Growing Chinese Fringe Flower: Tips at a Glance
Loropetalum chinense is a perennial shrub (and evergreen in warmer climates) with foliage to provide texture and interest as a garden backdrop. Bright pink or red fringe flowers appear in spring.
- Type Flowering Shrub
- Lifespan Perennial
- USDA Zones 7-10
- Light Sun, part shade
- Soil Well-drained
- Design Tip Burgundy leaves
- Companions Chartreuse spirea
- Flowers Pink, red, white
- Peak Season Spring flowers
Chinese Fringe Flower: A Field Guide
Loropetalum chinense sells itself: an evergreen shrub with handsome foliage year round, it’s low maintenance and, as our contributor Kier Holmes writes, “It infuses the landscape with vibrancy even when out of bloom.”
There is plenty of choice when it comes to selecting flower color and shrub size. the Cultivars will grow to a variety of heights (from two to 15 feet), with a range of foliage colors (olive, bronze, burgundy, and fiery red) and flowers (pink, white, and red).
Like its cousins in the witch hazel family, its flowers are wispy with petals that look like delicate ribbons. Chinese fringe flower, however, blooms later (in spring) in the season than witch hazel (which is one of the best flowering shrubs to light up a winter landscape). For more on that topic, see Winter Enchantment: 9 Best Witch Hazels for a Luminous Garden.
Chinese fringe flower is perennial in USDA growing zones 7 and higher, but be warned: It is evergreen only in temperatures about 5 degrees Fahrenheit. In colder weather it will lose its leaves in winter.