Vitex tree diagram ( also name chaste tree ) is a declamatory case of bush or modest tree with attractive spike of lavender - colored flowers that bloom in summertime . Vitex bush and trees are commonly called the chaste tree , chasteberry , monk ’s pepper , or simply vitex . Vitex Tree arise well as magniloquent flowering shrubs in warm , sunny climates . In colder climate , chaste tree diagram grow as small as perennial shrubs .
Chaste Tree ( Vitex agnus - castus ) have many characteristics that make them suitable garden shrub . Apart from the clusters of minor violet flowers , these works have aromatic grayish - green , lanceolate leaf . The large deciduous shrubs have a vase - shaped ontogeny that spreads up and outwards . This attractive landscape plants attractsbutterfliesand pollinators while in bloom during summer and fall .
This clause is a concluded guide to vitex trees . Descriptions and pictures of vitex tree ( chaste tree diagram ) will help identify the best vitex tree cultivars to plant in your garden landscape . At the closing of the article , you ’ll feel some helpful tips on handle for this bush - like tree .
Vitex Trees Vs. Vitex Bush
Vitex is a woody plant that can grow as a shrub ( result ) or as a multi - stemmed shrubby tree diagram ( right )
The woody plantVitex agnus - castusgrows as a large multi - cauline shrub . Although refer to as the vitex Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree or chaste Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree , the vitex plant generally grows as a tidy shaggy-coated bush . But in fond climates , vitex can produce as a small multi - trunked Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree . Typically , vitex bushes grow between 3 and 15 ft . ( 1 – 4.5 mebibyte ) tall , and vitex trees grow between 15 and 20 ft . ( 4.5 – 6 MB ) tall .
Because vitex bushes die back to the ground in colder climates , they only raise as modest shrubs .
Vitex Tree Facts
Vitex agnus - castusis an aromatic shrubby plant in the familyLamiaceae . This intend that chaste trees ( vitex ) are related to herbs such as mint , salvia , thyme , and lavender . TheVitexgenus of flowering plants is consider as metal money of tropic or sub - tropical woody bush . Some species ofVitexalso develop in temperate zones .
Vitex tree mature well in USDA geographical zone 7 through 9 . In quick clime , the large shrub can grow up to 15 ft . ( 4.5 m ) tall and , as a tree , up to 20 ft . ( 6 m ) improbable . In zona 5 and 6 , the shrubby plant go through winter dice - back . However , frost rarely affects the root , and vitex bushes get along back to life-time the undermentioned spring . gruelling pruning in temperate climates promotes inflorescence and uninterrupted bloom .
Vitex agnus - castusis said to have medicinal properties and was used as a tonic for manly and distaff reproductive system .
Many of the vitex flora ’s common names refer to its common herbal uses — for example vitex is also named chaste Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree and monk ’s pepper . Other name for vitex include lilac chastetree , hemp tree diagram , Native American spice , Texas lilac , Abraham ’s balm , and chasteberry .
Vitex Agnus-Castus Tree Leaves
Leaves and flower of vitex Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree
Vitex Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree leaves are redolent palmate compound foliage , each containing five to seven leaflet . The farsighted vitex brochure grow oppositely on the stems . Vitex haslance - shaped leavesthat can grow between 6 ” and 8 ” ( 15 – 20 atomic number 96 ) long . The leaf color is grayish - green on the upper side and gray on the underside . However , some species ofVitexhave spectacular leaf with purple undersides .
Chase trees are deciduous Tree , mean that they miss their farewell in the spill . Before vitex leaves drop curtain , they work a rusty lily-livered - orange tree color .
Looking at pictures of vitex tree leaves , you ’ll note that they resemble cannabis plant . The palmate leaves with prospicient pointed booklet are one reason why vitex Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree also have the namehemp tree .
Crushing chaste Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree leaves releases redolent essential oils . Some people say thatVitex agnus - castusleaves give off a substantial earthy aroma with an scent redolent of sage .
Vitex Tree (Chaste Tree) Flowers
Vitex tree flowers are lilac - lilac , pinkish or white
Chaste trees bring about spikes of fragrant lilac , ashen , pink , or lavender flowers when they bloom in tardy summer . Vitex tree heyday grow in slender , conical efflorescence spike yell panicles . The clustering of tiny pastel - colored flowers are small subway - like flowers ring corollas . These odoriferous heyday give off distinct peppery aromas .
The most common color ofVitex agnus - castusflowers is bluish - purple or light lavender . However , some vitex plants bloom with pinkish orwhite flower . For example , the ‘ Silver Spire ’ chaste tree diagram has flowering spikes of blank flower clustering . TheVitex agnus - castus‘Salina ’s Pink ’ and the gnome vitex shrub ‘ Pink Pinnacle ’ blooming throughout the summer withsoft pink fragrant heyday .
Many people say that pictorial matter of vitex flowers resemble panicle on butterfly stroke George Herbert Walker Bush .
After vitex Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree finish blooming in fall , clump of small black Berry appear . These small vitex fruits resemble calamitous pepper . With their peppery taste and supposed upshot on suppressing desire , the vitex tree diagram also goes by the namemonk ’s pepper .
The fruits of vitex tree diagram look like black peppercorns
Types of Vitex Trees (With Pictures)
countenance ’s look in more item at some of the best examples of chaste trees that you may plant in your backyard to add summer people of color to your garden landscape .
Shoal Creek (Vitex Agnus-Castus‘Shoal Creek’)
Vitex ‘ Shoal Creek ’ is also marketed under the name ‘ Texas Lilac ’
‘ Shoal Creek ’ chaste Tree are small to medium - sized shrubs withpurple or lavender - colored flowers . This multi - caulescent shrub has dense foliage made up of large gray - super C palmate hemp - like leaves . The sensational lineament of ‘ Shoal Creek ’ vitex is the long flowering spike that spring up 1 ft . ( 30 curium ) long .
‘ Shoal Creek ’ vitex trees farm between 10 and 15 ft . ( 3 – 4.5 m ) tall . This vitex cultivar does n’t require pruning in warmer mood and will farm as a bushy bush or can be trained as a lowly multi - trunked tree diagram . rationalise this vitex tree cultivar is helpful to limit its tall emergence .
In colder clime , ‘ Shoal Creek ’ raise as a small recurrent shrub . The redolent shrub dies to the ground in wintertime . However , in spring , the plant regrows , and this tight - grow vitex works can farm between 4 and 7 ft . ( 1.2 – 2.1 G ) in a growing time of year .
As with most vitex Tree , the ‘ Shoal Creek ’ welfare from regular pruning . The best time for snip branch to encourage dim , bushy ontogeny is in winter or early springtime . Pruning also helps to boost the number of flowers that bloom throughout the summer .
The best raise stipulation for this vitex tree are in full sunlight , protect from the cold . industrial plant chaste tree in loose , well - drain soil and keep the ground moist . Once established , this vitex cultivar is a low - maintenanceplant that is tolerant of drouth . ‘ Shoal Creek ’ chaste trees grow salutary as specimen plants , little bushy tree , bombastic bush borders , orfoundation plantings .
‘ Shoal Creek ’ vitex tree are sometimes marketed under the name ‘ Texas Lilac ’ . Horticulturalists fromTexas A&M Universityhave developed 3 character of chaste trees that are called ‘ Texas Superstars ’ . They include ‘ Shoal Creek ’ , ‘ Montrose Purple , ’ and ‘ LeCompte ’ – all market as ‘ ‘ Texas Lilac . ’ These miscellany have orotund and more attractive spikes of flowers liken to the one-time vitex varieties .
Alba Chaste Tree (Vitex Agnus-Castus‘Alba’)
Alba chaste Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree is a with child shrub with white flowers and large palmate compound folio
The ‘ Alba ’ chaste tree is a big bush that bloom in summer with attractive white heyday . The characteristics of this ornamental tree are its lily-white panicles that give off peppery aroma . ‘ Alba ’ vitex leaves are palm-shaped compound and have an vulgar redolence when crushed . Also , small shameful fruits formulate on the tree diagram in late summer and fall .
‘ Alba ’ vitex trees maturate between 10 and 15 foot . ( 3 – 4.5 m ) . The cultivar grows as a large multi - stemmed shrub or little tree . ‘ Alba ’ vitex tree have a vase - forge growth with a rounded crown . As with all vitex trees , magnanimous palm-shaped compound leaf serve identify this tree . Its white flowers are relatively unusual amongVitex agnus - castuscultivars .
‘ Alba ’ chaste shrubs are fast - growing plant , idealistic for cottage gardens , specimen trees , or liner driveways .
Blue Diddley Chaste Tree (Vitex Agnus-Castus‘Blue Diddley’)
‘ Blue Diddley ’ vitex is a modest flowering shrub ideal for stocky gardens
‘ Blue Diddley ’ vitex shrub are dwarf shrub with bluish - over-embellished clusters of tubelike flowers growing in a pyramidic Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe . The stunning flowering spikes contrast nicely against the dark - green foliage . The stocky anthesis bush has a naturally rounded ontogeny habit that is ideal for small garden or border plantings .
DwarfVitex agnus - castus‘Blue Diddley ’ originate between 3 and 6 foot . ( 1 – 2 m ) tall . In northern climates , this tight - grow shrub spring up as a dwarf perennial . In warm climate , the pocket-size vitex plant grows as a average sized shrub or miniature tree .
To further regular flowering throughout the summer , deadhead the flowers . Like most types of vitex tree diagram , this cultivar benefit from annual pruning in winter .
Silver Spire Chaste Tree (Vitex Agnus-Castus‘Silver Spire’)
‘ Silver Spire ’ vitex is a shrub - like tree diagram with white flowers
‘ Silver Spire ’ vitex tree diagram are large flowering shrubs that grow as little Tree in tender climate . The characteristic feature of ‘ Silver Spire ’ chaste trees is their pointed flowering spike made up of low tube - like blank flowers . This vitex cultivar has palmate leave that give off earthy sage scents when crushed .
‘ Silver Spire ’ chaste trees develop between 10 and 15 ft . ( 3 – 4.5 m ) . The shrub - similar tree has a large , rounded pennant formed from obtuse leaf made up of lance - shaped blue - green leaflets .
Like allVitex agnus - castuscultivars , the ‘ Silver Spire ’ kind has different growth habits in warm and stale clime . In temperate regions , the plant is a multi - stemmed shrub that dies back to the ground in winter . The undermentioned leaping , its growth recovers , and it grows as a small , rounded vitex bush with white flowers .
Abbeville Blue Chaste Tree (Vitex Agnus-Castus‘Abbeville Blue’)
‘ Abbeville Blue ’ chaste tree isan attractive medium sized shrub with purple - gamey flowers
‘ Abbeville Blue ’ vitex Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree is a respectable drought - tolerant bush with long spike of fragrant blue - purple summer heyday . This plant has arching lancelike green leave that make up a palm-shaped chemical compound leaf . The dark blue flowers counterpoint nicely with the light fleeceable foliage .
‘ Abbeville Blue ’ chaste trees grow between 10 and 20 ft . ( 3 – 6 m ) tall .
Peacock Chaste Tree (Vitex Altissima)
Vitex Altissima is a large tree with livid - wan purple blossom
The peacock chaste tree diagram is a large type of vitex Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree with whitish tubelike flowers that are tinged with purple and growing on foresightful spikes . Similar to most vitex trees , the Inachis io chaste tree has palmate parting shaped like a hand , with the green oblong - lanceolate leaves taper to a decimal point . After the tree finish blooming , clusters of small pitch-black berry - like stone fruit come out .
TheVitex altissimatree grows between 40 and 65 ft . ( 12 – 20 one thousand ) tall . The Inachis io chaste Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree has upright growth with foliage that grows as an unkempt conelike physical body .
Planting Vitex Trees
Vitex agnus - castustrees are fast - growing shrubs that thrive in loose , loamy soil that has excellent drainage . Before planting a chaste Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree , check that the ground drains well . In addition to well - draining ground , you should set chaste trees where they get plenty of sunlight . Vitex Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree need to uprise where they get at least six minute of sunshine casual tobloom through the summertime .
How to Care for Vitex (Chaste Tree)
Chaste trees are humiliated - maintenance landscape shrubs that flower year after class . Once install , you only have to water vitex trees during hot , dry periods . All you need to do is put a layer ofmulcharound the industrial plant ’s base . Vitex bushes do n’t require fertilizer . The most crucial care necessity is to prune vitex trees every class .
How to Prune Chaste Trees (Vitex Agnus-Castus)
Pruning chaste Tree ( vitex ) every winter helps to operate increase , prepare dense leaf , and further florescence . Deadheading — snip off off spent flowers — is another pruning method acting to ensure you get beautiful flowers all summer long . Chaste tree diagram are forgive when it follow to heavy pruning .
In winter , prune weak vitex stem and thin branch from the shrub ’s center . you could remove most of the twiglike maturation up to the main limb without harming the vitex plant . If you remove outgrowth just above inactive buds , you will encourage fresh growth the following bound . you could even cut branches back to the master trunk if necessary .
You may need to prune vitex Tree back to the flat coat in moth-eaten climates , such as USDA zones 5 and 6 . Frost kill any growth above land anyway , so you wo n’t damage the plant . The vitex tree diagram roots withstand hoar , and the shrub will regrow with singular pace the following spring .
Snip off drained blossom during spring and summer to encourage blooming through fall . Deadheading chaste tree flowers allows the tree to concentrate energy into get new blossom rather than producing seeds .
Vitex Tree Problems
ascendant rot is the only major job affecting chaste trees . The best way to avoid beginning rot is to implant the vitex Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree in well - enfeeble soil and only urine it occasionally during hot weather . Chaste tree develop best in loose dirt that is slightly moist .
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