meadowsweet
Spiraea alba
USDA zones3 to 7
SunHandles full sun to full shade
WaterHandles dry to wet soil
Size3 to 4 feet tall3 to 4 feet wide
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Bloom season
- Summer, autumn
- Bloom color
- White
- Foliage color
- Green
- Soil types
- Sand, loam, clay
- Soil pH
- Circumneutral (pH 6.8-7.2)
Garden uses
Attracts
Notes
Meadowsweet (Spiraea alba) is a shrub for borders, rain gardens, meadows, and naturalized areas. It is hardy to USDA zone 3, or down to -40°F (-40°C). This plant likes full sun to full shade and dry to wet, sandy, loamy, or clay soil. Tiny white flowers form conical spikes that attract butterflies, bees, and birds. The leaves turn golden-yellow in fall, and brown fruit lingers after the blooms fade. Deer tend to pass it by.
Pairs well with Joe Pye weed, Royal fern, and Little bluestem.
Native range
Eastern North America.