The Oklahoma Redbud, otherwise known as the Cercis Canadensis Var. Texensis ‘Oklahoma’ or Japanese Quince, Flowering Quince, Maule’s Quince, Dwarf Quince, Japanese Flowering Quince, is a rather well known shrub plant by gardening enthusiasts around the world.
Best known for its low maintenance and moderate growth, this shrub will likely liven up your house (or garden) with its green colored leaves. But, only if you learn how to take proper care of it for it to thrive.
Fortunately, this is exactly what we’ll cover in this Oklahoma Redbud Care Guide. So let’s dive in.
The basic care guidelines you need to remember for your Oklahoma Redbud are the following:
- Water: The Oklahoma Redbud wants regular watering to enhance fruit production but as a landscape plant, too much water will be a problem.
- Light: Keep your Cercis Canadensis Var. Texensis ‘Oklahoma’ in an environment where it can receive full sun on a daily basis.
- Soil: Make sure to keep the Oklahoma Redbud in soil with moist but well-draining to well draining properties, so ideally, one that is made of clay, loam, chalk, and sand.
That’s it – sunlight, water and soil! The basic 3 fundamentals for all plant care, and with the Oklahoma Redbud this is no exception. With these three elements, your leafy friend will live healthy and happy.
Scientific / Botanical Aspects
In botanical terms, the Oklahoma Redbud belongs to the Rosaceae family, the genus Chaenomeles and the species Japonica, hence its scientific (or botanical) name Cercis Canadensis Var. Texensis ‘Oklahoma’ (SER-sis kan-a-DEN-sis teck-SEN-sis).
Other members from the Rosaceae family include Ninebark ‘Diablo’, Potentilla Fruticosa ‘Gold Star’, Burbank Japanese Plum, Thundercloud Cherry Plum, Yoshino Cherry Akebono, Rhododendron Yakushimanum ‘Crete’, Rosa ‘Golden Showers’, Large-Flowered Climber, Large-Flowered Climber, Spiraea Japonica ‘Conspiyet’, Alchemilla Mollis ‘Thriller’, Egyptian Thorn ‘Kasan’, Spiraea X Cinerea ‘Grefsheim’, Fuji Apple, Pink Rugosa Rose, Laurel Cherry, Ozark Premier Japanese Plum, Serviceberry, Red Chokeberry ‘Brilliantissima’, Badja Peak Mint Bush, Cotoneaster humifusus, Skimmia Japonica, Blushing Knock Out® Shrub Rose, Aronia Arbutifolia ‘Brilliantissima’, Rosa X ‘Cecile, Bing Sweet Cherry, Forsythia X ‘Courtasol’, Kwanzan Flowering Cherry, Red Delicious Apple, Snow Fountains® Weeping Cherry, Rosa Banksiae ‘Lutea’, Crown of Rays Goldenrod, Callery Pear ‘Bradford’, Potentilla Fruticosa ‘Hachapp’, Malus ‘Golden Delicious’, Lilla Smoke Bush, Malus ‘Braeburn’ and Malus Domestica.
As with other Chaenomeles’s, the Oklahoma Redbud is a deciduous plant, which means it will shed its leaves annually once autumn comes.
Growing Region
The Oklahoma Redbud is a plant native to the Japan and South Korea.
Knowing your plant’s native region is very useful, as it can give you tips on which environment is best for your Oklahoma Redbud. If you keep it in mind, you can try to replicate these conditions at home, and you’ll likely end with a healthier plant.
With this in mind, the Cercis Canadensis Var. Texensis ‘Oklahoma’ will be most used to the heat zones in the 1 – 9 region, as the plant hardiness level falls between 5a, 5b, 6b, 6a, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9b, 9a and the ideal climate zone is between 2, 2A, 2B, 3, 3A, 3B, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23.
Growth and Size
Growth
In terms of size and growth, the Oklahoma Redbud is a relatively moderate grower, which makes things somewhat easy for any plant enthusiast.
Size
But, what size of Oklahoma Redbud are we talking about? What can you expect in terms of height, spread and spacing? Let’s dig in…
The Cercis Canadensis Var. Texensis ‘Oklahoma’ can grow up to 2′ – 3′ (60cm – 90cm) in 2′ – 3′ (60cm – 90cm) and 3′ – 6′ (90cm – 180cm) in 3′ – 6′ (90cm – 180cm).
Also, expect it to grow in a wonderful rounded shape, which is something worthwhile to remember when making your garden landscape plans.
Water
In terms of watering, the Oklahoma Redbud is a fairly complicated plant to take care of.
This is mostly because it has a not so straightforward watering schedule and somewhat regular watering needs.
Specifically, most experts agree that the Cercis Canadensis Var. Texensis ‘Oklahoma’ wants regular watering to enhance fruit production but as a landscape plant, too much water will be a problem.
Which is why it is considered a plant with relatively average needs in terms of water.
Watering
As a rule of thumb, you should remember to keep your Oklahoma Redbud in soil with moist but well-draining to well draining characteristics, as these will guarantee the right conditions for your plant to grow and thrive.
When you consider this, this is why you should aim to choose soil that has occasionally dry, occasionally wet, good drainage, moist, and very dry properties to keep the right moisture levels at all times.
However, in our experience, the best solution to knowing the right amount of water for your Oklahoma Redbud is with the ‘thumb’ technique. Basically, you insert your finger into the soil, and based if you feel the soil moist or dry, you determine if it needs any water, which is the most appropriate way to go about watering your leafy friend.
Soil Mix
As mentioned earlier, the Oklahoma Redbud prefers to have soil with occasionally dry, occasionally wet, good drainage, moist, and very dry properties at all times, reason why you need to make the soil mix out of clay, loam, chalk, and sand.
This is why most experts agree that the Oklahoma Redbud requires soil with loam (silt), sand, clay, high organic matter, and shallow rocky, which will give you the right conditions it needs.
In addition to this, expert gardeners recommend having preferably alkaline, acid or neutral soil.
Light and Exposure
In terms of light & exposure, the Oklahoma Redbud requires full sun in order for it to thrive under the right conditions.
Most experts agree that this shrub will do well as long as you keep it in partial to full sun, and it will be able to grow properly.
Specifically, we recommend that you place your Cercis Canadensis Var. Texensis ‘Oklahoma’ in little to partial shade (only 2-6 hours of direct sunlight a day), to full and direct sun (more 6 hours of direct sunlight per day).
Season
Being a deciduous plant, the Oklahoma Redbud will shed its leaves annually once autumn comes.
But, you can expect it to have its ‘prime-time’ during the spring (early), and during the winter.
Flowers
You can expect your Oklahoma Redbud to flower around the spring months from April to June (spring).
In particular, this shrub is well known for its showy flowers around the plant enthusiast community.
The Oklahoma Redbud produces some beautiful purple, or orange and red/burgundy flowers around this time of year.
Foliage
The leaves from the Oklahoma Redbud have a beautiful green color during most of the year.
In particular, they have a simple arrangement in its leaves.
You can expect the leaves from your Cercis Canadensis Var. Texensis ‘Oklahoma’ to be around (1-3 inches) in size.
Attracts, Tolerance and Resistance
The Oklahoma Redbud is well known for its tolerance to clay soil, drought and animals like rabbit and deer, so don’t worry if any of these come along, your Cercis Canadensis Var. Texensis ‘Oklahoma’ will be fine.
Garden
How should you then organize your garden to include your new Oklahoma Redbud? Here are some recommendations by expert gardeners.
Most Cercis Canadensis Var. Texensis ‘Oklahoma’ owners agree that this shrub will look great in most cottage and rustic gardens of all types.
Other owners consider that they complement well most gardens of informal and cottage, and in traditional garden styles.
In particular, the Oklahoma Redbud’s best location within your garden is in hedges and screens, beds and borders, and in wall-side borders, others use it for landscaping in a wildlife garden, urban garden, firescaping/fire wise, border, mass planting, specimen, or a woodland garden.
Companion Plants
Oklahoma Redbud’s do well with some other plants beside it. One good companion plant is the Cornus, which will pair up nicely with your leafy friend.
Others consider that a nice Wisteria will work well too, so choose whichever you find works best for you!
Conclusion
Even though we covered a lot of care information for your Oklahoma Redbud, remember the basics: sunlight, soil and water, as these should be enough to grow a healthy plant at home.
