Caryopteris 'Gold Crest'

Caryopteris, bluebeard, or blue mist spirea, is a favorite shrub of ours.  This year we purchased 'Gold Crest' starts and have been surprised by them.  The foliage starts out in the spring an intense golden and slowly greens to a striking yellow-green.  Once the blooms start appearing in late July the butterflies, hover flies, and bees go wild.  The cooler nights of the oncoming fall season really intensify the foliage.  This is such an awesome color duo  We suspect them to bloom until late October like the rest of the bluebeards.  This late season bloom is such a reward for pollinators and butterflies before the cold sets in.  Overall gold crest has performed nicely in containers, seems to have more blooms than the others in our garden, and the contrasting gold to blue makes it a top notch shrub for landscaping.  These are easily maintained with just an annual trimming and fertilizing.  We highly recommend this variety as it is a landscaper and nature lovers dream.
Mature Plant Size: 30" Tall, 30" Spread  
Bloom Time: Late June - September
Light Exposure: Full Sun/Partial Shade - best foliage color is in full sun
Soil Type/pH: Well-drained/6.0-7.0
Hardiness Zones: 6-9
Container Size: 4.5" Pot
Fertilizer: Apply compost or an all-purpose granular fertilizer around plants in early spring.  Go light on the fertilizer as they are low feeders.
Water:  Monitor new plants for adequate moisture.  Water in deep and allow the top to dry between applications.  Once plants are established (after about a year) only supplement water when in drought situations.
Additional care:  Trim back dead foliage and prune back to 12" in early spring before leaves emerge if a lower growing shrub is prefered.  Pruning back in this manner will encourage more branching and bloom set.

Plant Patent: 32310 - Cannot be propagated without proper consent