Sweetshrub
Calycanthus floridus
Maroon flowers that look almost tropical, and leaves that smell of strawberry, pineapple, and sweet wine when crushed. Handles dry shade.
Typically 1 quart–3 gal · $17–$85 · final price at pickup
- Thu, Aug 138 AM – 4 PM
- Fri, Aug 148 AM – 4 PM
- Sat, Aug 158 AM – 2 PM
The most surprising fragrance in our entire shrub collection. that strawberry-spice-wine smell from both leaves and flowers is genuinely unforgettable.
Crush a leaf of sweetshrub and catch the scent: something between strawberry, pineapple, and sweet burgundy wine, with a green edge underneath. It's one of the most complex, unexpected fragrances in the entire native plant world, and it comes from the leaves as much as the flowers. The dark maroon-brown flowers that open in late spring add another layer: they look almost tropical, like something from a rainforest rather than the Virginia piedmont. Sweetshrub grows as a wide-spreading rounded shrub for shade gardens and woodland edges. It spreads slowly by suckers to form relaxed colonies, works beautifully massed under large trees, and tolerates drier shade conditions that challenge most plants. Essentially pest-free and very deer-resistant.
A nursery-grown plant, ready for the ground.
Healthy, container-grown sweetshrub propagated on-site at Hill House from regional genetics. Includes a one-page care card. We make every effort to supply plants as listed; occasionally we substitute a similar species of equal value.
- Sun
- Full sun
- Water
- Average
- Mature size
- 5–8 ft · 5–8 ft wide
- Bloom time
- Mar, late spring
- Bloom color
- Maroon
- USDA zones
- 4–9
- Family
- Calycanthaceae
- Native range
- Southeastern United States
Care notes for sweetshrub.
Part shade to full shade in average to moist, well-drained soil. More adaptable than it looks. tolerates dry shade and clay better than most flowering shrubs. Prune lightly after bloom to shape; remove older stems every few years to rejuvenate. Spreads by root suckers. No serious pests or diseases.
Pairs well with these.
Same light, same soil, same wildlife. Janet's picks to plant alongside sweetshrub.
Or skip the guesswork.
Curated packages bundle complementary species for an instant habitat. One reservation, one pickup day, a printed layout map.
Short on Space Package
For gardeners who have an abundance of passion but are short on space, this package features tidy, upright, clump-forming natives that behave and function well in small spaces.
Shade Bed Package
Ferns, sedges, and woodland natives that thrive under existing trees.
Birder’s Paradise Package
For the avid bird watchers and budding ornithologists in our community, the Birder’s Paradise Package consists of species that Hill House Nursery staff and longtime native plant advocates such as Doug Tallamy consider ‘premier bird garden plants’.