Large Fothergilla
 

Mature Size, Growth, Longevity

Average mature size 6-10' tall, 5-9' wide. A rounded, multi-stemmed, dense shrub. Slow growth rate, young plants can grow faster though if provided with ample water and fertilizer.

Flower and Fruit Details

Abundant, fragrant flowers, whitish, for 3-4 weeks in mid-April, slightly ahead or with the leaves. Apetalous; the showy parts are actually the stamens. Fruits are 2-valved, dehiscent capsules, 0.5" long, splitting at the top, usually containing 2 shiny black seeds, and generally not produced in great quantities.

Leaf and Bark Features

Simple leaves arranged alternately, suborbicular to oval or ovate, 2-4" long, blue-green to dark green in the summer, underside grayish to whitish, extremely frost resistant. Fall color ranges from yellow to orange and scarlet, sometimes all colors appearing on same leaf, making this one of the better native shrubs for fall color. Stems are rounded, zigzag, slender, with bark that is dingy, stellate-tomentose, or more or less glabrescent.

Culture and Care

Easy to transplant, needs acid soil conditions. Stressed plants may have a light green (yellow-green) margin around the leaf. Zones 4-8.

Suggested Uses

Excellent shrub for the residential landscape, good for a border, groupings, masses and foundation plantings.

Taxa and Plants of this Species at BCA