SPICEBUSH (Lindera benzoin)

$3.50

Out of stock

SKU: WRN-ORN-SPB-LB Categories: , Tag:

Description

Northern spicebush is a single- or few-stemmed, deciduous shrub, 6-12 ft. tall, with glossy leaves and graceful, slender, light green branches. Dense clusters of tiny, pale yellow flowers bloom before the leaves from globose buds along the twigs. Flowers occur in umbel-like clusters and are followed by glossy red fruit. Both the fruit and foliage are aromatic. Leaves turn a colorful golden-yellow in fall.

In the North this plant is thought of as the “forsythia of the wilds” because its early spring flowering gives a subtle yellow tinge to many lowland woods where it is common. A tea can be made from the aromatic leaves and twigs.

The fruits of spicebush attract many birds (vireos, tanagers, robins, thrushes) and its flowers are pollinator friendly. Lindera is a host plant for the spicebush swallowtail butterfly. whose larvae feed on it and other members of the Lauracaea family, which includes another local native, sassafras tree (Sassafras albidum).

Hardiness Zone: 4 to 9

Bare Root Size: 18″