Clethra alnifolia 'Ruby Spice'
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Tried and True Recommended by 6 Professionals
Common Name: sweet pepperbush
Type: Deciduous shrub
Family: Clethraceae
Zone: 4 to 8
Height: 4 to 6 feet
Spread: 3 to 5 feet
Bloom Time: July to August
Bloom Color: Pink
Bloom Description: Rose pink
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium to wet
Maintenance: Low
Flowers: Showy Flowers, Fragrant Flowers
Leaves: Good Fall Color
Wildlife: Attracts Butterflies
Tolerates: Clay Soil, Wet Soil, Dense Shade
Uses: Erosion Control, Hedge, Rain Garden, Will Naturalize

Culture

Easily grown in average, medium to wet soils in full sun to part shade. Prefers part shade and consistently moist, acidic, sandy soils. Soils should not be allowed to dry out. Tolerates clay soils. Tolerates full shade. Promptly remove root suckers unless naturalized look is desired. Propagate by cuttings.

Noteworthy Characteristics

‘Ruby Spice’ is a summersweet cultivar that is most noted for its fragrant rose-pink flowers that bloom in late summer. It was discovered in 1992 as a sport of C. alnifolia ‘Pink Spire’. It is a densely-branched, rounded, suckering, deciduous shrub that typically grows 4-6’ (less frequently to 8’) tall and features narrow, cylindrical, bottlebrush-like, terminal panicles (racemes to 6” long) of extremely fragrant rose pink flowers that bloom on the current year’s growth for approximately 4-6 weeks in July and August. Serrate, obovate, dark green leaves (to 4” long) turn a variable but generally attractive yellow/golden brown in fall. Flowers give way to dark brown seed capsules that may persist well into winter. Flowers are very attractive to butterflies and bees. Summersweets are somewhat unique among late summer-flowering shrubs because of their ability to bloom in shady locations.

Plant of Merit

Spicy, fragrant ruby flowers in narrow bottlebrush-like terminal panicles bloom in summer on this dense, rounded, deciduous shrub typically growing to 4-6 feet tall. Dark green leaves turn an attractive yellow in fall. Flower panicles give way to dark brown seed capsules that often persist into winter. This flowering shrub brings showy, fragrant bloom to shady locations with moist soils.

Problems

No serious insect or disease problems.

Garden Uses

Mass or group in lawns, foundations or shrub borders. Good flowering shrub for shade or woodland gardens. Also appropriate for moist soils along stream banks or pond/water garden peripheries. Also may be naturalized in cottage gardens, wild gardens or naturalized areas. Plant near a patio to enjoy the fragrant late summer bloom.

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