Sensational Seven-Son Flower
Flowering shrubs and trees in early autumn can be hard to come by, especially ones that boast multiple seasons of interest when not in flower. Heptacodium miconoides is objectively quite the opposite: foliage perfectly designed for providing shade on hot summer days acts as the backdrop for late summer flower buds that emerge chartreuse-tinged-ivory, unfurling to fragrant pollinator magnets in September, transforming to become a lipstick red “second bloom” in mid-autumn, and finally culminating in a fantastical display of exfoliating bark that can sometimes be seen whispering a delicate, papery song in brisk winter breezes. While winter is thankfully still a ways away, let’s bask in the ornamental oddity that is the twice-blooming floral structure of seven-son flower and the pollinators that so graciously enjoy its bounty.
