#739 Spiraea japonica Common Names: Japanese spirea, Japanese meadowsweet, maybush Family: Rosaceae (rose Family) Get link to this Profile or click for data record #739

Japanese spirea covers itself in fuzzy flowers in early summer.

Location
Not surprisingly, Japanese spirea comes from Japan. It also is considered native to Korea and China. It has naturalized in North America from New England south through the Appalachians into Tennessee and Georgia, and west to Indiana. Japanese spirea usually grows along stream bottoms and on seepage slopes, but readily invades mesic forest edges and openings, old fields, roadsides, and utility rights-of-way.

Culture
Japanese spirea will grow in a wide variety of soils, including those on the alkaline side, but it prefers a rich, moist loam. These shrubs appreciate manure and thrive on organic mulch. Since they bloom on the current season's growth, Japanese spirea should be pruned in winter or early spring. They can be cut all the way to the ground. After the flowers fade, shear them off to stimulate a second flush of growth and more flowers. Mowing will control expansion of a planting, but the stems will resprout, so repeated cutting will be a longterm necessity. Spireas may suffer minor damage from a variety of pests and diseases, but they are not prone to any major problems. Aphids occasionally are a nuisance in the spring.
Light: Partial shade is okay, but full sun promotes flowering and good leaf color.
Moisture: Japanese spirea likes lots of water during the growing season but will not tolerate saturated soils for extended periods.
Hardiness: USDA Zones 4 - 8. Some varieties are hardy into Zone 3. This is a plant for temperate climates with distinct winters. It does not do well in the extended warm weather of the subtropics.
Propagation: Japanese spirea reproduces aggressively in the wild. A single plant can produce hundreds of seeds that remain viable and persist in the soil for many years. Typically the seeds are dispersed by water and deposited along streambanks. They also are distributed in fill dirt. In cultivation, Japanese spirea usually is propagated by sucker division or softwood cuttings rooted under mist in a warm place during the summer. Hardwood cuttings can be rooted outdoors in the fall. This plant also may be layered by pegging down a branch in the spring and potting it up in the fall. Spireas are easy to transplant. Fall is the best time to divide plants, but spring and fall are both good for setting out new ones.

The durable Japanese spirea is a showy survivor that requires virtually no care.

Features
Varieties of Japanese spirea with yellow leaves are excellent for brightening a planting and providing contrast to dark-foliaged species. There are about 100 species of spireas. The popular Reeves' spirea (S. cantoniensis) blooms in early spring with white flowers.

WARNING
Japanese spirea can be an aggressive invasive plant in a damp temperate climate. The Plant Conservation Alliance lists this species as an Alien Invader. It will elbow out delicate border companions and try to creep into the tall grass at the edge of the lawn. It takes over disturbed areas quickly, then slips into nearby meadows, forest openings, stream bottoms, and the like. Once established, it grows rapidly and forms dense stands that outcompete native vegetation.

Linda Conway Duever 7/22/00; updated 12/26/03

This fall, American Meadows shrub sale lists three cultivars of Japanese Spirea, since it’s one of the most popular groups of shrubs in the US.  Along with the classics, 'Goldmound' and 'Magic Carpet, they also list ' Little Princess ,' a newer hybrid that like “Magic Carpet,” stays below 3 ft.  In addition, the fall shrub list includes a dependable spirea from another species, S. niponnicum, called 'Snowmound' that forms a large plant from 4 to 6 ft. tall and wide and covers itself with snow white flowers.

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