{"title":"Chaste Trees (Vitex)","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe chaste tree earns both halves of a strange name. \u003cem\u003eVitex agnus-castus\u003c\/em\u003e has been grown around the Mediterranean since antiquity, and the seeds, peppery enough to have been used as a spice, carried a long reputation for damping the appetites, which is how the plant came to be called monk's pepper and how the species name arrived. The berries sit in the herbal tradition still, under the name chasteberry.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn a Southern garden the case is simpler: this is one of the best small flowering trees for heat, drought, and poor ground. Blue-violet spikes open in early summer on new wood and repeat where the spent heads are cut, the aromatic gray-green foliage looks well through August, and the flowers are worked by bees from morning to evening. 'Shoal Creek' holds the largest and deepest blue panicles. Give the plants full sun and sharp drainage, cut hard in late winter for the strongest bloom, and expect a fast, forgiving small tree.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"vitex-rotundifolia","title":"Vitex rotundifolia","description":"\u003cp\u003eA tough, salt-defying seaside groundcover with a serious caveat. Vitex rotundifolia, best known as beach vitex, is a low, prostrate, trailing shrub of the mint family, native to the coasts of eastern Asia, the Pacific islands, and Australia, where the plant binds shifting sand along the shore. Rounded, blue-green leaves about two inches across clothe the running stems, aromatic and slightly spicy when crushed, and spikes of bright lavender-blue flowers open in late summer.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThat vigor comes with a warning. Introduced to the southeastern United States for dune stabilization, beach vitex escaped cultivation and now overruns native beach plant communities along the Carolina coast, where the shrub is regulated and actively eradicated in several localities. Plant beach vitex only where local law allows and never near a natural shoreline. Inland, away from the coast, the plant does not appear to pose the same threat.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe dried fruit has a long place in East Asian herbal traditions, where beach vitex and the related Vitex trifolia are the source of the medicine known in Chinese as man jing zi, or Viticis Fructus, used to ease headaches and clear what traditional practitioners call wind-heat. See the medicinal notes below for the traditional record and the usual cautions.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhere planting is appropriate and legal, beach vitex offers real toughness: full sun, sandy well-drained soil, drought, salt spray, and deer are all taken in stride, and the fast, spreading habit knits an informal groundcover on a hot, dry bank. Site with care and room to run, prune hard in early spring to hold the plant in bounds, and gather stray fruit where any escape is a concern.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Woodlanders","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42058011738227,"sku":"VITE-ROTU-01G","price":23.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0605\/7505\/5987\/files\/DETA-1070.jpg?v=1720141749"},{"product_id":"vitex-negundo","title":"Vitex negundo","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis large deciduous shrub or small tree is similar to Vitex agnus-castus but the five leaflets are very dissected and the panicles of blue flowers are more open. Overall it is a more open, airy, and possibly more hardy than Vitex agnus-castus. A good ornamental shrub with foliage that is deeply cut and not so readily mistaken for marijuana as Vitex agnus-castus.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Woodlanders","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42058011770995,"sku":"VITE-NEGU-01G","price":23.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0605\/7505\/5987\/files\/DETA-1456.jpg?v=1720141753"},{"product_id":"vitex-trifolia-variegata","title":"Vitex trifolia \"Variegata\"","description":"\u003cp\u003eA brightly variegated cousin of the chaste tree, grown for foliage as much as flower. Vitex trifolia, sometimes called the three-leaf chaste tree or Arabian lilac, is a warm-climate shrub of the mint family, native along tropical and subtropical coasts from eastern Africa through southern Asia to Australia and the Pacific. The species name trifolia points to the leaves, usually held in threes, and the selection 'Variegata' edges each gray-green leaflet in creamy white for a cool, luminous effect.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThrough the warm months and into early autumn, slender spikes of soft blue to purple flowers rise above the variegated canopy, lilac-like and fragrant, drawing bees and butterflies. The bloom reads well against the pale-edged foliage, and the two together carry the plant across a long season.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eVitex trifolia 'Variegata' wants full sun and well-drained soil, and thrives on heat and humidity across zones 8 to 10. More cold-sensitive than the hardy chaste tree, Vitex agnus-castus, the shrub dies back or defoliates in a hard winter and returns from the base in the milder zones, so treat the plant as a dieback shrub at the cold edge of the range.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLike beach vitex, the dried fruit of Vitex trifolia is a source of the East Asian herb man jing zi, used traditionally for headaches; see the medicinal notes below. In the garden, set the variegated Arabian lilac where the bright foliage can light a warm border, a mixed planting, or a large container, and prune to shape or hold a size. A striking, easy foliage shrub for the subtropical garden.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Woodlanders","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42058011902067,"sku":"VITE-TRIF-VARI-01G","price":23.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0605\/7505\/5987\/files\/DETA-1699.jpg?v=1720141758"},{"product_id":"vitex-agnus-castus-blue","title":"Vitex agnus-castus \"Blue\"","description":"\u003cp\u003eSmall tree in South. Treat as herbaceous perennial in the North. Lilac flowers. (See DIR)\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Woodlanders","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42058012065907,"sku":"VITE-AGNU-CAST-BLUE-01G","price":17.5,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}]},{"product_id":"vitex-agnus-castus-shoal-creek","title":"Vitex agnus-castus \"Shoal Creek\"","description":"\u003cp\u003eA superior selection of the ancient chaste tree, chosen for the size and color of the bloom. Vitex agnus-castus 'Shoal Creek' is a deciduous large shrub or small tree, native in the species to southern Europe and western Asia and long grown across the South for a long season of summer flower. The palmate, aromatic leaves have now and then been mistaken for those of cannabis, a passing resemblance that gives the plant a certain conversational charm.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe show comes in summer, when full spikes of lilac-purple flowers rise above the gray-green foliage, a display bold enough that the plant has earned the old nickname of summer lilac. Bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds work the spikes for weeks, and cutting the spent flowers spurs a second flush.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'Shoal Creek' stands among the finest of the chaste trees, a Gold Medal Plant Award winner of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, honored for larger flower spikes, richer color, and a clean, vigorous habit. The selection carries the toughness of the species, shrugging off heat, drought, and lean soil once established.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePlant 'Shoal Creek' in an open, sunny site with well-drained soil, as a specimen near a patio or entry, a bold note in a pollinator border, or an informal flowering screen. Train to a single trunk for a small tree or leave multi-stemmed for a fuller shrub, and cut back hard in late winter for the heaviest bloom on new wood. In the colder end of the range the top dies back and returns from the root, while farther south the plant holds as a small deciduous tree.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Woodlanders","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42058012164211,"sku":"VITE-AGNU-SHOA-CREE-01G","price":23.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0605\/7505\/5987\/files\/DETA-1214.jpg?v=1720141765"},{"product_id":"vitex-sp","title":"Vitex sp.","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis Vitex is a deciduous shrub or small tree with terminal spikes of blue flowers similar to Vitex negundo. It is something of a mystery. We propagated it from a plant at Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah, GA and had it labeled as Vitex cannabinifolia which is usually considered a variety of Vitex negundo. Cannabinifolia suggests that the leaves look like Cannabis which is true of some other Vitex but not this one. This plant has three, not five rather broad leaflets somewhat toothed on the margins making it's foliage looks much more like Poison Ivy (Rhus radicans) than like Marijuana. As with other Vitex, plant in a sunny site with good drainage.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Woodlanders","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42058012196979,"sku":"VITE-SPEC-01G","price":23.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}]},{"product_id":"vitex-agnus-castus-flora-ann","title":"Vitex agnus-castus \"Flora Ann\"","description":"\u003cp\u003eChaste tree is a small deciduous tree in South but can be grown as a perennial in the North. The leaves have been mistaken for those of Cannabis (Marijuana). The clusters of lilac flowers in summer have caused some to call it \"Summer Lilac\". It is a lovely summer flowering tree native to southern Europe and western Asia. Plant it in an open site with well-drained soil. This variety 'Flora Ann' was selected and named by Greg Grant of Nacogdoches, Texas. He named it for the late Mrs. Flora Ann Bynum of Winston Salem, NC a dear friend and great gardener. It is derived from Greg's variety 'Selina's Pink' and has good deep pink flowers.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Woodlanders","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42058012229747,"sku":"VITE-AGNU-CAST-FLOR-01G","price":23.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}]},{"product_id":"vitex-agnus-castus-salinas-pink","title":"Vitex agnus-castus \"Salinas Pink\"","description":"\u003cp\u003eVitex agnus-castus or Chaste Tree is a decidous small tree or large shrub native to southern Europe and western Asia. The five to seven leaflets are palmately arranged and aromatic when bruised. The plant is valued for it's showy terminal spikes of flowers which appear in sumer and are typically blue, lvender, or occasionally white. Pink flowered forms are uncommon and 'Salinas Pink' is perhaps the nicest. It was found in the garden of a Mrs. Salinas in San Antonio, Texas by plantsman Greg Grant. Plant Vitex in moist but well-drained soil in full sun. Vitex is a great substitute for Lilac in the Deep South.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Woodlanders","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42058012360819,"sku":"VITE-AGNU-CAST-SALI-01G","price":23.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0605\/7505\/5987\/files\/DETA-2012.jpg?v=1720141772"},{"product_id":"vitex-agnus-castus","title":"Vitex agnus-castus","description":"\u003cp\u003eSome plants stand quietly in the garden, and some speak. Vitex agnus-castus has been speaking for more than two thousand years, from sun-washed Mediterranean shores to monastery cloisters, from the herbals of ancient Greece to the borders of Southern gardens. In Homer's day the fragrant leaves and lavender flower spikes were woven into ritual garlands. The Romans knew the shrub as the chaste tree, a name wrapped in legend, since the peppery seeds were once thought to cool passion, which earned the seeds the cloister nickname of monk's pepper. The double name says as much twice over: agnus is Latin for lamb and castus for chaste, while the genus Vitex comes from vieo, to weave, a nod to the pliant branches once bent into baskets.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the heat of summer the chaste tree is a feast for the senses. Long, slender spikes of violet-blue flowers stand above palmate, gray-green leaves and release a resinous, spicy-sweet scent at a touch. Honeybees, swallowtails, and hummingbirds arrive in procession. Though native to southern Europe and western Asia, the plant found a willing home in American gardens centuries ago, and thrives across the South, where a tolerance for heat, drought, and neglect makes the chaste tree as dependable as any crepe myrtle.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe berries carry a long medicinal history that continues in herbalism today, still listed in old pharmacopoeias under the name agnus-castus. Traditional European use centered on women's health, and modern research has looked most closely at the dried ripe berries for premenstrual complaints and hormone balance. The picture is promising but not settled, and nothing here is medical advice.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eVitex asks for little: full sun, sharp drainage, and room to grow. Prune to a single trunk for a formal small tree, or leave the plant multi-stemmed for a looser, informal effect, and cut back hard in late winter to spur the heaviest bloom on new wood. Site near a patio, a path, or an entry where the summer flowers and warm fragrance can be met up close, and pair with rosemary, lavender, and other sun-loving, drought-tolerant companions. In return comes an entire season of bloom and a living link to gardens both ancient and new.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePhotos courtesy of Oregon State University.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Woodlanders","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43516657959027,"sku":"VITE-AGNU-01G","price":38.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0605\/7505\/5987\/files\/VitexagnuscastusORGWoodlanders1.jpg?v=1755273021"}],"url":"https:\/\/woodlanders.net\/collections\/vitex.oembed","provider":"Woodlanders","version":"1.0","type":"link"}