Weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink'
Weigela florida 'Bokrasopin' (Sonic Bloom Pink) · Caprifoliaceae
Hot pink, trumpet-shaped flowers in a heavy flush in late spring, then wave after wave until frost, without deadheading.
- Size
- 4½ ft tall, 4½ ft wide
- Zones
- 4 to 8
- Light
- Full sun
- Flowers
- Late May to mid September
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Anchor
A bed built around weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink'
The planner designed this bed around weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' when this page was made: a 16 × 8 ft (4.9 × 2.4 m) English border in zone 6, full sun. It chose the other plants from the 966 that suit those conditions, and says below why weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' × 1, pink
- 2 Creeping phlox 'Emerald Blue' × 13, blue
- 3 Carpathian bellflower × 8, white
- 4 False sunflower 'Summer Sun' × 5, yellow
- 5 Switchgrass 'Prairie Sky' × 3, tan
- 6 Nodding onion × 16, pink
- 7 Camassia × 4, blue
- 8 Easter lily × 4, white
- 9 Star of Persia × 4, purple
Why this plant
- Part of the bed's structure. Shrubs and grasses keep their shape when the perennials die down. So does switchgrass 'Prairie Sky'.
Why here
- Anchors a back corner. At 4½ ft it is among the tallest plants here, and the tallest close the ends of the bed, where they stand in front of nothing.
- A step in the back row. Next to false sunflower 'Summer Sun' (3½ ft): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- One plant, alone. A shrub is seen as an object, and needs clear ground around it.
Why now
- In flower for 18 weeks. From late May to mid September.
- Part of the bed's peak. With Carpathian bellflower, false sunflower 'Summer Sun', nodding onion and others in early July: 5 kinds at once. No week has more.
Planned as an English border: 8 of the 10 groups (80%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. Nodding onion is planted in four places along the bed, which gives it rhythm. Cool colours (pink, blue and purple) with yellow as the warm note, and white and tan to calm things between them.
The planner's own design check: 10 Excellent, 7 Good.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' goes in a border
At 4½ ft it belongs at the back of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is tall (4 to 5 ft).
Its job: anchor. A shrub that gives the bed permanent structure. Planted singly, as soon as the front edge is laid; everything else is arranged around it.
The first weigela to rebloom strongly. Hummingbirds work it all season. It keeps a tidy shape and needs only a light trim after the first flowering.
- Repeat-flowering shrub for sun
- Hummingbirds
- Mixed borders
What to plant with weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Catmint 'Walker's Low': in flower together for 17 weeks, from late May; spires rising out of its mound; low enough (24 in) to stand in front of it.
- Daylily: in flower together for seven weeks, from late June; low enough (2½ ft) to stand in front of it.
- Salvia 'May Night': in flower together for seven weeks, from late May; spires rising out of its mound; low enough (24 in) to stand in front of it.
Questions about weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink'
Does weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' need sun or shade?
Weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day).
It wants ordinary well-drained soil, of average fertility, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' grow in?
USDA zones 4 to 8. It is hardy to zone 4, which means it survives winter nights down to about −20 °F (−29 °C).
Above zone 8 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers late May to mid September. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.
| Zone 4 | Late May to mid September |
|---|---|
| Zone 5 | Late May to mid September |
| Zone 6 | Mid May to mid September |
| Zone 7 | Early May to mid September |
| Zone 8 | Early May to mid September |
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 weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' be planted?
3½ ft (110 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 4½ ft (130 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 4½ ft (130 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' plants do I need?
At 3½ ft apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 1 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 3 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 3 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as one, planted singly: it is the bed's structure, and everything else is arranged around it.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' 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.
Do deer eat weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink'?
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 weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink'?
Weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' is over by mid September. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Garden chrysanthemum: from mid September to late October, 24 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Montauk daisy: from mid September to late October, 3 ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Calico aster 'Lady in Black': from mid September to mid October, 3½ ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
What does weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' look like in winter?
Weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' drops its leaves and stands as bare branches. That is when to see its shape, and to prune it if it needs pruning.
Is weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' good for bees and butterflies?
Weigela 'Sonic Bloom Pink' is visited by butterflies and hummingbirds.
More Weigela
- Dwarf weigela 'My Monet' Weigela florida 'My Monet'
- Weigela 'Red Prince' Weigela 'Red Prince'
- Weigela 'Spilled Wine' Weigela florida 'Bokraspiwi' (Spilled Wine)
- Weigela 'Wine & Roses' Weigela florida 'Wine & Roses'
In these guides
- Salt-tolerant plants for roadsides and coasts
- Pet-safe plants for a sunny border
- Plants for hummingbirds
- Plants for butterflies
- Long-flowering plants: 12 weeks or more
Every fact on record
- Type
- Shrub
- Size
- 4½ ft (130 cm) tall, 4½ ft (130 cm) wide
- Plant
- 3½ ft (110 cm) apart
- Height class
- Tall (4 to 5 ft)
- Place in the bed
- Back
- Flowers
- Late May to mid September; trumpets; pink
- Leaves
- Medium texture, deciduous; green
- Shape
- Rounded, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 4 to 8
- Light
- Full sun
- Soil
- Average, well-drained
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
- Family
- Caprifoliaceae
- Comes from
- Northern China, Korea and Japan
- Attracts
- Butterflies, hummingbirds
- Stands up to
- Deer, salt
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.