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Glossy abelia

Abelia x grandiflora

Common names:
glossy abelia

Content Detail

A small to medium, rounded shrub with arching stems. The late spring-blooming, highly fragrant, bell-shaped white flowers have a pink blush. The dark green, glossy leaves turn a bronze-purple in autumn. It is effective as a low hedge, specimen plant, en masse, and on slopes for erosion control.

  • Family (English) Honeysuckle
  • Family (botanic) Caprifoliaceae
  • Tree or plant type Shrub
  • Foliage Deciduous (seasonally loses leaves)
  • Native locale Non-native
  • Size range Low-growing shrub (under 3 feet), Small shrub (3-5 feet)
  • Light exposure Full sun (6 hrs direct light daily), Partial sun / shade (4-6 hrs light daily)
  • Hardiness zones Zone 6 (City of Chicago), Zone 7, Zone 8, Zone 9
  • Soil preference Moist, well-drained soil
  • Tolerances Dry sites
  • Season of interest late spring, early summer, midsummer, late summer, mid fall
  • Flower color and fragrance Fragrant, Pink, Yellow
  • Shape or form Arching, Round
  • Growth rate Fast

Size & Form:

Glossy abelia is a multi-stemmed, rounded shrub with arching branches reaching 3 to 6 feet high and wide.

Native geographic location and habitat:

Hybrid. Cross between Abelia chinensis x Abelia uniflora.

Attracts birds, pollinators, or wildlife:

Birds and butterflies are attracted to glossy abelia.

Bark color and texture:

The bark is fine-textured on thin, reddish-purple stems. Older stems have bark that peels in strips.

Leaf or needle arrangement, size, shape, and texture:

Glossy abelia has opposite, simple, ovate, glossy, dark green leaves that turn to bronzy-purple in the fall.

Flower arrangement size and shape:

Flowers bloom on new wood.  White, highly fragrant flowers with a pink flush that are bell-shaped and 1 to 1 1/2 inches long, carried in loose panicles. 

Fruit, cone, nut and seed descriptions:

Non-sterile, leathery, one-seeded, dry, dehiscent fruit.

Plant care:

It grows best in full sun to part shade in moist, organic, rich, well-drained soil Site in a protected area since it can be prone to winter dieback. Prune away any dieback in spring.

List of pests and diseases:

No serious pest problems.

Pinky Bells® (Abelia x grandiflora ‘Lynn’):

This cultivar gets lavender-pink pendulous flowers. It grows 2 to 3 feet high and 3 to 4 feet wide.

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