Abutilon is one of my favorite shrubs, although I think of it more as a flowering perennial. It lacks much substance as a shrub and is grown mostly for the blooms which hang upside down and have a paper-y texture to them, thus the common name of Chinese Lanterns or Chinese Bellflowers. Another common name is Flowering Maples because of their maple-like leaves.They are a shade plant here and they are just starting to bloom like crazy, although really they have blooms almost year round. I have a number of white ones in the Moonlight Garden, but I love the wispy pink and coral colored ones the most. They don't seem to be bothered with too many pests, although when stressed they do wilt a bit and are susceptible to white fly. They like good drainage and make excellent container plants.
Beautiful little papery blooms!
ReplyDeleteHow beautiful!!!
ReplyDeleteOh my those are quite beautiful.
ReplyDeleteGreat photo Sheila! I've never heard them called Chinese Lanterns before but it suits. I've always called them "flowering maples." They are an annual in Colorado so I have one in my basement that I'm trying to overwinter. I hope it works.
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