Skip to main content

Vitex Chicagoland Blues™

Ideal for smaller spaces.

An exciting new hybrid with improved hardiness, Chicagoland Blues™ was selected from a batch of vitex crosses made by former V.P. of Horticulture, Kris Jarantoski of the Chicago Botanic Garden. A rounded form and more compact than the species, you’ll find uses for Chicagoland Blues that would be unthinkable with the average chaste tree. Ideal for smaller garden spaces, with exceptionally long flowers held on black stems, this improved selection offers multi-season interest for gardens from California to Chicago and even in the deep south. Extreme drought tolerance and sterile flowers make the perfect combination for this workhorse, easy-to-care-for shrub.

Note: This plant has produced no viable seed for the past 15 years and therefore should not have the invasive tendencies of Vitex rotundifolia, which is one of its parents.

Who Am I?

  • Common Name:
    Chicagoland Blues chaste tree
  • Botanical Name:
    Vitex agnus castus x rotundifolia 'Daniel Searle' PP31659
  • Type:
    Shrub

Cultural Details

TYPE

Shrub
  • Light:
    Full sun
  • Soil:
    Average garden soil
  • Moisture:
    Moist, yet well-drained
  • Hardiness Zone
    5-9
  • Bloom Time:
    Summer
  • Bloom Color:
    Periwinkle
  • Size:
    4-5' tall by 6-8' wide in the north, 6-8' tall in the south by 5-6' wide
  • Diseases & Pests:
    none known

What Makes Me Special?

Ideal for smaller garden spaces, with exceptionally long flowers held on black stems, this improved selection, offers multi-season interest for gardens from California to Chicago and even in the deep south.

Landscape Use

Borders, mass planting, specimens, urban gardens

Propagation

Cuttings

Who Am I?

  • Common Name:
    Chicagoland Blues chaste tree
  • Botanical Name:
    Vitex agnus castus x rotundifolia 'Daniel Searle' PP31659
  • Type:
    Shrub

Image Library

Download hi-res files by clicking the blue button next to the image.