Shrubs

Clethra alnifolia 'Ruby Spice' (Summersweet)

Clethra alnifolia

Also known as Clethra alnifolia 'Ruby Spice'

$32.95
☀SunPart shade to full sun
💧WaterModerate to high
🌡Zones3-9
🦌DeerResistant
🌊CoastalSuitable

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About This Plant

Clethra alnifolia 'Ruby Spice' (Summersweet), 'Ruby Spice', is valued for its garden character and seasonal interest in PNW landscapes.

Summersweet (Clethra alnifolia) , eastern N American native (and well-suited to PNW) with intensely fragrant white or pink summer flower spikes that draw bees and butterflies. Tolerates wet sites.

Part shade to full sun suits this species. Plant in moist; tolerates wet sites soil. Hardy USDA Zone 3 to 9. Generally trouble-free. Suckers slowly.

For a Pacific Northwest native shrub of similar character, consider Mahonia aquifolium (Tall Oregon Grape, Oregon state flower), Philadelphus lewisii (Mock Orange), or Holodiscus discolor (Oceanspray) , all support native pollinators and birds.

Plant Details

Botanical
Clethra alnifolia
Common name
Clethra alnifolia 'Ruby Spice'
Lifecycle
Perennial
Foliage type
Deciduous
Mature size
3-6 ft tall × 4-6 ft wide
Growth rate
Moderate
Bloom time
Midsummer to late summer
Bloom color
Red
Foliage color
Green

Care Notes

Plant in moist to wet, humus-rich, acidic soil; tolerates seasonal flooding. Prune in late winter as it blooms on new wood. Remove suckers as they appear to maintain a single-stemmed form, or allow to spread into a colony. Provide consistent moisture, particularly in summer.

Garden Attributes

  • Pacific NW native
  • Deer resistant
  • Coastal suitable
  • Grown organically
  • Pollinator value: Bees, Bumblebees, Native bees, Butterflies, Hummingbirds
  • Wildlife: Pollinator support, Hummingbird nectar
Row of potted bareroot conifer trees at Dragonfly Farm

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