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Tree & Shrub of the Week - July 18th
This week we'd like to highlight two natives we received from Mellow Marsh Farms in Siler City, NC. We were able to source over 600 one-gallon sized native trees and shrubs, and we are excited to be able to offer many this fall!
Lindera benzoin - Spicebush
Deciduous shrub 8-15' tall/wide Part shade
Spicebush is a beautiful shrub that offers a lot in terms of wildlife food, landscape use, and an uncommon bloom time in your garden! It is naturally found in moist woodlands, think stream banks, bottomlands and rich cove forests. Their tiny yellow blooms can create a yellow-hazy appearance in the understory of woods. Their early bloom time (early March) is important to pollinators at a time when flowers are scarce this early in the season. All parts of this shrub have aromatic oils that give it a strong citrusy smell, especially when the leaves are crushed. Spicebush is dioecious, meaning there are separate male and female plants. The female plants create red berries that are favored by thrushes, upland game birds and songbirds, especially during fall migration. It can be challenging to tell if a spicebush plant is male or female if not purchased during bloom time or during berry production.