The rosebay rhododendron (Rhododendron maximum) is an evergreen multi-stemmed shrub with dark green foliage and clusters of white flowers. These shrubs grow wild in many mountain habitats, where they can form dense thickets that can be up to 30 feet tall. A more typical mature landscape size, however, is about 10-15 feet tall and 7-10…
The mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia) is an ericaceous evergreen shrub with delicately ornate white to pink flowers. In addition to being one of the harbingers of spring and summer with its late May bloom time, the mountain laurel is Pennsylvania’s official state flower. These shrubs grow 4-10 feet tall with a typical spread of 4-5…
Summersweet (Clethra alnifolia) is a name that truly conveys the virtues and beauty of this native shrub. This deciduous plant grows to an oval shape with a with a height of 3-8 feet and a spread of 4-6 feet. It features fluffy, bottle brush-like spikes of fragrant white, rose, or pink flowers that bloom for…
The strawberry bush (Euonymus americanus) is a fairly uncommon native shrub most noted for its bumpy, raspberry-red seed pods that hang on the ends of the stems and open to reveal smooth, orange seeds. Other striking features are its green bark and acute branching angles that provides interest throughout the year. Strawberry bush grows 6…
The bottlebrush buckeye (Aesculus parviflora) is a wide-spreading, suckering, multi-stemmed shrub, making it an excellent plant for shrub borders. With its long, bottlebrush-like panicles of white flowers, there are few summer flowering plants that can rival this species. If transplanting, do so in early spring into a moist, well-drained soil that has been adequately prepared…