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Rosaceae
Japanese Spirea
Spiraea thunbergii
Delicate resolve and the arc of grace.
- Family
- Rosaceae
- Genus
- Spiraea
- Native to
- Japan, China
- Bloom season
- Early Spring
- Type
- deciduous shrub
- Height
- 90–180 cm
- Sunlight
- full sun
- Soil
- well-drained, adaptable
- Water
- low to medium
- Hardiness
- 4–8
- Lifespan
- 20–30 years
Did you know
- Japanese spirea is one of the earliest shrubs to bloom, often flowering before forsythia in late winter to early spring.
- Its fine, willow-like foliage turns soft orange and bronze in autumn, providing multi-season interest.
- The arching branches become so thickly covered in small white flowers that they resemble cascading snow.
- Named for Carl Peter Thunberg, the Swedish 'Japanese Linnaeus' who catalogued Japanese plants in the 1770s.
- In Japan it is called 'yukiyanagi' (snow willow) because the flowers on arching stems resemble snow-draped willow branches.
Color meanings
White
simple elegance and fresh starts