Spirea 'Goldmound' Spring, Summer & Fall
Yesterday Cameron from Defining Your Home Garden did a post about my favorite little ornamental shrub “Spirea”. Sometimes I think we are on the same wavelength because I was already planning my post about the same subject for today. 😉 I have three of the cultivar ‘Goldmound’ in my garden which is a hybrid of ‘Goldflame’. It is deciduous but leaves out early in the spring (which is now) and provides three seasons of interest. In the photos above you can see the way it looks from Spring through Fall. The tiny masses of bright pink blossoms it sports in early summer look pretty striking against the lime green foliage. If you deadhead the spent blooms it will continue to put out random blooms throughout the summer and early fall. I love this plant so much I would love to add some of the other cultivars to my garden such as ‘Magic Carpet’ which is shown on Cameron’s blog and ‘Little Princess’. For small spaces this is a great option for structure and color 8- 9 months out of the year. Here is some additional information about this wonderful ornamental shrub for the garden:
- Hardy in Zone: 3-8
- Deciduous
- Height: 3′ (more like 2′ in my garden)
- Spread: 2-4′ (more like 18-24″ in my garden)
- Grows very fast
- Tolerant of most soil types
- Blooms in Early Summer
- Bright pink blooms
- Average moisture
- Part -Full Sun conditions
- Foliage goes from yellow to lime green to orange & red in the fall.
Perennial Garden Lover 
Posted by Darla on March 28, 2009 at 6:56 am
There are the huge white spirea throughtout our town and they are beautiful in Spring!
Those are pretty too Darla! These smaller cultivars fit my garden better though 🙂
Posted by Rose on March 28, 2009 at 8:15 am
I always think of the large spirea bushes we used to have growing everywhere when I was
young, when I think of spirea. But I really like these small compact varieties; the fall foliage
is really appealing.
Enjoyed yesterday’s post–another ingenious way to solve a gardening problem!
These compact cultivar work really well in smaller spaces vs their larger siblings. Thanks Rose, I’m glad you enjoyed yesterday’s post. 🙂
Posted by Dave on March 28, 2009 at 8:36 am
You should try propagating hardwood cuttings of your spirea. They do very well. I have five little spireas in pots as a result and one other spirea that’s been growing in the front garden for 2 years now.
Thanks for the info Dave, I will have to give that a try. I would love to have more of these, and you can’t beat free. 🙂
Posted by lynn on March 28, 2009 at 9:06 am
Pretty shrub Racquel..I love anything with the yellow/chartreusse color!
Lynn
Thanks Lynn, I love this color combination too! 🙂
Posted by Janet on March 28, 2009 at 9:09 am
I have the Goldflame and just love it. I bought my mom a Goldmound. It is also nice. There was an interesting one in the new Fine Gardening magazine that came yesterday. Ogon. I really enjoy the foliage color. Do you know this one?
I’ve never heard of Ogon, I will have to check it out Janet. Thanks!
Posted by tina on March 28, 2009 at 9:35 am
I love these little shrubs. They are SO versatile. And easy to divide too to make more. You sure can’t have too many. Yes, we garden bloggers are so often on the same sheet of music. It is pretty cool!
And they look great combined with perennials in the borders. I will have to try my hand at either division or propogation. Thanks for the tip! It is pretty cool, that’s the second or third time me & her did this. 🙂
Posted by cindee on March 28, 2009 at 10:56 am
I love your spirea. I have a couple different ones but not a goldflame. I will have to add that to my list(-:
Thanks Cindee, they are such wonderful shrubs for the garden. 🙂
Posted by Susie on March 28, 2009 at 12:50 pm
These are great shrubs. I was just talking to a customer at work yesterday about them. Yours looks great! Somehow that doesn’t surprise me!
And they grow pretty quickly too. Thanks Susie, aren’t you sweet! 😉
Posted by nhnursery on March 28, 2009 at 12:50 pm
It is difficult to go wrong with any spirea. There are many varities to choose from and you can really create a focal point in your beds with the right choices.
Thanks, I really think they blend well with other ornamental shrubs and perennials. I will be looking to add more varieties soon. 🙂
Posted by Laura on March 28, 2009 at 1:37 pm
There are a lot of people in my area (northeast Illinois) that think Spirea are over-used. I don’t feel the same. I have ‘Magic Carpet’ in my front landscape and some my husband salvaged from work (possibly ‘Anthony Waterer’ and another cultivar) in a bed by the sidewalk. The rabbits seem to like them but since they grow so fast, it doesn’t really matter!
I see them alot here too, but they are such great plants it doesn’t bother me. They grow quickly and are pretty drought tolerant. I love Magic Carpet, it really has a nice punch of color on it. Anthony Waterer is a pretty one too. They do grow fast I noticed. I don’t have a problem with rabbits or deer which I’m thankful for. Thanks for stopping by Laura!
Posted by Grace on March 28, 2009 at 1:51 pm
Racquel~~ Did you see my post about my newbie: Spiraea japonica ‘Pink Ice’? I thought ‘Neon Flash’ was about over the top but I think I might have a new favorite.
Hi Grace, your new addition ‘Pink Ice’ looks great! Can’t wait to see it when it matures, they grow so fast that it will probably look fantastic come fall. I’ve never seen Neon Flash, sounds like the name speaks for itself, lol. 🙂
Posted by Robin on March 28, 2009 at 2:58 pm
Our builder put three into the front flower bed, but I had to move them because the space was way too small for them. I lost all but one. I do enjoy its sweet little pink blooms!
That’s a shame Robin, but according to Dave they are easy to propogate or divide if that helps. Their blossoms are pretty sweet aren’t they? 🙂
Posted by Monica on March 28, 2009 at 5:49 pm
And there are so many kinds of spirea, too. Truly a versatile species!
They truly are a versatile species Monica! 😉
Posted by Beckie on March 28, 2009 at 6:06 pm
Goldmound looks like a great little shrub. I’m afraid I don’t know much about the various types of them. The ones we have here are the very old fashioned kind with long branches of white blooms in the spring and then kind of pitiful looking the rest of the year. I will have to check these newer ones out.
It really is Beckie, I just adore it. 🙂 I’m not too crazy about the larger varieties, mainly because I don’t have room for them. But these smaller compact cultivars are fabulous.
Posted by greenwalks on March 29, 2009 at 2:11 am
I’m not really familiar with this plant, thanks for the info. I just bought a false spirea, wonder if it’s at all related? I think probably not. A bit worried since I just read it suckers a lot. Didn’t say that on the tag at the nursery, of course!
It was my pleasure Karen to share some info about this plant. I don’t think the False Spirea is related to this species. Nope the nurseries never mention the bad qualities on the tags do they?!
Posted by mothernaturesgarden on March 29, 2009 at 6:50 am
I have a pink one that never seems to get more that a foot tall. It was already here when we moved in. It is just lost in its space. I may have to move it to fully appreciate it.
Mine are about 18″-20″ tall Donna. Always nice to discover great existing plants when you move into a new property. It really deserves a place of distinction. 🙂
Posted by Chandramouli.S on March 29, 2009 at 7:33 am
That should be a great addition to any garden, Racquel! I love the name, Goldenflame – so apt!
It really is a wonderful plant for any garden Chandramouli. Isn’t that a great name, so appropriate for the coloring too. 🙂
Posted by Cameron (Defining Your Home Garden) on March 29, 2009 at 8:24 am
Racquel,
Thanks for the mention. We had guests yesterday so I didn’t make my blog rounds to visit everyone. The spirea are really full of leaves this morning. The magic carpet are completely rusty-red color. – Cameron
Hi Cameron, you are quite welcome. I hope you had a nice visit with your guests yesterday. All this rain really is helping them leaf out quickly I noticed. Magic Carpet has a wonderful color to it, must add that one to my garden soon. 🙂
Posted by Dee on March 29, 2009 at 8:38 am
I like the spireas. They are good hardy plants and easy to care for. You might also try ‘Ogon.’ It blooms white in early spring. Has chartreuse leaves which turn to a green and then back to a gold in fall. It is a lovely plant too.~~Dee
That’s what make them so great for the perennial border Dee. Thanks for the suggestion about ‘Ogon’, Janet mentioned this variety too. Sounds like another wonderful addition for my garden. 🙂