Prune these branches back to the main stem with one clean cut. ‘Sixteen Candles’ summersweet is a newer cultivar of a popular native shrub. Drue Tibbits is a writer based in Central Florida, where she attended Florida Southern College. … Pruning should be done in early spring before leafing out. It has a sturdy branching habit and does not droop over as 'Hummingbird' can. No serious insect or disease problems. The flowers are notable for their size, how late they bloom, and their ability to bloom even in the shade. If you’re not sure whether a branch is dead, try clipping off the tip. Sweet pepperbush (Clethra alnifolia), a deciduous shrub, grows to 8 feet tall, in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 4 to 9. Autumn foliage is golden yellow. Tolerates full shade. Summersweet Clethra is a native shrub to the eastern United States that produces white spiky fragrant blooms in the summer or early fall. Family Clethraceae . The flowers are produced on vertical flower spikes about 6 inches long that protrude The fragrant, dense, upright, white flower candles, up to 6 inches in length, last up to 6 weeks beginning mid-summer. The pure native would make a fine choice for your landscape, but there are reasons others have been made for the market place. Also may be naturalized in cottage gardens, wild gardens or naturalized areas. Plant height varies greatly depending upon the cultivar. It also is better behaved, staying in place rather than spreading under ground. Propagate by cuttings. The Garden wouldn't be the Garden without our Members, Donors and Volunteers. A profusion of upright fragrant white flower spikes is the star of summer. Blooms on current season's growth; prune … Soils should not be allowed to dry out. Estabrook's To Go is a new service that allows you to shop online for high quality plants and products from Estabrook's and pick them up curbside at our Yarmouth or Kennebunk stores. Bloom time in the Upstate of South Carolina is mid-July through early August. This type of pruning opens up the interior of the plant and limits regrowth. Serrate, obovate to oblong, glossy dark green leaves (to 3-4” long) turn variable but generally attractive shades of yellow to golden brown in fall. A highly rated eastern native variety with dense, compact habit, perfect for small gardens. Noteworthy Characteristics. Sweet pepperbush tolerates heavy pruning. For the best blooms, you should prune your summersweet shrub in the early spring and after the blooming season. Uses Foundation plantings; mixed borders; wildlife gardens; naturalizing. Browse our website and add plants and products to your shopping cart. Prefers part shade and consistently moist, acidic, sandy soils. It is a rounded, suckering, densely-branched, deciduous shrub that typically grows to 3-6’ (less frequently to 8’) tall and is noted for producing a mid to late summer bloom of sweetly fragrant white flowers which appear in narrow, upright panicles (racemes to 2-6" long). Deciduous shrub Full to partial sun. ‘Sixteen Candles’ is not burdened with insect/disease problems and is reported to be deer resistant. No wonder that its new varieties are gaining more attention. It bears good-sized flower spikes about 6 inches long for 4 to 6 weeks in mid-summer. Origin • North America. It also attracts hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies. In summer, ‘Sixteen Candles’ is topped with aromatic, erect, butterfly-enticing white blooms for 4 to 6 weeks. If … Spider mites may be a concern in dry conditions. Spreads by suckering roots forming wide colonies. ‘Ruby Spice’ is the darkest pink color, which holds even in the coastal plains. It does not require pruning, but pruning is useful to control the size of the bush, to keep it neat and to create a particular shape. Plant near a patio to enjoy the fragrant late summer bloom. ‘Sherry Sue’ sports white flowers and bright red stems. ‘Pink Spire’ and ‘Ruby Spire’ have colorful flowers that also have a strong fragrance. To deadhead your clethra shrub's flowers, use your pruning shears to trim the stem back to 1/4 to 1/8 of an inch … As with most flowering shrubs, pruning may limit flower production or encourage plentiful flower development. USDA zones 5-9. Summersweet is a versatile shrub that thrives in most climates and is suitable as a specimen plant or a hedge. Crossing, winter killed, badly formed or damaged branches should be removed back to a main branch, some shaping can be done as well. Cut suckers back to the ground if you don’t want the plant to spread; leave the suckers to grow if you want bushier growth. If you deadhead or remove these flowers, that energy will be redirected to bloom production. The fragrant, dense, upright, white flower candles, up to 6 inches in length, last up to 6 weeks beginning mid-summer. ‘Sixteen Candles’ has the advantage of being a medium sized plant prized for very dark green foliage as well as all of the aforementioned features of a clethra. 'Sixteen Candles' Moderate growing, compact, dense and sturdy in habit, reaching up to 5 x 5 ( rarely over 3 ) feet. Summersweet (Clethra alnifolia 'Sixteen Candles'): Sixteen Candles summersweet is derived from a deciduous shrub native to the eastern US. Cut back dead twig ends to healthy plant tissue. Clethra are suitable for a woodland garden or mixed border.. Noteworthy … Fertilize before new growth begins in early spring. Easily grown in average, medium to wet soils in full sun to part shade. Browse our website and add plants and products to your shopping cart. Also appropriate for moist soils along stream banks or pond/water garden peripheries. It develops new growth easily at most pruning sites. Its average texture blends into the landscape, but can be balanced by one or two finer or coarser trees or shrubs for an effective composition. Hummingbird was selected for its uniformity and compactness. Soils should not be allowed to dry out. * … Rejuvenate older plants that have many dead or spindly branches by cutting back up to one-third of the plant. Good foliage with fragrant flowers. Tolerate: Heavy Shade, Erosion, Clay Soil, Wet Soil. In addition to writing brochure copy for local businesses, she helps new start-up companies develop a local image presence. Dwarf Summersweet Varieties. Pruning can be rather important to the overall look of the plant. When spent flowers are left on the shrub, it will direct its energy to producing seed. Effective as a hedge. The inflorescence, or flower cluster (botanically called a raceme), is white on the species, varies from 3 to 6 inches long, and is extremely fragrant. They both grow on a single stem and look a bit spindly, though the top grows and flowers well. Besides being easy to grow, it’s also great for attracting birds and butterflies to your garden. ); Crystaltina – height 2-3 feet (60-91cm. Clethra are deciduous and evergreen shrubs and small trees grown for their fragrant white to yellow-white, cup-like flowers. Suggested uses. Summersweets are somewhat unique among flowering shrubs because of their ability to bloom in shady locations in late summer when few other shrubs are in bloom. Pruning If pruning is desired, do so in early spring, when the new growth begins to appear on the stems. They love its flowers! Pruning is also a very important method for encouraging growth, filling out the shrub to make it look fuller, shaping the shrub, and produce larger flowers or fruit. ‘Sixteen Candles’ grows to a height of between 3 and 5 feet blooming in summer with white upright flowers. Golden yellow fall color ... Prune Time • After Blooming. Clethra Summersweet – Pruning, Winter Care and Fertilizing. Just remember that Clethra is not a plant for droughty soils. ‘Sherry Sue’ sports white flowers and bright red stems. There are others, like Sixteen Candles that tend to "make up" better as young plants. Flowers form on new growth. I have two clethra 16 candles shrubs that I have had for about three years. Well established plants can tolerate short drought periods. Grow in fertile, moist but well-drained, acid soil in … 'Sixteen Candles' is a new cultivar that is a dwarf, bushy selection. Clethra alnifolia 'Hummingbird'. The suckers increase the width and mass of the bush as they grow and mature. North Carolina State University: Clethra Alnifolia, Arizona Cooperative Extension: Pruning Shrubs. Other common names common white alder 'Sixteen Candles' . Pruning is a way to control the growth of your shrub. Good flowering shrub for shade or woodland gardens. Butterfly and bee nectar plant Grows well in wet areas. Flowers are sweetly fragrant and attractive to bees and butterflies. As it ages, it often becomes leggy as interior branches stretch to reach the outer canopy. I just planted a baby Clethra sixteen candles and also a Clethra Vanilla Spice and an Itea Little Henry. Always use sterile pruning shears when cutting the bush to avoid spreading plant diseases. Flowers are very attractive to butterflies and bees.Genus name comes from the Greek klethra the name for alder of which the leaves resemble.Specific epithet means leaves like alder. Summersweet is a medium-sized deciduous shrub that adds color and fragrance to your garden with its late-summer blooms. Mike Kincaid 3,501,747 views ‘Sixteen Candles’ and ‘Hummingbird’ are compact shrubs with white flowers. The spicy-sweet fragrance of "Hummingbird" summersweet (Clethra alnifolia "Hummingbird"), or sweet pepperbush, will … The flowers are notable for their size, how late they bloom, and their ability to bloom even in the shade. How to Trim a Clethra Alnifolia Hummingbird Plant. Genus Clethra can be deciduous or evergreen trees or shrubs, sometimes with attractive bark, with simple leaves and small, fragrant, usually white, bell-shaped flowers in racemes or panicles Details 'Sixteen Candles' is a compact, upright, deciduous shrub with glossy foliage turning yellow in autumn. ‘Hummingbird’ and ‘Sixteen Candles’ are more compact growing selections reaching only 3 feet tall and wide. © Copyright 2020 Hearst Communications, Inc. Summersweet cl… It bears good-sized flower spikes about 6 inches long for 4 to 6 weeks in mid-summer. It has the same white flowers but doesn’t have the floppy characteristic, so branching is stronger and flower spikes stand upright like candles. Clethra alnifolia 'Hummingbird' (Summersweet) is a pollinator shrub that produces a plethora of white flowers for several months in mid to late summer when little else is blooming. In summer, it develops fragrant flowers that attract bees and butterflies. Clethra is a superb shrub that has a lot going for it. Sixteen Candles Summersweet is a multi-stemmed deciduous shrub with a more or less rounded form. ); Tom’s Compact – height 2 … The summer’s flowers will have already wilted, and the new growth will have time to set flowers for the following summer. Possible Substitution Plants. It blooms in July and august, providing beauty to the late summer garden … Depending on the cultivar, the delicate blossoms appear in white, pink or rose. There are two schools of thought for pruning to enhance the beauty of the flowers. Sixteen Candles Summersweet is a lovely shrub with a lot to offer. Provide moist, humus-rich, slightly acidic, well-drained soil; avoid hot, dry sites. 'Sixteen Candles' is a new cultivar that is a dwarf, bushy selection. Clethra Alnifolia Pruning Tips. Cut the branches close to the ground, down to healthy plant tissue. Clethra alnifolia 'Hummingbird'. Many nurseries prefer 'Sixteen Candles to 'Hummingbird' because of its neater, more upright habit. Prune in late winter or early spring before flower buds form. Estabrook's To Go is a new service that allows you to shop online for high quality plants and products from Estabrook's and pick them up curbside at our Yarmouth or Kennebunk stores. Her articles have appeared in Entrepreneur and Your Home magazines. How It Works. 'Sixteen Candles' Moderate growing, compact, dense and sturdy in habit, reaching up to 5 x 5 ( rarely over 3 ) feet. Mass or group in lawns, foundations or shrub borders. Prefers part shade and consistently moist, acidic, sandy soils. This creates new growth and flower development. Is it possible to prune it hard to make it grow with multiple stems? Cultivation. Clethra alnifolia, commonly called summersweet, is a deciduous shrub that is native to swampy woodlands, wet marshes, stream banks and seashores, often in sandy soils, along the coast from Maine to Florida and west to Texas. Propagate by cuttings. The attractive glossy deep green foliage turns deep yellow in autumn. Sweet pepperbush flowers in the summer on the current year’s growth. Agree with all Lycopus' points, and that generally you are experiencing what young Clethra alnifolia act like. Sweet pepperbush grows into a shrubby mass. Promptly remove root suckers unless naturalized look is desired. Plant height varies greatly depending upon the cultivar. Sixteen Candles Summersweet - Native, Fragrant, Hardy, and Flowering - In this video I plant a Clethra alnifolia 'Sixteen Candles' in my landscape. Effective in mass or use as single specimen. Easily grown in average, medium to wet soils in full sun to part shade. Slow to leaf out in spring. There are others, like Sixteen Candles that tend to "make up" better as young plants. Maine Gardener: Clethra: Fragrant and so … not hydrangea. Hoping these new plants will do better than Ruby Spice. It does sucker some but is easy to manage in allotted space. The best time to prune is from late winter to early spring. While the species can reach eight feet in height, cultivars such as ‘Hummingbird’, ‘Sixteen Candles’ and White Dove™ max out around three feet. This plant in general will need a minimal amount of pruning. The flowers have a sweet, clove-like scent. Just remember that Clethra is not a plant for droughty soils. (Evenly moist soil is required in the South). Clethra 'Sixteen Candles' This is a selection from seedlings of ‘Hummingbird’. Leaves are mid- to dark green, alternate, simple, and finely to coarsely toothed. Best in moist to wet soils, tolerant of soil pH, part shade to full sun. Other than an occasional pruning, this shrub requires little in the way of maintenance. 'Sixteen Candles' is noted for its erect, candle-like flower spikes and compact size. USDA zones 5-9. Many nurseries prefer 'Sixteen Candles to 'Hummingbird' because of its neater, more … Sixteen Candles Summersweet is a relatively low maintenance and hardy shrub with no significant disease or insect issues. Therefore pruning can be done in winter. This means that pruning should be timed to avoid cutting off the current year’s flowers. ‘Ruby Spice’ is the darkest pink color, which holds even in the coastal plains. Some pruning should be carried out regardless of the time of year. 11 years ago. Flower Size • 3" to 6" Growth Rate • Slow. Tolerates full shade. Below are common types of dwarf summersweet that make perfect additions to the garden landscape: Hummingbird – height 30-40 inches (76-101 cm. Water deeply, regularly during the first growing season to establish an extensive root system. The first method of pruning is to remove 1/3 of the shrub each spring to eliminate the oldest branches as it is the newer stems that display the best flowers. If the sweet pepperbush has become too bushy, or if you are pruning for shape, remove old or tall branches by cutting them close to the ground. The leaves drop during the winter and expose the twiggy framework of the plant. Tolerates clay soils. Flowers give way to dark brown seed capsules (1/8" diameter) which may persist into winter. The attractive glossy deep green foliage turns deep yellow in autumn. Oval to rounded form reaching 6 to 8 feet high and 4 to 6 feet wide Cultivars vary in size and color. Summersweet is a versatile shrub that thrives in most climates and is suitable as a specimen plant or … Agree with all Lycopus' points, and that generally you are experiencing what young Clethra alnifolia act like. I have had a Ruby spice Clethra for several years and it doesn't flower very well or get very big-its maybe 3 1/2 feet tall. Clethra is hardy to zone 4 and has a number of newer varieties. Genus Clethra can be deciduous or evergreen trees or shrubs, sometimes with attractive bark, with simple leaves and small, fragrant, usually white, bell-shaped flowers in racemes or panicles Deadhead dead and fading clethra flowers. Winter causes significant twig dieback, with the tips of older and woodier stems dying and becoming nonproductive. In fall, the leaves turn an attractive yellow. Summersweet ‘Sixteen Candles’ * Common name: Summersweet ‘Sixteen Candles’ * Botanical name: Clethra alnifolia ‘Sixteen Candles’ * What it is: A native flowering shrub that produces upright, candle-like, 6-inch-long white flower spires in July and August. Like this one – ‘Sixteen Candles’ and ‘Hummingbird’ are compact shrubs with white flowers. Maintenance of Clethra Sixteen Candles is minimal once established. ‘Rosea,’ ‘Pink Spires’ and ‘Ruby Spice’ are three pink-flowered cultivars. ); Sugartina – height 28-30 inches (71-76 cm. Sixteen Candles Summersweet is adaptive to a variety of conditions and quite shade tolerant. Summer sweet (sweet pepper bush) is a popular shrub in our country again. Tolerant of aerial salt spray. We're also offering home delivery out of our Yarmouth store. A compact and well formed selection with highly fragrant, pure white flowers that attract nectar feeders, 'Sugartina Crystalina' blooms in late July to August amid deep green, glossy foliage that turns golden in fall. Prune sweet pepperbush correctly to promote healthy foliage growth and ensure masses of flowers in the summer. ); White Dove – height 2-3 feet (60-91cm. If cutting away dead or diseased branches, make sure you remove the clippings from around the plant. Flowers on new wood, prune to control size in spring. Summersweet clethra, Clethra alnifolia, also known as coastal sweet pepperbush, grows naturally along streams in the eastern United States from Maine to Florida.This upright deciduous shrub has fragrant white flowers arranged in showy 3- to 5-inch racemes. Great For: Foundation plantings Ideal for perennial borders or foundation beds. In fact, it tends to prefer shady, moist conditions. Thin out leggy growth by cutting the branches back to a juncture, a “Y” branch or a lateral side branch. Compact size makes this an ideal flowering shrub for smaller gardens. Pruning clethra 16 candles. You can also prune to create new growth that will develop new flowers. It stands apart from the other Clethra Summersweets in that its blooms are especially compact and fragrant, attracting butterflies and hummingbirds. If pruning is desired, the best time would be late winter since flowers occur on new growth. Tolerates clay soils. Superior dense mounded habit with large blooms. She has also been profiled in the Florida Today newspaper and the Writer's Digest magazine. The flowers are attractive to bees and butterflies, and the resulting dark brown seed capsules will attract birds during the autumn. Leaves are mid- to dark green, alternate, simple, and finely to coarsely toothed. Mature stems have scaly, dark gray to brown black bark. Prune if needed in late winter. Trim clethra’s old growth between mid-February and late April and it will bloom vigorously in summer. While the species can reach eight feet in height, cultivars such as ‘Hummingbird’, ‘Sixteen Candles’ and White Dove™ max out around three feet. ); Sixteen Candles – height 30-40 inches (76-101 cm. ‘Rosea,’ ‘Pink Spires’ and ‘Ruby Spice’ are three pink-flowered cultivars. Ruby Spice (among 5 or more others) is the pink form that has performed the best here in central KY, not fading to white like the others. Prune if needed in late winter. How Far Back Can I Prune a 'Gro-Low' Sumac? Carefully inspect your clethra shrub for damaged, diseased, broken or winter-killed branches. Clethra are deciduous and evergreen shrubs and small trees grown for their fragrant white to yellow-white, cup-like flowers. This compact selection reaches 3 to 5 feet tall. It reaches 3 feet tall and 4 feet wide. Promptly remove root suckers unless naturalized look is desired. Waterside, Low Maintenance, Cottage/Informal, Beds and borders, Wildlife, Woodland. Cut out any damaged or dead branches at ground level. If you are pruning to promote flower growth, cut several inches off the branches at the outer canopy. Prune broken, dead or diseased branches as soon as they appear. alisonmd. Ruby Spice (among 5 or more others) is the pink form that has performed the best here in central KY, not fading to white like the others. 'Sixteen Candles' has very fragrant white flowers that appear in mid-summer and attract butterflies and hummingbirds, along with other insects and birds. Clethra alnifolia, commonly called summersweet, is a deciduous shrub that is native to swampy woodlands, wet marshes, stream banks and seashores, often in sandy soils, along the coast from Maine to Florida and west to Texas.It is a rounded, suckering, densely-branched, deciduous shrub that typically … It has a sturdy branching habit and does not droop over as 'Hummingbird' can. How It Works. We're also offering home delivery out of our Yarmouth store. Clethra alnifolia 'Sixteen Candles' (Sweet pepper bush 'Sixteen Candles') will reach a height of 1.5m and a spread of 1.5m after 10-20 years. A wide variety of butterflies and songbirds are attracted to summersweet Sweet pepperbush (Clethra alnifolia), a deciduous shrub, grows to 8 feet tall, in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 4 to 9. Clethra alnifolia 'Sixteen Candles' Sixteen Candles Summersweet. Sweet pepperbush spreads by growing suckers at its base. Clethra Only a few of the small trees and shrubs in this genus are hardy, and those, including our East Coast native Clethra alnifolia , are amazingly adaptable, growing in moist conditions or dry. Clethra 'Ruby Spice' and Panicum 'Northwind' How to Grow Roses From Cuttings Fast and Easy | Rooting Rose Cuttings with a 2 Liter Soda Bottle - Duration: 28:23. 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A strong fragrance root suckers unless naturalized look is desired, the leaves turn attractive. Along with other insects and birds superb shrub that thrives in most and! Soil ; avoid hot, dry sites fall color... prune time • after blooming masses of flowers in summer! Selection reaches 3 feet tall common names common white alder 'Sixteen Candles ' this is a relatively low,... Do better than Ruby Spice foliage turns deep yellow in autumn Florida Today and.