Mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake'
Philadelphus 'Miniature Snowflake' ·
A dwarf mock orange, under a metre, with double white flowers that carry the same orange-blossom scent as the large kinds.
- Size
- 3 ft tall, 3 ft wide
- Zones
- 4 to 8
- Light
- Full sun to part sun
- Flowers
- Early June to late June
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Anchor
A bed built around mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake'
The planner designed this bed around mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) English border in zone 6, full sun. It chose the other plants from the 966 that suit those conditions, and says below why mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' × 1, white
- 2 Creeping phlox 'Emerald Blue' × 8, blue
- 3 Blanket flower 'Arizona Sun' × 4, red
- 4 Brown-eyed Susan × 3, yellow
- 5 Columbine 'Nora Barlow' × 8, pink
- 6 Star of Persia × 4, purple
- 7 Spring starflower × 12, blue
Why this plant
- The bed's only structure. Shrubs and grasses keep their shape when the perennials die down, and it is the only one here.
- The only white. White sits between stronger colours and calms them.
Why here
- Anchors a back corner. At 3 ft it is one of the taller plants here, and the tallest close the ends of the bed, where they stand in front of nothing.
- A step in the back row. Next to star of Persia (20 in): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- One plant, alone. A shrub is seen as an object, and needs clear ground around it.
Why now
- In flower for four weeks. From early June to late June.
- Part of the bed's peak. With blanket flower 'Arizona Sun', columbine 'Nora Barlow' and star of Persia in mid June: 4 kinds at once. No week has more.
Planned as an English border: 4 of the 5 groups (80%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. Mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' and brown-eyed Susan anchor the back corners of the bed: the tallest plants on the plan stand there. The bed is balanced: the left half carries 43% of the visual weight and the right half 57%.
The planner's own design check: 10 Excellent, 7 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 mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' goes in a border
At 3 ft it belongs in the middle of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is medium tall (2½ to 3 ft).
Its job: anchor. A shrub that gives the bed permanent structure. Planted singly, as soon as the front edge is laid; everything else is arranged around it.
The fragrance of mock orange without giving up three metres of border. It fits among perennials and needs little pruning.
- Mock-orange scent in a small garden
- Near a seat or path
- The middle of a mixed border
What to plant with mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Catmint 'Walker's Low': in flower together for four weeks, from early June; spires rising out of its mound.
- Cranesbill 'Rozanne': in flower together for four weeks, from early June; low enough (18 in) to stand in front of it.
- Salvia 'May Night': in flower together for four weeks, from early June; spires rising out of its mound.
Questions about mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake'
Does mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' need sun or shade?
Mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day) and part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun).
It wants ordinary well-drained soil, of average fertility, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' 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 mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers early June to late June. As a summer flower it moves about half a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer.
| Zone 4 | Mid June to early July |
|---|---|
| Zone 5 | Early June to late June |
| Zone 6 | Early June to late June |
| Zone 7 | Late May to late June |
| Zone 8 | Late May to late June |
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 mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' be planted?
2½ ft (75 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 3 ft (90 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 3 ft (90 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' plants do I need?
At 2½ ft apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 2 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 5 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 6 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as one, planted singly: it is the bed's structure, and everything else is arranged around it.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' poisonous to dogs and cats?
No toxicity is recorded for dogs, cats, horses or people, according to NC State Extension.
"Not toxic" is not "edible": a pet that eats a lot of any plant can be sick.
Is there a native plant like mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake'?
Mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' is not native to North America. These North American natives come closest to doing its job:
- Sweetspire 'Little Henry': the same job in a bed, the same flowering time and the same colour; 6 in shorter, wants moist soil.
- Shrubby cinquefoil: the same job in a bed and the same colour; 6 in wider, flowers early June to mid September.
- Dwarf fothergilla: the same job in a bed and the same colour; 6 in wider, flowers late April to mid May.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
What flowers after mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake'?
Mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' is over by late June. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Black-eyed Susan: from mid July to mid September, 24 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Butterfly weed: from late June to early August, 24 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Daylily: from late June to early August, 2½ ft tall.
What does mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' look like in winter?
Mock orange 'Miniature Snowflake' drops its leaves and stands as bare branches. That is when to see its shape, and to prune it if it needs pruning.
More Philadelphus
- Lewis's mock orange Philadelphus lewisii
- Mock orange Philadelphus coronarius
- Mock orange 'Belle Etoile' Philadelphus 'Belle Etoile'
In these guides
Zone guides: Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8
In flower in: June
Every fact on record
- Type
- Shrub
- Size
- 3 ft (90 cm) tall, 3 ft (90 cm) wide
- Plant
- 2½ ft (75 cm) apart
- Height class
- Medium tall (2½ to 3 ft)
- Place in the bed
- Middle
- Flowers
- Early June to late June; open bowls; white
- Leaves
- Medium texture, deciduous; dark green
- Shape
- Rounded, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 4 to 8
- Light
- Full sun, part sun
- Soil
- Average, well-drained
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
Checked against NC State Extension. 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.