Ruby Spice Summersweet (Clethra alnifolia ‘Ruby Spice’)
Some harvest gold for your fall plant bed!
- Hardiness Range: Zones 3b – 8
- Height: 4-6′
- Spread: 3-5′
- Exposure: Full to Partial Sun
- Fall Color: Harvest Gold
- Bloom Color: Deep Pink
Why We Love It:
As we begin our fall season here in Waukesha, having plants that will adapt to your garden is a bonus. For the Ruby Spice Summersweet, there is a lot of variety with the glossy round leaves turn an outstanding harvest gold in the fall and beautiful spikes of fragrant deep pink flowers rising above the foliage from mid to late summer. A versatile plant for any landscape.
Know Before You Plant:
This shrub will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and is best pruned in late winter once the threat of extreme cold has passed. With it growing at a slow rate, it can live for approximately 30 years under ideal conditions. Gardeners should be aware of suckering when planting this in smaller beds.
Where it Thrives:
The Ruby Spice Summersweet is most effective when planted in groupings. This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade, but is quite adaptable. It prefers to grow in average to wet conditions, and will even tolerate some standing water. This shrub is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments making it perfect for our Milwaukee friends as well.
