Summersweet 'Hummingbird' 3gal aka Sweet Pepperbush

Partial sun/ partial shade/shade

2-4'

Perennial

Salt tolerant

Beautiful fall color

Very fragrant blooms

Attracts hummingbirds, berries/fruits, fall interest, food for birds, fragrant flowers, pollinator favorite, pond margin plant, shade garden plant, stream margin plant

Clethra alnifolia 'Hummingbird' is a shorter, more compact selection of the species commonly called coastal sweetpepperbush or summersweet. It's a deciduous shrub with racemes of sweetly scented, white flowers that appear in mid- to late summer. The blooms draw in pollinators, including bees and hummingbirds. While the wild type of summersweet can reach up to 10' tall, 'Hummingbird' grows to the range of 2'-4' in height and is often wider than it is tall. It's also more floriferous. Like the parent species, it has alternate leaves with a finely toothed edge and distinct veining. After flowering, it produces brown, dry capsules that mature in the fall and provide seed to birds during the winter. It's a good way to add structure to a pollinator garden and can be used as part of screening, a border, or as a specimen. It compact size and mounding habit make 'Hummingbird' especially good for smaller gardens.