Weigela hortensis ("Taniutsugi")

Japanese name: タニウツギ （谷空木）
Scientific name: Weigela hortensis

[Overview]
A deciduous small tree up to 5 m tall, found in mountains with a Sea of Japan-side climate.
The trunk is somewhat multi-stemmed, and the bark is covered with a thick cork layer that splits lengthwise.
Young branches are reddish.
Leaves are simple and opposite, elliptic, 4–10 cm long and 2–6 cm wide.
The underside of the leaf is densely covered with soft white hairs; the upper surface is hairy at first but later becomes hairless.
The leaf margins are serrate.
Corymbs arise from the leaf axils and branch tips, each bearing 2–3 flowers 2 cm across.
The flowers are bright pinkish red, and the outside of the corolla is darker than the inside.
The corolla is funnel-shaped, 2.5–3.5 cm long, with the upper part widening like a bell; the tip is 5-lobed, and the corolla tube is 2.5–3 times as long as the corolla lobes.
There are 5 stamens.
The fruit is a narrow cylindrical capsule 1.2–1.8 cm long and 2.5–3 mm in diameter; when ripe it splits in two, leaving the tip and the central axis, and releases fine winged seeds.

[Cultivation]
Propagate by cuttings, which allow easy multiplication.
Division is also possible while the plant is young.
It grows well in a sunny place in any soil, as long as the site is not excessively wet.
For potted plants, water thoroughly when the soil surface dries; for plants in the ground, rainfall is sufficient.
Apply organic fertilizer in winter.
It grows fast and becomes a thicket if left alone, so thin out overgrown shoots and crowded branches during the leafless season.
Powdery mildew can occur.

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