Heptacodium miconiodes

Heptacodium miconioides

Heptacodium miconioidesis a wonderful large shrub for the late summer and fall garden. Coming into bloom when few woodies do--late August--the Seven-Son Flower is a nice pick me up when the landscape can feel a bit tired and bedraggled. 

Its small white blossoms emit an intoxicating aroma that in themselves would make this a worthy addition to any garden, but this shrub puts on a second show when the flowers fade and the fruits develop. Kim E. Tripp writes, "In late fall, the flowers mature to small rounded fruits, each of which is crowned with a persistent calyx that turns a bright cherry-red or rosy purple. The effect of all the tiers of these exotic fruits with seven splendid crowns is spectacular." *

Finally,Heptacodium miconioides has some of the showiest exfoliating bark you'll find in a landscape plant, giving it interest throughout the winter.

The best information Heptacodium miconioides can be found in Gary L. Koller's seminal article, "Seven-Son Flower from Zhejiang: Introducing the Versatile Ornamental Shrub Heptacodium jasminoides Airy Shaw " in the Arnold Arboretum's publication Arnoldia, 46:4 (1986).The Arnold Arboretum was responsible for introducing the plant to the gardens of the United States in the 1980s. (Jasminoides was the specific name at the time of publication.)