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| Korean Spice Viburnum photo Home Depot |
Much has been written, photographed, painted, and generally rhapsodized over
a well tended manicured garden or a meadow in full bloom. One of the great joys of tending a garden is surly the fragrance of the plants. Two of these you should try if you have not are Korean Spice Viburnum (Viburnum carlessi) and Clethra (Clethra alnifolia).
There are many nice viburnums, but Korean Spice has lovely fragrance in the spring and is reasonably easy to grow. It needs partial to full sun and fairly regular watering – more in extreme heat. It is fairly slow growing and normally reaches 4 to 6 feet tall. In my Mother’s yard it grew to 8 feet and perfumed the entire neighborhood. It is also called Korean Spice Bush.
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| Clethra photo Monrovia |
Clethra is a native plant growing from Maine to Florida. It blooms in the fall
when other things are less likely top be blooming. It likes shade and moisture and will require more water in an extremely dry summer. Don’t be discouraged in the spring if it isn’t leafing out quickly – it is late to put out its leaves. It tolerates clay soil but must be kept moist if you have clay. It has bottle brush flowers, usually white, but there are pink varieties. The leaves are glossy green, turning yellowish to golden in the fall–some common names for it are Summer Sweet and Sweet Pepperbush.
Depending on your soil, they would both appreciate a large hole and plenty of mulch when they are planted. Neither of them require much care, other than regular water while they are getting established.
These are two seasonally grown shrubs, one for spring and for summer which will reward your nose and the neighborhood with their wonderful fragrance.
