Deno’s GardenMy Garden

Kolkwitzia amabilis

Beauty Bush · Cold-whiskey-plant · Beautybush

Family CaprifoliaceaeGenus Kolkwitzia

Also published as Linnaea amabilis. You are in the right place.

An arching shrub smothered in small pale pink flowers
The whole plantKENPEICC BY-SA 3.0

About the plant

What it is and where it grows — not part of any germination protocol.

The plant

Habit
Deciduous shrubPlant Finder
Habit
shrubPlants of the World Online
Height
6-10 ft1.8-3 mPlant Finder
Spread
6-10 ft1.8-3 mPlant Finder
Flower
Showy; pink with a yellow throatPlant Finder
Blooms
April to MayPlant Finder
Native range
Eastern ChinaPlant Finder
Hardiness zones
4-8Plant Finder
Note
Tolerates deer, clay soil and black walnut.Plant Finder

Growing conditions

Sun
Full sunPlant Finder
Soil
Average, medium moisture, well-drainedPlant Finder
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0), Alkaline (>8.0), Neutral (6.0-8.0)Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox
Moisture
Good Drainage, MoistExtension Gardener Plant Toolbox
Watering
MediumPlant Finder

Toxicity is noted only where a source states it. No note here is not a finding of safety.

Sources: Plant Finder — Missouri Botanical Garden; Plants of the World Online — Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox — NC State Extension.

Worth knowing

  • The beauty bush, the only species in its genus, was found twice in China: by the missionary Giuseppe Giraldi, and by E. H. Wilson, who sent it to Veitch Nurseries in 1901. It first flowered there in 1910. Wikipedia: Kolkwitzia

This source reports two treatments. Both are shown.

Protocol 1

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1993

Difficulty Moderate Rated by us, not by the source.

Start around March 31, 2027 for a May 3 last frost.

  1. Sow and cover

    Temperature: 70°F 21°C

No stated waiting before sowing. Then 5 days to germinate.

25% germination — first up on day 3, then 15% a day.

Fresh seed or six months dry, at 70 or 40 -- all the same. Just never start it cold.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed. — N. C. Deno, 1993 · Ch. 20, KolkowitziaPublic domain
Show the original text
Kolkowitzia (Caprifoliaceae). K. amabilis germ. best with either fresh seed or seed DS 6 m at 70 or 40 in 70(25%, i. t 3 d, 15%/d). Starting the seed at 40 is fatal. The seed is held in a dry state on the shrub all winter and is not shed until the warmth of May when growth starts. Seeds blown off in winter encounters low T and moisture and die.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed., Ch. 20, Kolkowitzia. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record, except the difficulty rating, which is ours; the step names come from a fixed list.

Protocol 2

DerivedN. C. Deno, 1993

  1. Cold moist stratification

    Temperature: 40°F 4°C

    Starting the seed at 40 is fatal.

Germination happens during step 1.

0% germination.

Fatal. In the wild the seed stays dry on the shrub until the warmth of May.

This source doesn't state how long step 1 lasts.

Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed. — N. C. Deno, 1993 · Ch. 20, KolkowitziaPublic domain
Show the original text
Kolkowitzia (Caprifoliaceae). K. amabilis germ. best with either fresh seed or seed DS 6 m at 70 or 40 in 70(25%, i. t 3 d, 15%/d). Starting the seed at 40 is fatal. The seed is held in a dry state on the shrub all winter and is not shed until the warmth of May when growth starts. Seeds blown off in winter encounters low T and moisture and die.
Seed Germination Theory and Practice, 2nd ed., Ch. 20, Kolkowitzia. Quoted exactly. Every value on this card comes from this record; the step names come from a fixed list.

How each step is done, in Deno’s words, and what Verified and Derived mean.

Germination trials

Readers’ own records of sowing this species, published after review. Share your trial · All trials

Add to My Garden

View species page