I probably will never know about it unless I move, since it's requirements say regular watering to regular garden soil to moist. That is hint enough for me to goenjoy it at someones house in town not on my rough hillside.

It is pretty.

I actually grew abelia shrubs in rocky limestone soil at the old house in the full sun. They're pretty hardy. For sure, MUCH easier than azaleas. I just want that abelia for their colorful color flowers! I don't plan on watering very often. I'm mainly going to focus on trees so they can grow fast for much needed shade. I'm going to mainly ignore grass.

I actually grew abelia shrubs in rocky limestone soil at the old house in the full sun. They're pretty hardy. For sure, MUCH easier than azaleas. I just want that abelia for their colorful color flowers! I don't plan on watering very often. I'm mainly going to focus on trees so they can grow fast for much needed shade. I'm going to mainly ignore grass.

Good variety to know about - thanks for posting. Interesting that it is also listed at about a foot shorter than the Edward Gouchers - a nicer fit under those side windows where EG is just a bit too tall if left to its natural form.

Agree that abelia are surprisingly tough for such a shallow rooted shrub. Our stand of four established EGs did fine in full sun for years without supplemental watering until the record heat/drought streak of 2011 which stressed half of them pretty badly. The Mallards sure loved to nest among them.

Soil is different in DFW. Richer more water retentive than the Texas hill Country that I sir on.

I love abelias ... and happy to learn about this variety. It is beautiful. Wish I had known about it when I planted some dwarf varieties a few years ago.

I have an old standard variety at my 1920's-era house that appears to be decades old. When I first moved here, the previous landscape guys had pruned it into a little box-y square shape. My neighbors said they had never seen it bloom. Since the terrible pruning stopped, it is now 8' wide, 10' tall and so beautiful. Bees and butterflies swarm it from spring 'til frost. Schweet!

I want one, too. I will keep my eye out for it here in SA.
Several years ago I bought canyon creek abelia and I just love it. It takes no care at all, except I prune a few branches that grow out over the grass. The blooms can be dried like hydrangeas. It is about 3 1/2 feet all now and maybe 4 feet spread.

wantonamara,

it's not that much different where I used to live. That area sits on pure limestone bedrock. Cedar Hill actually looks like Country Hill over here. It would explain why Midlothian is nicknamed as the captial of cement.

Here is a link that might be useful: Midlothian - The capital of cement

Glossy abelia is actually on the City of Austin/TAMU list of recommended native & adapted LANDSCAPE plants for central Texas. This distinction simply highlights that it is much better suited than other non-native flowering shrubs (ex. Indian Hawthorn) AND is not considered invasive (ex. Nandina w/ berries). Should be a great choice in most typical sub/urban settings around Austin.

Still, wouldn't plant one on a rural Texas hillside unless I just wanted to experiment, gamble, or planned to get water to it if/when stressed. Probably do fine most years, but our untended abelia survival rate through an unusually bad one on the blackland prairie side of DFW was a little better than 50%. Even where the soils are similar, Austin is a bit warmer and drier on the average. Something like agarita would seem a more dependable fit beyond the reach of irrigation.

Here is a link that might be useful: Native & adapted landscape plants for central TX