Dasiphora fruticosa
Shrubby cinquefoil
Common names: Bush cinquefoil
At a glance
- Light
- Full sun
- Hardiness
- Hardy
- Pruning
- Feb–Mar
- Flowering
- Jun–Sep
Photo: Walter Siegmund (talk) · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Description
The shrubby cinquefoil, botanically Dasiphora fruticosa, is a modest dwarf shrub from the rose family that blooms from June to September. Its yellow, occasionally white or pinkish flowers appear continuously on new growth, so the shrub stands almost flowerless for only a few weeks. With a typical height of 40 to 100 cm, it remains low and is well suited for garden borders, beds, and low hedges. It is frost‑hardy, tolerates wind and poor soils, and is one of the easiest‑to‑care‑for flowering shrubs in the garden.
Care instructions
The shrubby cinquefoil prefers a sunny to full‑sun position, where it produces most of its flowers. The soil should be well‑drained and somewhat sparse; it does not tolerate waterlogging. Water newly planted shrubs regularly, while established plants can cope with dry periods. A pruning in early spring, around early March (week 9‑10), keeps the growth compact and promotes flowering on new wood. Cultivars such as 'Goldfinger' or 'Abbotswood' are especially robust and suitable for beginners.
The care notes were machine-translated from German.
Garden year
FloweringJun–Sep
Soil & site
Soil pH
Soil type
well-drained, lean, dry, lime-loving
Shrubby cinquefoil likes free-draining, rather poor soil and tolerates drought well once established. It dislikes waterlogging intensely, so drainage made of gravel or sand helps on heavy soils. Chalky soil is ideal, but neutral sites work well too.
Feeding
Light feeder
Shrubby cinquefoil needs hardly any feeding and does very well on poor soils. A thin application of compost in spring is quite enough to supply it with nutrients. Too much fertiliser tends to lead to soft growth with few flowers, so it is better to stay restrained.
Pruning
A light cut back in late winter keeps shrubby cinquefoil compact and encourages abundant flowering. Every few years a stronger rejuvenation pruning is worthwhile, in which you remove old, woody shoots down to ground level. The shrub tolerates cutting back well and reliably regrows.
Overwintering
Shrubby cinquefoil is hardy and needs no special protection. Only very young plants in their first winter appreciate a layer of mulch over the root zone. Specimens grown in pots are best placed in a sheltered spot against a house wall.
Propagation
Methods
- Cuttings
- Division
- Layering
You take semi-ripe cuttings in summer from this year's shoots and insert them in free-draining compost. Larger, multi-stemmed shrubs can be divided in spring or autumn by digging them up and replanting the pieces straight away. Layering also works well: nick a shoot close to the ground, bury it and weigh it down until it forms roots of its own.
Companion planting
Companion planting is partly traditional gardening lore. Where the reason is known, it is given.
Some of these explanations were machine-translated.
For your garden
Grow Shrubby cinquefoil yourself
Gartenkern tells you when frost is coming, when to sow and when to harvest, for your location.
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