Virginia sweetspire
Itea virginica · Iteaceae
Drooping tassels of fragrant white flowers in early summer on arching stems, and autumn colour of red, orange and purple that lasts for weeks, often into December.
- Size
- 5 ft tall, 5 ft wide
- Zones
- 5 to 9
- Light
- Full sun to part shade
- Flowers
- Early June to early July
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Anchor
A bed built around Virginia sweetspire
The planner designed this bed around Virginia sweetspire when this page was made: a 16 × 8 ft (4.9 × 2.4 m) English border in zone 6, part sun. It chose the other plants from the 708 that suit those conditions, and says below why Virginia sweetspire stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Virginia sweetspire × 1, white
- 2 Mossy saxifrage × 34, pink
- 3 Carpathian bellflower 'Blue Clips' × 16, blue
- 4 Siberian iris 'Caesar's Brother' × 5, purple
- 5 Joe Pye weed 'Little Joe' × 3, pink
- 6 Lady's mantle × 8, green
- 7 Easter lily × 4, white
- 8 Camassia × 5, blue
- 9 Red spider lily × 5, red
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.
Why here
- Anchors a back corner. At 5 ft it is the tallest plant 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 Siberian iris 'Caesar's Brother' (3½ ft): 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 five weeks. From early June to early July.
- Part of the bed's peak. With Carpathian bellflower 'Blue Clips', Siberian iris 'Caesar's Brother' and lady's mantle in late June: 4 kinds at once. No week has more.
Planned as an English border: 8 of the 9 groups (89%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. The flowering is at its height in late May, with 4 kinds out together. There is more mossy saxifrage than anything else, 34 plants in all.
The planner's own design check: 13 Excellent, 4 Good.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where Virginia sweetspire goes in a border
At 5 ft it belongs at the back of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is tall (4 to 5 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.
One of the most useful native shrubs: it flowers in shade, colours superbly and holds wet banks. It suckers into a colony, so give it space or a boundary.
- Long-lasting autumn colour
- Wet soil and stream banks
- Native shrub borders in sun or shade
What to plant with Virginia sweetspire
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Summersweet: takes over when it finishes, flowering from mid July; happy in the same moist soil.
- Christmas fern: its dark green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; low enough (20 in) to stand in front of it.
- Hosta: its green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; bold leaves against its medium ones; a low mound at the foot of its spires.
Questions about Virginia sweetspire
Does Virginia sweetspire need sun or shade?
Virginia sweetspire grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day), part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun) and part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, of average fertility, and a good soak in dry spells. Once settled in, it stands drought.
What zones does Virginia sweetspire grow in?
USDA zones 5 to 9. It is hardy to zone 5, which means it survives winter nights down to about −10 °F (−23 °C).
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does Virginia sweetspire flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers early June to early July. As a summer flower it moves about half a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer.
| Zone 5 | Early June to early July |
|---|---|
| Zone 6 | Early June to early July |
| Zone 7 | Late May to late June |
| Zone 8 | Late May to late June |
| Zone 9 | 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 Virginia sweetspire be planted?
4 ft (120 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 5 ft (150 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 5 ft (150 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many Virginia sweetspire plants do I need?
Usually one. At 4 ft (120 cm) across, it is a plant you place, not one you mass. For a hedge or screen, set them 4 ft apart: three plants for a 10 ft run.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is Virginia sweetspire 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.
Do deer eat Virginia sweetspire?
Mostly not. NC State lists it as resistant to deer. No plant is proof against a hungry deer in a hard winter, but this one is low on the menu.
Will Virginia sweetspire spread?
It spreads sideways, by runners or roots; the risk of it taking over is moderate. Spreads by suckers into a wider clump. Remove the outer shoots to contain it.
What flowers after Virginia sweetspire?
Virginia sweetspire is over by early July. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Summersweet: from mid July to mid August, 6½ ft tall (a recorded partner).
- Russian sage: from mid July to mid September, 4 ft tall.
- Tiger lily: from late July to late August, 4 ft tall.
What does Virginia sweetspire look like in winter?
Virginia sweetspire drops its leaves and stands as bare branches. That is when to see its shape, and to prune it if it needs pruning.
Is Virginia sweetspire good for bees and butterflies?
Virginia sweetspire is visited by pollinators, butterflies, hummingbirds and songbirds.
It is native to the United States.
More Itea
- Sweetspire 'Little Henry' Itea virginica 'Little Henry'
- Virginia sweetspire 'Henry's Garnet' Itea virginica 'Henry's Garnet'
In these guides
- Plants for dry shade
- Plants for wet soil and rain gardens
- Deer-resistant plants for shade
- Pet-safe plants for a sunny border
- Pet-safe plants for shade
- Native plants for shade
- Plants for hummingbirds
- Plants for butterflies
- Plants that feed garden birds
- Plants with spires: vertical accents
- Plants for a white garden
- Plants with purple and burgundy leaves
Every fact on record
- Type
- Shrub
- Size
- 5 ft (150 cm) tall, 5 ft (150 cm) wide
- Plant
- 4 ft (120 cm) apart
- Height class
- Tall (4 to 5 ft)
- Place in the bed
- Back
- Flowers
- Early June to early July; upright spires; white
- Leaves
- Medium texture, deciduous; green, burgundy
- Shape
- Arching, spreading
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 5 to 9
- Light
- Full sun, part sun, part shade
- Soil
- Average, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Iteaceae
- Comes from
- Southeastern United States
- Attracts
- Pollinators, butterflies, hummingbirds, songbirds
- Stands up to
- Deer, drought, wet soil
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.