What a beautiful plant. It must be a member of the pea family by the look of that close-up. Does it have any scent?

Libby

Mary lu,

That is breath-taking! It sure compliments the color of the house too. I looked this plant up on Dave's Garden and there are some photos but they look puny in comparison to yours. Nice job.

bloominganne

It is so hard to gauge the size of it from pictures, especially as there is really nothing to reference it. But it is HUGE! Maybe I can get DH to take a picture of me next to it tomorrow night. It is dark out here now. :-( Not liking how early it is getting dark now that fall is around the corner....

I never heard of bush clover. It is spectacular! Does it have a sweet fragrance?

Lorna

Mary lu,
We are in similar zones. I'll have to check into bush clover. I'd have to keep it smaller than yours, though.

I'm not liking how early it's getting dark either.

Sue

As I was clicking on this, I was thinking, "is that the pretty plant from a couple years ago?". Yep, it sure is!

Kathy

WOW! It's gorgeous! Do you have car wrecks in front of your house with people stopping to stare? And I agree with Bloominganne--it's perfect with the color of your house!

Oh my goodness! It looks like a fountain of blooms. It's beautiful.

I remember you sharing the pictures last year...boy has it grown since then.

I have never seen anything like that before.....WOW!!!

Nancy.

Spectacular! I've never heard of bush clover, do you know what the Latin name is?

That shrub must be a traffic-stopper when in bloom!

Thanks everyone.... :-)

libby and lorna...no, it really does not have a strong fragrance. But boy the bees sure love it. Tonight there were so many bees flying round and on it, just flitting from bloom to bloom. Tried to get a picture but they just kept moving.

Sue, from what I just read recently, some do cut it back a second time in early summer to help maintain the size. I have not done so yet, but may consider it next year. Although space is not really an issue where it is planted. I have spring blooming plants planted near it and the bush clover is fairly small when the spring plants bloom. My bush is actually 2 bushes planted about 3-4 feet apart. However you can't tell as they grow together nicely. I had no idea how large it would get when I planted them.

Kathy, yup it's that plant again. I can't believe how much larger it seems to get every year! I love that it gives the yard fall color.

remontant, actually it is planted on the back side of the house toward the alley. I do notice an increase in the traffic in the alley at this time of year though...:-) Yes, it does look nice with the house color, but we will be changing the color of the house in spring. Hopefully whatever color we decide on will look nice with it as well.

Nancy, I had not heard of it before planting it either. It was an experiment on my part. Really had no idea how it would do in my zone as it is hardy to zone 5 and we are considered a zone 4, but we are in what I believe to be a micro climate. But whatever, it appears to like it.

jkom51...It's Latin name is Lespedeza thunbergii 'Pink Fountain'. Hope that helps. If you Google it you will find several places that sell it. There are several, with one being white as well.

It is just gorgeous. I have been meaning to order one since seeing yours the first time you posted a picture.

I can't understand why you never see one in the nurseries here, makes me wonder if they would do well in our area. If I get one, it will have to be mail order.

I have never seen them in nurseries here either. Not sure why. I did mail order the ones I have. As I said previously, it was an experiment. Supposedly they are hardy to zone 5 and are drought tolerant once established. I know we have been very dry this year, plus mine are planted where the dryer vent is vented out, and I seldom water them. Doesn't appear to have hurt them.

I remember the pictures from last year, too. I had read about the plant in a book by Margot Rochester and I already wanted one and your pictures made we want it even more! So when I found a poor little lopsided orphan one in the fall sale at Woodley's I had to buy it.

I petted it through the winter indoors and set it out in spring. It hasn't grown much at all but, bless its little heart, it did have a flower or two on it anyway last week. I just hope it survives the winter and grows like yours has.

Gorgeous!! Just stunning!

Absolutely beautiful!
What a lovely color to see this time of the year, too. I would love to have one too, but my lust for plants is getting a bit much. Where am I going to put yet another plant?
No! I can't. I will just enjoy yours.
Thanks for sharing. You have done very well by it.
I would take starts off of it and plant one out in front, too. Wowzers, what a beautiful plant.
BTW, I love the color of your house. Perfect for a cottage and with a cottage garden. Bright, colorful and unique! Me like.

Annie

Oh my, it's a beauty, I had never heard of this one before seeing it on this forum, I've never seen it for sale around here either. Does it even grow up here? I have a perfect spot for one out front, Mmmmm, I'm going to look into this.

Annette

I wait to see pictures of this beautiful bush every year MaryLu. It is stunning as always and bigger than ever. It just goes so perfectly with your home.

FlowerLady

lindakimy, I'm sure yours will do well also. I was hesitant as we are zone 4 and it is classed as a zone 5 and above plant. But has never faltered here. I planted it in 2004 I believe, and we have had a few rough winters since then.

Annie, there's always room for one more? :-) I almost hate to mention it, but the house color is changing next spring. We will be building a garage then and with that much more siding, the pink/salmon would just be too much. Right now we are thinking of using the green that is on the trim for the siding color and picking a different color for trim.

Annette, not sure how your zones are classed. Are they the same as ours?

Flowerlady...yes, bigger every year! Thinking maybe next year I should give it a second prune in early summer.

Glad that everyone is enjoying seeing the pictures. It really is a sight to see!

I'm in Zone 8 PNW, which is different from the zone 8 Nell's in. Summer highs in the 70's low 80's that is if we get a summer. Winters are usually mild but once in a while we get a stinker. One winter it went down to 0 but that is rare.

Annette

Annette, I think it should do well for you with those temps. Our highs can get into the upper 90's and once in a while 100 and our winters down to -25 or so. Much hotter summers and colder winters. This year was an exception, as we only reached 90 one time. But it has been exceptionally dry.

It is listed for zones 5-8. See link below.

Here is a link that might be useful: Klehm's Song Sparrow

Mary Lu, your bush clover is stunning! Great photos.

Stephanie

Oh, here's the chance to say that my Bush Clover overwintered just fine. It was newly planted last fall, and per instructions from posters here I cut it way back a couple of weeks ago and there is new growth coming on. I'm anxious to see what it does this year.

schoolhouse, I think you will love it! Considering it was a plant I had never heard of or even seen, I took a chance. Have never regretted it. My DH teases me about the "monster" but he loves it too.

Were you able to find it locally, or did you mail order it?

I found it locally and it was the first time this nursery carried them. One of the workers there had one and convinced me to give it a try. It was already a good size when I planted it and in bloom. The only misgiving I have is that I may not have planted it in the best spot because the shrub may crowd everything eventually. But I was advised by people here on how to keep it in check, so we shall see. I bought it to replace a large clump of old phlox that wasn't performing well anymore (mildew,skinny legs)and the Bush Clover is almost the same color as the phlox had been.

Right now, it's surrounded by alliums and tulips, and then later phlox in front and to the sides.

That is such a beautiful plant, I wonder why I have never seen one growing in our area?

The Missouri Botanical Gardens in St. Louis has it. I wonder if our heat and humidity would do it in?

It sure is a beauty!

That is absolutely beautiful. And your pictures are wonderful.

Well, as a result of this thread, I now am the proud owner of 2 Bush Clover bushes!

I looked for them online, then found a wholesaler who directed me to a retail outlet for their plants. I picked them up yesterday, and the lady says they grow just beautifully here!

If heat and humidity do it in, I will let you know, because goodness knows, we have more than our share of that!

Thanks for posting this. I love a new and different plant.

Janie