Spacing & sowing

Plant spacing

16 ft 5 in

In-row spacing

16 ft 5 in

Between rows

20 ft 6 in

Square-foot density

Not suited to SFG

Growing

Type

Shrub · Perennial

Botanical family

Mixed / other

Sunlight

Remarkably adaptable, from full sun right through to full shade.

Watering

Once rooted in, it gets by on what falls.

Feeding

Feeding is seldom necessary.

Frost tolerant

Yes

Flowering

June

Pruning

Prune twice a year at the very least.

Overwintering

Hardy through winter with nothing done for it.

Through the year

• Apr–Apr Bud Break
• Apr–Jun Spring Growth
• Jun–Sep Flowering
• Sep–Nov Growing
• Nov–Dec Leaf Fall
• Jan–Apr Leaf Fall

Pests & problems

• Japanese beetle Japanese beetle in some regions
• Growth pushing into gutters and under roof tiles
• Adhesive pads that damage stucco and paintwork

Garden allies

Beneficial predators that hunt this plant's pests — grow their favourite flowers nearby to recruit them. ★ companion plant

• Assassin bug Reduviidae
  Hunts Japanese beetle

  A patient ambusher with a curved beak it drives into whatever it catches — caterpillars, beetles, bugs, and the occasional bee, so count it a generalist rather than a specialist. It will jab a careless finger too, so admire it and leave it be.

  Plant nearby DillFennelGoldenrodSweet alyssumTansyYarrow
• Beneficial nematodes Steinernema & Heterorhabditis spp.
  Hunts Japanese beetle

  Microscopic worms watered onto damp soil that hunt down soil-dwelling grubs and release a bacterium that kills them within days. Timing is the whole thing: warm, damp soil and a small target grub, which means late summer for most of what they are used against.

• Garden birds Passeriformes
  Hunts Japanese beetle

  Both things are true: birds strip your currants and a brood of blue tits takes several thousand caterpillars out of one fruit tree in a fortnight. Net what you must and welcome them everywhere else — a nest box near the apples is worth more than a spray.

  Plant nearby EchinaceaElderberryEnglish hollyGoldenrodRudbeckiaSunflowerTeaselViburnum
• Praying mantis Mantidae
  Hunts Japanese beetle

  A sit-and-wait ambusher that snatches caterpillars, beetles, and anything else that wanders close — friend and foe alike, so count it a mixed blessing. Tall, structured plantings give it perches and egg-case anchors.

  Plant nearby CosmosFennelSunflower
• Spined soldier bug Podisus maculiventris
  Hunts Japanese beetle

  A predatory stink bug — same shield outline as the pest, but with a sharp spine at each shoulder and a beak it uses to spear caterpillars and beetle grubs. Learn the spines before you squash a shield bug, because this one is on your side.

  Plant nearby DillFennelSweet alyssumYarrow
• Tachinid fly Tachinidae
  Hunts Japanese beetle

  Bristly, house-fly-lookalike parasitoids that lay eggs on caterpillars, beetle grubs, and earwigs — the maggot consumes the host from within. Adults sip nectar from shallow umbels and daisies.

  Plant nearby CilantroDillFeverfewParsleySweet alyssum