Trees or shrubs with peeling reddish-brown bark. Deciduous elliptical or lance-shaped leaves, pointed, green in spring and purple-red in autumn, 2-7 cm long. Showy flowering during summer, with flowers gathered in terminal spikes of 10-20 cm. Grows well in the plains of Northern Italy but blooms more in warm and fairly humid areas. Requires loose, permeable soils and short pruning from mid-February. Resistant to pollution and used for flowering avenues, parks, and gardens. Varieties differ in flower color.