Lush flowering trees and shrubs always attract attention and can hardly leave anyone indifferent to such a charming sight.
Sakura, magnolia, lilac - each of these plants during the flowering period is able to lift the spirits and fascinate the eyes of many people. To this list, you can add and certsis - decorative tree, abundantly blooming delicate flowers of pink shades.
In this article, we want to introduce you to him. What does the certsis look like, where did it come from, how did it get its name, description of its varieties - read about these and other facts about the plant below.
Cercis (lat. Cercis), or purple - genus of deciduous trees and shrubs belonging to the legume family. It grows in the wild nature of Asia, the Mediterranean, North America.
Did you know? Cercis got its name from the Greek word for "shuttle". Named as it bears fruit - beans, shaped like a detail of a loom.Zercis grows to a height of 18 m. His crown is magnificent, in the form of a tent or a ball. The trunks often grow abnormally, twisted. The plant has round or ovate leaves. In the summer they are green, in autumn they turn yellow, yellow-orange, fall in winter.
Purple flowers bloom in spring, usually in the fourth year after planting. Depending on the type of flowers are collected in bunches or brushes, grow from the axils of the leaves or are located on the trunk. Especially unusually, chertsis looks when it blooms before leaves appear. Then it seems that the branches are literally plastered with pink, purple or red.
During the flowering period, which lasts about a month, the tree exudes a pleasant aroma and attracts bees, therefore it is a honey plant. Fruits are formed in pods 10 cm long, each of which contains from 4 to 7 beans. The tree bears fruit in August.
Purple is a very warm and light-loving plant. Because of this feature of the certsis, its planting and care become problematic for climatic zones with a cold winter period.
Important! Only three species can tolerate small frosts: Canadian, western and kidney-shaped. The most frost-resistant of them is Canadian purple.The plant prefers soils with good drainage, limed. Not moisture-loving. Propagated by seed and vegetative (layering, cuttings) methods. It tolerates pruning - young plants are suitable for the formation of various kinds of crowns. Resistant to pests and diseases.
Purple is a perennial plant - it can live up to 70 years. In nature, there are from 6 to 10 species of certsis. They differ in stem height, structure and color of flowers, the degree of resistance to cold. Some of them are successfully cultivated. We describe the most famous.
Tsertsis Griffith
Cercis Griffith (Cercis griffithii) very rare in tree form. As a rule, grows 4-meter shrub with a wide crown. Under natural conditions, it grows on rocky mountain slopes in Central Asia, Iran, and Afghanistan. Therefore, this type of purple is very thermophilic and is not suitable for planting in the middle lane.
Differs rounded bright green leaves 5-8 cm long, kidney-shaped with a deep notch at the base. Leaves appear after flowering. The flowers are collected in short brushes, have a pink or purple-violet color. Dissolve earlier than other species: at the end of April - at the beginning of May. Fruits ripen also early: in July-August. 
European cercis
European Cercis (Cercis siliquastrum), or common (pods) outwardly similar to the Canadian variety, however, it is slightly lower, has larger flowers (up to 2.5 cm in diameter) and smaller leaves. The length of the sheets reach 8 cm. They are semicircular in shape with a heart-shaped base.
This species blooms rose-purple. The flowering period lasts about a month - from April to May, ends as soon as the leaves appear.
The maximum height of the European Cercis is 10 m. It grows as a tree, and also has shrub forms. His trunk is thick, usually uneven.
Since in nature this species grows in the countries of the Mediterranean and Asia, it is very thermophilic. Does not tolerate frost below -16 ºС - frosting and stops flowering.
Did you know? In France, this species of certsis was called “the tree from Judea” (modern Israel) because of its natural habitat. Subsequently, the phrase spread with a distorted translation: "Judah tree", which is why it is often so called today.
This purple is characterized by slow growth rates - at four- and five-year-olds can reach a height of only 1-1.5 m. It is capricious during transplantation, but it is not picky about the composition of the soil. Since the plant is very light-loving, it is preferable to plant it on the southern sides, in areas open to the sun, but protected from the winds.Cercis European retains its decorative effect even in the period of fruiting, in September, thanks to beautifully hanging long (up to 10 cm) pods.
Western Cercis
Western purple (Cercis occidentalis) - winter-hardy North American species. It has a very branched crown. The trunk grows up to 5 m. The leaves of the trees of this species have a juicy green color, bud-shaped, reaching 7.5 cm in diameter. The flowers are bright pink, medium-sized. 
Cercis Canadian
Cercis canadian (Cercis canadensis), a native of North America, at home reaches a maximum height of 12 m. However, when transferring it to another climate zone, the colder one changes its appearance.
First, it loses much in growth - from a tree it turns into a shrub form. Its leaves and flowers become smaller. Flowering is not as magnificent as in the natural range.
"Canadian" blooms from mid-spring to early summer, before the period of appearance of the leaves. The flowers are light pink, up to 1.2 cm in diameter, odorless. Leaves - large (up to 16 cm), dark green, in the form of hearts, painted in autumn in light yellow tones.
Canadian Zercis has the highest degree of frost resistance among other species. Young plants up to three years old require shelter before hibernation.
Two varieties are used in decorative culture: white and terry. 
Cercis cystis
Natural habitat purple kagryanika (Cercis racemosa Oliv.) are the central regions of China. As a rule, it is a tree of large size (up to 12 m) with dark green pubescent foliage. It blooms with purple flowers, which are located both on the branches and the trunk, and hang on short pedicels in inflorescences. 
Chinese cercis
Chinese purple trees (Cercis chinensis) grow very large sizes - up to 15 m in height. Their crown is spreading and thick. Plants have large, rounded glossy leaves, reaching a diameter of 6-12 cm.
The flowering period falls on May-June - the trees are abundantly covered with small purple-pink, crimson flowers, collected in bunches. Leaves appear after the flowers fall.
Did you know? This species was introduced from China in the middle of the nineteenth century.In culture, Chinese purple is rarely planted, usually in the form of 5-6-meter bushes. Varieties with white flowers ("Shiroban"), pink-violet ("Avondale") are bred. Maintains winter lowering of temperature to -23 ° C.
Cercis reniform
Crimson kidney (Cercis reniformis) - One of the frost-resistant varieties of Cercis native to northern Mexico. It grows as a large shrub and as a tree. Reaches 10 m in height. It has a wide oval crown.
The leaves of this species are reniform, rounded with a blunt notch at the base - hence the name. Grows in length to 5-8 cm. Flowers are collected in bright pink inflorescences with a length of 1-1.5 cm. 
Important! As a rule, purple is warm, therefore it practically does not grow in regions with particularly cold winters. However, there is a way to achieve greater frost resistance of shrubs - to grow tsercis from seeds.The tree of certsis is so beautiful and unusual that it deserves to become popular and take pride of place in gardens, parks, and dachas. Best of all, it looks in a solitary landing. However, it can also be planted in groups with conifers. Used to create hedges. Suitable for growing in the form of bonsai.
