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Tamarisk, a very easy shrub

tamaris

Tamarisk is a spring-blooming or summer-blooming shrub that is well known for its pale pink flowers. It is ideal for seaside gardens because is resists wind very well.

Top Tamarisk facts

Name –  Tamarix
Family – Tamaricaceae
Type – shrub

Height – 6 ½ to 16 feet (2 to 5 meters)
Climate – rather warm
Exposure – full sun

Soil – ordinary
Flowering – April to May and August-September
Foliage – deciduous

It often grows wild and self-sows, but you can also plant it in your garden.

Planting tamarisk

Tamarisk is planted preferably in fall but also until spring it if doesn’t freeze in your area.

Tamarisk resists freezing and cold down to more or less 23°F (-5°C).

  • Tamarisk requires sun to flower correctly.
  • It likes light and well drained soil, even sandy soil is fine. It abhors moist soil.
  • Avoid planting it near a house or a living space such as a terrace, because its flowers tend to fall and spread everywhere.
  • Follow our guidance on planting.

Tamarisk requires abundant watering upon planting, and thick mulch that will reduce the risk of freezing for the soil and roots.

Propagating tamarisk

The speediest tamarisk propagation technique is to prepare tamarisk cuttings.

  • Preparing tamarisk cuttings is best done at the end of winter and in spring. You may also try preparing the cuttings in December from fibrous stems that are around 6 to 8 inches (15 to 20 cm) long.
  • Collect the cuttings from green stems (that haven’t yet formed any hard wood).
  • Place the cuttings in special cutting soil mix or a blend of soil mix and river sand.
  • Place your cuttings in a sheltered place over the winter.
  • Here is the process on how to prepare cuttings

Pruning and caring for tamarisk

Pruning is an important step for tamarisk because it guides growth for the shape to stay rather compact and it ensures better blooming.

  • To boost flower-bearing, prune after the blooming for the tamarisks that bloom in spring, and at the end of summer for those that bloom over the summer.
  • You can also proceed in fall if blooming is late.

Tamarisk requires very little work because it lives very comfortably on dry terrain, and doesn’t need to be watered.

Learn more about tamarisk

Tamarisk is known for its abundant pale pink blooming in spring or summer depending on the variety.

In Europe, it essentially grows in the South, but it can also be found along the Atlantic coast, especially thanks to its high tolerance to sea spray.

Wind makes this shrub particularly attractive, as it sways and dances with the wispy branches… a show that one never tires to admire.

However, it is quite vulnerable to frost and suffers when temperatures drop below 23°F (-5°C).

The different varieties mostly flower in spring, with many pink or white colored flowers, but some cultivars also bloom in summer, sometimes even into fall.

Leaves are small, alternate and scaly, quite like those of certain conifers.

It has been said that the “manna” collected by the Hebrews as they crossed the desert (book of Exodus) comes from this shrub.

Smart tip about tamarisk

Tamarisks make for magnificent hedges, especially along the seaside where the wind plays with the shrub and enhances its beauty.

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