Plant Library
Summertime Blues™ Chaste Tree Vitex 'Helen Froehlich' Height: 8 feet Spread: 8 feet
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Hardiness Zone: 5a Brand: Plants Nouveau Description: An intermediate sized selection featuring fragrant, lavender-purple flower spikes on black stems in late summer; dark green foliage is refined and fragrant; rounded, upright habit tends to keep its density; very adaptable and salt tolerant Ornamental Features Summertime Blues™ Chaste Tree has panicles of fragrant lavender flowers with purple overtones rising above the foliage from late summer to early fall. It has green deciduous foliage. The fragrant palmate leaves do not develop any appreciable fall color. The smooth gray bark and black branches add an interesting dimension to the landscape. Landscape Attributes Summertime Blues™ Chaste Tree is an open multi-stemmed deciduous shrub with a more or less rounded form. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other landscape plants with less refined foliage. This shrub will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and is best pruned in late winter once the threat of extreme cold has passed. It has no significant negative characteristics. Summertime Blues™ Chaste Tree is recommended for the following landscape applications; Planting & Growing Summertime Blues™ Chaste Tree will grow to be about 8 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 8 feet. It tends to be a little leggy, with a typical clearance of 1 foot from the ground, and is suitable for planting under power lines. It grows at a fast rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for 50 years or more. This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist locations, and should do just fine under average home landscape conditions. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for xeriscaping or the moisture-conserving landscape. It is not particular as to soil type or pH, and is able to handle environmental salt. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments, and will benefit from being planted in a relatively sheltered location. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid.
