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Dombeya elegans (Pink Shrub Dombeya) - A evergreen large shrub to 6 to 12 feet tall with large broad three lobed midgreeen leaves and bright pink clusters of flowers that are in bloom over a long period from fall through winter into spring (nearly year round!).
Plant in full sun to part shade and irrigate occasionally. Cold hardy to 20-25° F. This attractive shrub takes a hard pruning if needed and can be kept as narrow espaliered specimen that adds a tropical feel to the garden
Dombeya elegans as described by the French botanist Eugène Jacob de Cordemoy in 1895 hails from the Island of Reunion in the Mascarene Islands but another plant described using thus same name by the German botanist Karl Moritz Schumann in 1900 is considered a nomen illegitimum (illegitimate name) for the South African Dombeya tiliacea. The name for the genus honors Joseph Dombey, an 18th-century French botanist and the specific epithet is the Latin word meaning "elegant", "fine" or "handsome", all fitting descriptions of this plant.
We received this plant as Dombeya elegans San Gabriel Nursery in 2007 and we have grown it under this name since then but note that it is similar to the Dombeya burgessiae cultivar 'Seminole', a USDA introduction in 1973. There is a nice plant of Dombeya elegans in the courtyard at Madame Ganna Walska Lotusland that is planted along a north facing wall and blooms well while only getting mostly indirect sun in winter.
The information about Dombeya elegans displayed on this web page is based on our research conducted in the nursery's horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also include observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments we receive from others and welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share cultural information that would aid others in growing this plant. |
