Summer Bells

An unusual and very attractive hybrid between Catalpa and Chilopsis, X Chitalpa tashkentensis Minsum is a small, fast-growing, deciduous tree or medium-sized shrub, with a neat, bushy, rather spreading habit, ideal for smaller gardens. The long, pointed, lance-shaped leaves are matte deep green. Masses of trumpet-shaped, lightly sweet-scented, mauvish-pink flowers, washed with white and with pale yellow throats and purple stamens, appear from May to August, with another blooming in September; the flowers are much sought after by bees and butterflies, bringing wildlife into your garden. Summer Bells is drought- and heat-tolerant, and can be quite severely pruned in late winter, without affecting flowering.