Abelia 'Kaleidoscope'
Abelia x grandiflora 'Kaleidoscope' · Caprifoliaceae Popular
A compact abelia whose leaves change through the year: lime and yellow in spring, gold in summer, and orange and fiery red in autumn and winter.
- Size
- 2½ ft tall, 3½ ft wide
- Zones
- 6 to 9
- Light
- Full sun to part sun
- Flowers
- Mid June to early October
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Specimen
A bed built around abelia 'Kaleidoscope'
The planner designed this bed around abelia 'Kaleidoscope' when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) English border in zone 6, full sun. It chose the other plants from the 966 that suit those conditions, and says below why abelia 'Kaleidoscope' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Abelia 'Kaleidoscope' × 1, white
- 2 Alpine aster × 4, purple
- 3 Creeping phlox 'Candy Stripe' × 11, pink
- 4 False sunflower 'Summer Nights' × 3, yellow
- 5 Switchgrass 'Cheyenne Sky' × 3, purple
- 6 Spurge 'Blackbird' × 3, purple leaves
- 7 Schubert's allium × 2, pink
- 8 Hyacinth × 7, blue
Why this plant
- The only dense clusters. The others are daisies, open bowls, airy sprays and others. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
- The only white. White sits between stronger colours and calms them.
- Part of the bed's structure. Shrubs and grasses keep their shape when the perennials die down. So does switchgrass 'Cheyenne Sky'.
Why here
- In the middle. At 2½ ft it is the step between creeping phlox 'Candy Stripe' (5 in) in front and false sunflower 'Summer Nights' (3½ ft) behind: each is seen over the one before.
- One plant, alone. A shrub is seen as an object, and needs clear ground around it.
Why now
- In flower for 17 weeks. From mid June to early October.
- Closes the season. For its last two weeks nothing else on the plan is in flower.
Planned as an English border: 4 of the 5 groups (80%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. Creeping phlox 'Candy Stripe' and alpine aster finish the front edge. The longest in flower is abelia 'Kaleidoscope': 17 weeks, from mid June to early October.
The planner's own design check: 10 Excellent, 6 Good, 1 Satisfactory. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where abelia 'Kaleidoscope' goes in a border
At 2½ ft it belongs in the middle of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is medium tall (2½ to 3 ft).
Its job: specimen. A feature plant with a shape of its own. It stands alone with room around it, and repeats only at a distance.
One colourful shrub is a focal point; a row of them is restless. Give it plain, dark green or black neighbours so the changing colours can be seen.
- Year-round colour at the front of a border
- Containers
- Low, informal hedging in mild climates
What to plant with abelia 'Kaleidoscope'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Black mondo grass: its black leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; spires rising out of its mound; low enough (8 in) to stand in front of it.
- Lilyturf: in flower together for six weeks, from early August; spires rising out of its mound; low enough (16 in) to stand in front of it.
- Coral bells: its burgundy leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; low enough (12 in) to stand in front of it.
Questions about abelia 'Kaleidoscope'
Does abelia 'Kaleidoscope' need sun or shade?
Abelia 'Kaleidoscope' grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day) and part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun).
It wants ordinary well-drained soil, of average fertility, and a good soak in dry spells. Once settled in, it stands drought.
What zones does abelia 'Kaleidoscope' grow in?
USDA zones 6 to 9. It is hardy to zone 6, which means it survives winter nights down to about 0 °F (−18 °C).
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does abelia 'Kaleidoscope' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers mid June to early October. As a summer flower it moves about half a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer.
| Zone 6 | Mid June to early October |
|---|---|
| Zone 7 | Early June to early October |
| Zone 8 | Early June to early October |
| Zone 9 | Late May to early October |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should abelia 'Kaleidoscope' be planted?
3 ft (90 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 3½ ft (100 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 2½ ft (80 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many abelia 'Kaleidoscope' plants do I need?
At 3 ft apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 1 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 4 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 4 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as one, with clear ground around it: a feature plant is seen as an object, and a group of them is a thicket.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is abelia 'Kaleidoscope' poisonous to dogs and cats?
No toxicity is recorded for dogs, cats, horses or people, according to NC State Extension.
"Not toxic" is not "edible": a pet that eats a lot of any plant can be sick.
Is there a native plant like abelia 'Kaleidoscope'?
Abelia 'Kaleidoscope' is not native to North America. These North American natives come closest to doing its job:
- Shrubby cinquefoil 'Abbotswood': the same size, the same flowering time and the same colour; a drift, not a specimen.
- Soapweed yucca: the same job in a bed and the same colour; 4 in narrower, flowers mid June to mid July.
- Arkansas bluestar: the same job in a bed; 6 in narrower, flowers mid May to early June.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
Do deer eat abelia 'Kaleidoscope'?
Mostly not. NC State lists it as resistant to deer. No plant is proof against a hungry deer in a hard winter, but this one is low on the menu.
What flowers after abelia 'Kaleidoscope'?
Abelia 'Kaleidoscope' is over by early October. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Saffron crocus: from early October to early November, 5 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Chrysanthemum 'Sheffield Pink': from late September to early November, 2½ ft tall.
- Japanese onion 'Ozawa': from early October to early November, 10 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
What does abelia 'Kaleidoscope' look like in winter?
Abelia 'Kaleidoscope' holds some of its leaves into winter, more in a mild year or a sheltered spot, and they look tired by March. Cut the old ones off as new growth starts.
Is abelia 'Kaleidoscope' good for bees and butterflies?
Abelia 'Kaleidoscope' is visited by pollinators, bees, butterflies and hummingbirds.
More Abelia
- Abelia 'Rose Creek' Abelia x grandiflora 'Rose Creek'
- Glossy abelia Abelia x grandiflora
In these guides
- Salt-tolerant plants for roadsides and coasts
- Plants for slopes and banks
- Pet-safe plants for a sunny border
- Plants for hummingbirds
- Plants for butterflies
- Plants for bees
- Shrubs under 4 feet for small gardens
- Long-flowering plants: 12 weeks or more
- Plants for a white garden
Every fact on record
- Type
- Shrub
- Size
- 2½ ft (80 cm) tall, 3½ ft (100 cm) wide
- Plant
- 3 ft (90 cm) apart
- Height class
- Medium tall (2½ to 3 ft)
- Place in the bed
- Middle
- Flowers
- Mid June to early October; dense clusters; white
- Leaves
- Fine texture, semi-evergreen; variegated
- Shape
- Mounding, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 6 to 9
- Light
- Full sun, part sun
- Soil
- Average, well-drained
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
- Family
- Caprifoliaceae
- Attracts
- Pollinators, bees, butterflies, hummingbirds
- Stands up to
- Deer, drought, salt, pollution, erosion
Checked against NC State Extension. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.