Japanese name: ヒメウツギ（姫空木） Scientific name:Deutzia gracilis var. gracilis
[Overview]
A deciduous shrub about 1.5 m tall, found in sunny places such as on rocks along riverbanks.
The trunk and branches are hollow.
It branches freely.
Young branches are tinged brown and hairless.
Leaves are simple and opposite, ovate to elliptic-lanceolate, 4–8.5 cm long and 1.5–3 cm wide.
The upper surface of the leaves has sparse stellate hairs and is rough, and the margins have fine serrations.
The petiole is 0.3–0.7 cm long and hairless.
Panicle-like cymes are produced at the branch tips.
The flowers are white, 5-petaled, and 1.4 cm across.
The fruit is a woody, bowl-shaped capsule 3–4 mm across, with the style remaining at the tip.
[Cultivation]
Propagate by cuttings.
It prefers sunny, well-drained, well-ventilated, fertile soil.
It tolerates partial shade and dryness.
It is hardy and grows well even if left alone.
For potted plants, water thoroughly when the soil surface dries.
For plants in the ground, rainfall is sufficient.
Apply organic fertilizer in winter by burying it in deep holes dug around the plant.
When applying slow-release fertilizer after flowering as a thank-you fertilizer, dig holes in the same way.
Prune right after flowering, in June.
Flower buds for the following year form once summer arrives, so avoid pruning then.
Powdery mildew may occur.
