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Ornamentalshrub ornamentalStraightforward

Weigela

Weigela florida

A dependable late-spring shrub covered in funnel-shaped flowers for a few weeks, and dull for the rest of the year unless you buy one of the purple- or gold-leaved forms — which is the honest reason to choose one, and the reason the plain green kinds have fallen out of fashion.

Position
Full sun or Partial shade
Water
moderate demand
Drainage
Moisture-retentive
Grows to
150–250 cm × 150–250 cm
Hardiness
H6
Flowers
May and June
Difficulty
Straightforward

August

Nothing to do

No sowing, planting, harvesting or pruning window falls in August.

Weigela’s year

Resolved for United Kingdom (general). Every window is stored against a climate event rather than a date, so a late frost pocket runs later than the band shows. What else August calls for.

ActivityJFMAMJJASOND
PlantMarch. April. October. November.
In flowerMay. June.
PruneJune. July.

Timing that travels

The band above resolves this plant's windows into months for one region. These are the windows themselves, stored against a climate event rather than a date — which is the form that survives being carried to a colder garden, a frost pocket, or next year.

Conditions it needs

Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Frost
Very hardy
Hardiness rating
H6 (RHS)
Grows best at
12–26 °C
Soil
Loam, Clay, Chalky
Soil pH
6–7.5
Drainage
Moisture-retentive
Water needs
moderate
Drought
moderate tolerance
Waterlogging
moderate tolerance
Heat
good tolerance
Wind and exposure
moderate tolerance
Where these figures come from
LightSourced guidancemoderate confidence
  • Royal Horticultural Society: Weigela — position

Checked 2026-08-13

FrostSourced guidancehigh confidence
  • Royal Horticultural Society: Weigela — hardiness

Checked 2026-08-13

Hardiness ratingSourced guidancemoderate confidence
  • Royal Horticultural Society: RHS hardiness ratings

Checked 2026-08-13

Grows best atSourced guidancemoderate confidence
  • Royal Horticultural Society: Weigela — temperature

Checked 2026-08-13

SoilSourced guidancemoderate confidence
  • Royal Horticultural Society: Weigela — soil

Checked 2026-08-13

Soil pHSourced guidancemoderate confidence
  • Plant Finder — Missouri Botanical Garden: Weigela florida — culture

Checked 2026-08-13

DrainageSourced guidancemoderate confidence
  • Royal Horticultural Society: Weigela — soil

Checked 2026-08-13

Water needsHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

DroughtHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

WaterloggingHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

HeatHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

Wind and exposureHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

On your soil

Computed by comparing this plant's recorded requirements against each soil's recorded characteristics. A recorded horticultural fact overrides the comparison where GrowingHQ holds one.

SoilVerdictWhy
Heavy clayPrefers this soilHeavy clay suits Weigela as it stands: The pH suits it: it wants 6 to 7.5, and this soil is in that range. Clay is among the soils it is recorded as suiting. The soil holds moisture, which saves a great deal of watering.
SandyGrows well hereWeigela grows perfectly well on sandy without special measures, though it is not the soil it would choose.
Chalky and alkalineGrows well hereWeigela grows perfectly well on chalky and alkaline without special measures, though it is not the soil it would choose.
LoamPrefers this soilLoam suits Weigela as it stands: The pH suits it: it wants 6 to 7.5, and this soil is in that range. Loam is among the soils it is recorded as suiting. The soil holds moisture, which saves a great deal of watering.
SiltyGrows well hereWeigela grows perfectly well on silty without special measures, though it is not the soil it would choose.
Peaty and acidGrows well hereWeigela grows perfectly well on peaty and acid without special measures, though it is not the soil it would choose.
Shallow over rockGrows well hereWeigela grows perfectly well on shallow over rock without special measures, though it is not the soil it would choose.
Made ground and urban soilGrows well hereWeigela grows perfectly well on made ground and urban soil without special measures, though it is not the soil it would choose.

Not sure which you have? Four hand tests will settle it.

Space and spacing

Mature height
150–250 cm
Mature spread
150–250 cm
Rooting depth
50 cm
Spacing
120–180 cm apart
Where these figures come from
Mature heightHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

Mature spreadHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

Rooting depthHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

SpacingSourced guidancemoderate confidence
  • Royal Horticultural Society: Weigela — spacing

Checked 2026-08-13

How far apart to plant weigelaThree weigela plants drawn in a row at their recorded spacing of 120–180 cm between plants. The spacing is drawn to scale against a one metre rule; the plants themselves are symbols rather than scale drawings, so the distance between them is the part to read.120–180 cmone metre
Measured centre to centre. Plants set closer than this compete for light and water long before they look crowded, and the crowding cannot be undone once they are in.

Habit and ultimate size

What the plant becomes, rather than what it is when you buy it. The gap between the two is where most planting mistakes live.

Foliage
Deciduous
In a container
Not a realistic container plant
Where these figures come from
FoliageSourced guidancehigh confidence
  • Royal Horticultural Society: Weigela florida — foliage

Checked 2026-08-13

In a containerHorticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

Growth rate
Moderate — roughly 30–60 cm a year
Ultimate height
150–250 cm
Ultimate spread
150–250 cm
Time to reach it
10–15 yearsSourced guidance
Where these figures come from
Growth rateSourced guidancemoderate confidence
  • Royal Horticultural Society: Weigela florida — growth rate

Checked 2026-08-13

Ultimate heightSourced guidancemoderate confidence
  • Royal Horticultural Society: Weigela florida — ultimate height

Checked 2026-08-13

Ultimate spreadSourced guidancemoderate confidence
  • Royal Horticultural Society: Weigela florida — ultimate spread

Checked 2026-08-13

Time to reach itSourced guidancelow confidence
  • Royal Horticultural Society: Weigela florida — time to ultimate size

Checked 2026-08-13

Cutting it back. Regenerates from the base if cut hard in late winter, losing that year's flowers. The gentler rotation — a fifth of the oldest stems removed after flowering each year — keeps it in flower permanently and is the reason a well-handled weigela never needs renovating at all.
source

Horticultural consensusmoderate confidence

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

Where and how you can grow it

Each way of growing is assessed separately, and “not assessed” is a real answer rather than a gap we have filled in with a guess.

MethodSuitabilityWhat it needs
Open groundWell suited
source

Sourced guidancemoderate confidence

  • Royal Horticultural Society: Growing method suitability

Checked 2026-08-13

Traditional dug bedWell suited
source

Sourced guidancemoderate confidence

  • Royal Horticultural Society: Growing method suitability

Checked 2026-08-13

Raised bedWell suited
source

Sourced guidancemoderate confidence

  • Royal Horticultural Society: Growing method suitability

Checked 2026-08-13

ContainerMarginal
source

Sourced guidancemoderate confidence

  • Royal Horticultural Society: Growing method suitability

Checked 2026-08-13

Growing it

  • PruningCut a fifth to a quarter of the oldest stems to the ground each year immediately after flowering, rather than shortening every branch. Weigela flowers on the previous season's wood and an all-over trim removes next year's display while producing a dense, twiggy, flowerless dome — the shape most neglected-then-sheared weigelas end up as.
  • PlantingThe coloured-leaf forms need sun to hold their colour. A purple weigela in shade goes green and muddy, which is a light problem rather than a soil one and cannot be fed away.
Where this guidance comes from
PruningSourced guidancehigh confidence
  • Royal Horticultural Society: Weigela — pruning

Checked 2026-08-13

PlantingSourced guidancemoderate confidence
  • Plant Finder — Missouri Botanical Garden: Weigela florida — culture

Checked 2026-08-13

Where to make a pruning cutFour stems compared. The first is cut cleanly on a slope about five millimetres above an outward-facing bud, sloping away from it, and is labelled correct. The second is cut too far above the bud, leaving a long stub that dies back. The third is cut too close, into the bud itself, which loses the shoot. The fourth is cut sloping towards the bud so rain runs onto it rather than away, which rots it. In every case the bud points outwards, away from the centre of the plant.Correct5 mm, sloping awayToo highstub dies backToo closebud lostSloping inrain sits on the bud
The bud you cut to becomes the new shoot, and it grows in the direction it points — which is why an outward-facing bud opens the plant up and an inward-facing one crosses the middle.

Sources for this page

GrowingHQ editorial synthesis · Plant Finder · Royal Horticultural Society

Each figure on this page carries its own citation, under the “where these figures come from” note in its section. Record last reviewed 2026-08-14.