Spiraea betulifolia 'Tor Gold' (Glow Girl Spirea)


Michael's Opinion

The Spiraea betulifolia is a compact deciduous shrub that would accent a wide rage of planting schemes. This shrub attracts wildlife such as butterflies and is complemented by its hardiness in cold climates and overall stable plant health- making it uniquely valuable. Glow girl, however is not native to Canada and is a much more compact cultivar variety from the original. This shrub works best when massing but its hardiness allows for a wide range planting options. Its yearly interest is one of the selling points for this plant, sprouting bright yellow foliage in spring and is then complemented by showy clusters of white flowers in mid summer holding that until late summer. Autumn brings stunning a array of foliage from colours of orange, to red and even purple.

Botanical Information

FamilyRosaceae
GenusSpiraea
Speciesbetulifolia
Cultivar'Tor Gold'
Registered NameGlow Girl®
Patent NumberUSPPAF, Can PBRAF
CategoryWoody
TypeShrub (deciduous)
OriginIntroduced by Proven Winners.

Details

USDA Hardiness Zone3
USDA Hardiness Ref.
Canadian Hardiness Zone1
Canada Hardiness Ref.
RHS Hardiness ZoneH7
RHS Hardiness Ref.
Temperature (°C)-40 - (-35)
Temperature (°F)-40 - (-30)
Height60 cm
Spread60 cm
GrowthMedium
Flowering PeriodMay, June

Description and Growing Information

General DescriptionSpiraea betulifolia is a medium sized, dense multi-stemmed deciduous shrub that has light green-yellow foliage with pure white flowers.
ID CharacteristicThis shrub features rounded oval shaped leaves with bright yellow-green foliage. Flower buds with hints of red will flower into flattened clusters of 5-petaled white flowers.
LandscapeWonderful accent plant or used in mass planting, shrub borders and rock gardens.
PropagationThe main method of propagation is softwood cuttings. Subsequently, seeding, layering, and division are alternate methods. Softwood cutting in early summer. Pruning should be done in late winter/early spring once the threat of intense cold temperatures passes. Propagation by seed- collect in autumn, sow the seed in autumn and at a preferred temperature of 20°C.
CultivationGrow preferably in moist, well drained soils. Tolerates partial shade. Remove faded flower clusters to encourage additional bloom. It is highly tolerant of urban runoff pollution and could succeed and flourish in even city environments.
PestsThis shrub is generally pest and disease free. However rare, it can be susceptible to pests and diseases like root rot, leaf spot, leaf roller and scale. Deer resistant.
HabitatHorticultural origin.
Bark/Stem DescriptionSmooth red-brown and is not particularly showy. New growth will appear with a slightly deeper red tint but the change is not notable.
Flower/Leaf Bud DescriptionSmall buds will appear at the end of branches, brown-red in colour with no scales present and blooms in mid summer.
Leaf DescriptionHas a pinnately simple toothed leaf arrangement with ovate to elliptical shape. Mature growth foliage measures from 3-4 cm in length. Blooms in spring. Retains its bright yellow foliage into the summer months, turning an amazing array of orange, red, and purple.
Flower DescriptionDense showy perfect clusters of pure white flowers, emerging in mid June. 5-pettaled and a corymbs flower arrangement, very fragrant to pollinators and butterflies. There is no peduncle, the stamen is longer in relation to the length of petals and the anther is a yellow-white.
Colour DescriptionThe foliage of this shrub emerges into a stunning yellow colour in spring and stays yellow until flowers mature and start to fade in mid-summer. At which point the leaves begin to change into a green-yellow, leading into autumn which alters the foliage to an eye catching array of orange, red and even purple.
Texture DescriptionThis is a Medium textured plant. It is unique from other smaller shrubs with its less defined foliage.

Photographs