Astilbe 'Sprite'
Astilbe simplicifolia 'Sprite' ·
A dwarf astilbe with airy, arching sprays of shell-pink flowers over glossy, dark, finely cut leaves. Rust-coloured seed heads follow.
- Size
- 12 in tall, 18 in wide
- Zones
- 4 to 8
- Light
- Part sun to shade
- Flowers
- Early July to early August
- Pets
- Not checked
- Job in a bed
- Edging
A bed built around astilbe 'Sprite'
The planner designed this bed around astilbe 'Sprite' when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) English border in zone 6, part shade. It chose the other plants from the 513 that suit those conditions, and says below why astilbe 'Sprite' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Astilbe 'Sprite' × 8, pink
- 2 Blue star creeper × 19, blue
- 3 White turtlehead × 5, white
- 4 Japanese meadowsweet × 3, pink
- 5 Inkberry 'Gem Box' × 1, dark green leaves
- 6 Snowdrop × 12, white
- 7 Grecian windflower × 5, blue
Why this plant
- Nothing here is unique to it. Its leaf, flower shape and colour are all on the plan already. Its case rests on where it stands and when it performs.
Why here
- On the front edge. At 12 in it frames the bed without hiding it, and it is in leaf all season. It finishes 51% of the edge.
- 8 plants in 2 runs (5 and 3). Runs of different lengths make the edge a frame, not a ruled line.
- Fine leaf against bold. Japanese meadowsweet is beside it: the strongest contrast of leaf there is.
Why now
- In flower for five weeks. From early July to early August.
- Part of the bed's peak. With blue star creeper and Japanese meadowsweet in early July: 3 kinds at once. No week has more.
Planned as an English border: 5 of the 5 groups (100%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. White turtlehead and Japanese meadowsweet anchor the back corners of the bed: the tallest plants on the plan stand there. Blue star creeper is planted in five places along the bed, which gives it rhythm.
The planner's own design check: 11 Excellent, 6 Good. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where astilbe 'Sprite' goes in a border
At 12 in it belongs at the front of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is low (6 to 12 in).
Its job: edging. A low, neat plant used in short runs of three or five along the front to finish the edge (or, in a formal bed, in one even row).
Lighter and more open than the upright astilbes: the sprays arch outward like a fountain. It reads best at the front, against plain, broad leaves.
- Edging a shady bed
- Small gardens
- Delicate texture beside hostas
What to plant with astilbe 'Sprite'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Hosta 'Halcyon': its blue-green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; bold leaves against its fine ones; spires rising out of its mound.
- Japanese painted fern: its silver leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; happy in the same moist soil.
- Coral bells: its burgundy leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after.
Questions about astilbe 'Sprite'
Does astilbe 'Sprite' need sun or shade?
Astilbe 'Sprite' grows in part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun), part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning) and shade (less than 2 hours of direct sun, or bright dappled light).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does astilbe 'Sprite' grow in?
USDA zones 4 to 8. It is hardy to zone 4, which means it survives winter nights down to about −20 °F (−29 °C).
Above zone 8 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does astilbe 'Sprite' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers early July to early August. As a summer flower it moves about half a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer.
| Zone 4 | Mid July to early August |
|---|---|
| Zone 5 | Early July to early August |
| Zone 6 | Early July to early August |
| Zone 7 | Late June to late July |
| Zone 8 | Late June to late July |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should astilbe 'Sprite' be planted?
12 in (30 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 18 in (45 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 12 in (30 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many astilbe 'Sprite' plants do I need?
At 12 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 12 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 11 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 38 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as runs of three or five along the front (or one even row, in a formal bed).
In the bed above, the planner used eight in two groups.
What flowers after astilbe 'Sprite'?
Astilbe 'Sprite' is over by early August. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Lilyturf: from early August to mid September, 16 in tall.
- Japanese anemone: from mid August to early October, 3 ft tall.
- Hosta 'Guacamole': from early August to late August, 24 in tall.
What does astilbe 'Sprite' look like in winter?
Astilbe 'Sprite' dies down to the ground and there is nothing to see until spring. The old stems can be cut in autumn, or left until spring as shelter for overwintering insects.
More Astilbe
- Astilbe Astilbe x arendsii
- Astilbe 'Bridal Veil' Astilbe x arendsii 'Bridal Veil'
- Astilbe 'Chocolate Shogun' Astilbe 'Chocolate Shogun'
- Astilbe 'Deutschland' Astilbe japonica 'Deutschland'
- Astilbe 'Fanal' Astilbe x arendsii 'Fanal'
- Astilbe 'Ostrich Plume' Astilbe thunbergii 'Straussenfeder'
- Astilbe 'Purple Candles' Astilbe chinensis 'Purpurkerze'
- Chinese astilbe 'Visions' Astilbe chinensis 'Visions'
- Dwarf Chinese astilbe Astilbe chinensis 'Pumila'
- Tall astilbe 'Superba' Astilbe chinensis var. taquetii 'Superba'
In these guides
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial
- Size
- 12 in (30 cm) tall, 18 in (45 cm) wide
- Plant
- 12 in (30 cm) apart
- Height class
- Low (6 to 12 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- Early July to early August; feathery plumes; pink
- Leaves
- Fine texture, herbaceous; dark green
- Shape
- Mounding, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 4 to 8
- Light
- Part sun, part shade, shade
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
Not yet checked against an outside reference: its figures rest on general horticultural knowledge. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.