy leaves. This species has distinctive panicles of white flowers that hang downwards in dense trusses.

Robert Fortune’s find, D. scabra ‘Plena’, has frothy double flowers, each with a smattering of pink on the outer petals that, close up, look as if it has been sprayed on with a paint gun – beautiful and subtle. ‘Candidissima’ is similar but has pure white flowers. D. x lernoinei (2-3 metres) was one of Victor Lemoine’s first experimental crosses between D. gracilis and D. parviflora, with small, single white flowers. Another of his babies was D. x magnifica – sometimes called the showy deutzia – introduced in 1909. Growing to about 2.5 metres, it has pure white double flowers that bunch together in dense, rounded clusters like puffs of cotton wool. D. x rosea, another early hybrid, has delicate pale pink single flowers in loose trusses, darker pink on the outside with an inter­esting texture like thick silk, slightly crinkled round the edges. This isn’t to be confused with D. ‘Rosea Plena’, which is also known as R. x hybrid ‘Pink Pompon’; it has darker pink flowers in rounded powder-puff clusters. Both of these are good for the back of a border, growing only 1.5 metres high. Darker pink still is ‘Magicien’. Growing to about 1.8 metres, its showy deep-pink single flowers are edged in white like stripy bloomers. Very similar, and more widely available in the UK is the more recent hybrid ‘Strawberry Fields’.  If these are too flamboyant for your tastes, ‘Mont Rose’ – yet another Lemoine hybrid – is more subtle, with pretty, old-fashioned pale-pink flowers tinged darker pink.

Where to plant deutzias

The thing with deutzias is that, like many shrubs, they flower spectacu­larly and then fade to anonymity as the year goes on – but as long as you think and plant creatively, this shouldn't be a problem. Plant a single deutzia where it can shine in June and then be outdone by some­thing else. You could perhaps grow a summer-flowering clematis through it, which will continue flowering as the deutzia fades, or plant some fiery late-summer heleniums or rud­beckias in front of it to draw the attention away from the green back­drop. You can also use it at the end of a vista, or behind a bench, urn or other garden ornament, so that when the flowers fade, there is still something to draw the eye.

How to grow deutzias

Deutzias are easy to grow and will offer up a pleasing show of flowers year after year, with very little special care and attention. Best grown in full sun or semi-shade, in a reasonably sheltered spot, they are tolerant of a broad range of soil conditions, and indeed they seem to thrive in quite heavy clay soils as long as the soil isn’t waterlogged. The flowers appear on the previous year’s growth, and the shrubs will benefit from a light prune each year, or every other year, after the plant has finished flowering in summer. Follow this with a dressing of fertiliser and mulch directly afterwards. Old or dead wood should be cut out to keep the shrub compact. 

Where to see and buy deutzias

The National Collection of Deutzia, with 45 species and cultivars, is held by Leeds City Council, Hollies Park, Weetwood Lane, Leeds (01483-44 7 540; www.nccpg.com). Buy plants from The Place For Plants, East Bergholt, Suffolk (01206-299224; www.placeforplants.co.uk) 

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