How to Plant, Grow, and Care for Spicebush

Spicebush, Lindera benzoin, also known as northern spicebush or wild allspice, is a deciduous shrub that grows in rich, moist woodlands. In the home landscape, it’s a great choice for a native plant or shade garden.

Spicebush provides year-round landscaping appeal. From spring flowers to fall foliage, summer fruits, and winter structure, you can enjoy this low-maintenance shrub in a shaded part of your yard. As a flowering shrub, it is one of the first to bloom each spring, attracting early-season pollinators. And if you enjoy growing plants with unique characteristics, the crushed leaves emit a pleasantly spicy scent. 

Spicebush is easy to care for and rarely has any problems with pests or diseases. In its natural habitat, spicebush is a fairly common plant, but it isn’t commonly used for home landscaping projects. If you choose to grow spicebush, you will be growing a beautiful, useful, and interesting plant that adds tons of appeal in wet or shady spots where it can be hard to find suitable plants.

If you have the proper growing conditions, spicebush is an excellent addition to your native plant landscape. Let’s learn more about this unique and interesting shrub.

Natural History

Spicebush is native to the central and eastern United States and eastern Canada. It lives in rich, moist forests, in bottomlands, along stream banks, and in woodland ravines. This species typically grows in mature woodlands and areas with low disturbance.

Spicebush has many uses and can be readily incorporated into a home landscape. It is a valuable wildlife food plant with important contributions to the natural environment. It can form thickets, although it does not grow aggressively. Humans have also used spicebush. It has fragrant leaves and berries that can be used in scented herbal and floral mixes. 

There are several other species of spicebush, native to different regions and countries. You will find that they all have similar requirements, qualities, and characteristics. 

Characteristics

Spicebush is a medium-sized perennial deciduous shrub. It is relatively slow-growing and can grow up to 15 feet tall, although it often stays smaller. Shrubs grown with greater sun exposure have a more dense and bushy form, while shrubs grown in heavy shade tend to develop fewer branches. These shrubs are not very heavily or densely branched.

The leaves are smooth-edged, oblong, and oval-shaped with gently pointed ends. The leaves are bright green during the growing season and emit a spicy aroma when crushed. In fall, the spicebush leaves turn bright yellow for an appealing autumn display. 

Small yellowish-green flowers develop along the bare stems before leaves emerge in early spring. By late summer, small, oval, bright red berry-like drupes add a burst of color. Spicebush is dioecious, meaning there are separate male and female plants, and you need both for cross-pollination and for the female plants to produce fruits.

Propagation

Spicebush can be propagated by seeds or by softwood cuttings. These are not the easiest plants to grow from either, but it can be done with a bit of patience and effort. Do not dig native plants from their natural environments. Instead, opt for cuttings or seeds from friends’ gardens, or source them from native plant nurseries. 

Seed

The bright red berry-like drupes contain seeds. If you want to grow spicebush from seed, harvest a few of these drupes late in the season when they are fully red and mature. The inner seeds should not be allowed to dry out, or they quickly lose viability.

Place the freshly collected drupes in a small bag with moist soil and refrigerate them for approximately four months to cold-stratify them. Then, sow the seeds in warm, moist soil, maintaining moisture until they germinate. You can also try winter-sowing to mimic the natural winterization of the wild plants.

Softwood Cuttings

The easiest way to propagate spicebush is by taking cuttings. Take softwood cuttings during springtime using clean, sharp pruners. Take a four to six-inch section of new woody growth. Remove any buds or leaf growth from the lower half of the stem. Dip that half in rooting hormone and plant it in fresh, clean, moist soil.

Keep the soil moist while you’re waiting for your cutting to take root. When you start to see fresh growth at the tops, that’s a good sign that your cutting was successful. 

Transplanting

If you have a potted spicebush, either purchased from a nursery or your own propagation technique, you will need to transplant it into its permanent location in your landscape. The best time to transplant is during spring or fall. Choose a cool, overcast day for your transplanting project. 

Select an ideal location based on the plant’s needs for sunlight, soil, and water. Prepare the transplanting site by digging a hole slightly larger than the rootball of your potted plant. Gently remove the plant from its pot and transfer it into the prepared hole. Refill any gaps around the edges with fresh soil.

Finally, give your newly transplanted spicebush a thorough watering to help it settle in. Ensure the soil around your new plant stays moist for the first few weeks.

How to Grow

Spicebush is very easy to grow in a moist, slightly shaded location. Once yours is planted and established, it should be quite trouble-free and will provide many years of beauty in your landscape. Just make sure to place it in a location that meets its preferred needs for sunlight and moisture.

Sunlight 

Spicebush does best in partial shade, receiving between two and six hours of direct sunlight daily. These plants also tolerate full shade but grow with less vigor than those that receive some sunlight each day. Dappled shade and afternoon shade are best.

Water 

Your plant needs medium moisture soil and performs best if it does not dry out. It can tolerate periodic flooding and very brief periods of drought. Consistent soil moisture is most important when plants are young.

Soil 

The soil should be of average quality and able to hold some water. Spicebush appreciates well-drained soil but isn’t too picky about soil quality. It tolerates heavy clay soils with ease. 

Climate and Temperature 

Grow spicebush in USDA Plant Hardiness Zones 4 – 9. These shrubs do not do well in excessive heat and prefer the coolness of a shaded area or protected woodland.  

Fertilizer 

You won’t need to worry about fertilizing your spicebush plant. If you are growing it in average-quality to rich soil, it should perform very well without needing extra nutrients. In fact, extra nutrients can reduce the vigor of the plant overall.

Maintenance 

Spicebush is a very low-maintenance plant. Prune off any dead or broken branches as needed. Mulch around the base of the plant to preserve soil moisture. Use natural and biodegradable leaf mulch, compost mulch, or wood chip mulch, which decomposes and enriches the soil. 

Garden Design

Spicebush isn’t the perfect plant for all garden settings, but it’s a great choice for some projects. One of the most important things to remember when choosing spicebush for your landscape is that it likes moist soil and a bit of shade.

Do you have a somewhat boggy, wooded area? Place spicebush under the shade of some larger trees. Does your property border a wetland, or do you have a low spot that’s consistently moist? Spicebush is an excellent plant for a wetland or rain garden. Do you want to grow native plants and support a variety of pollinators? Spicebush is a valuable addition to a wildlife-friendly garden, and it fits in well with other shade-loving native plants.  

Use spicebush in a hedge with other flowering shrubs. Plant it along a woodland edge or a property line. Don’t plant spicebush among other aggressively growing shrubs or vines because it is easily out-competed. Instead, grow a few in a cluster separate from other, larger shrubs to really appreciate their unique and subtle contributions to your landscape design. 

Varieties

Southern Spicebush, Lindera melissifolia

Southern spicebush, or pondberry, is a smaller shrub native to the southeastern United States. It grows in wet habitats, on the edges of waterways and in areas that are flooded occasionally. It spreads by root suckers to form colonies.

In the springtime,  bunches of yellow flowers bloom along the woody stems, and by late summer, bright red fruits develop, attracting birds and other small wildlife. Southern spicebush prefers warmer climates and is hardy in USDA Zones 7 – 9.

Narrow-Leaf Spicebush, Lindera angustifolia

This spicebush is a large shrub native to China and Korea. It grows seven to 10 feet tall and prefers sandy, moist, well-drained soil. Narrow-leaf spicebush is hardy in USDA Zones 6 – 8. This species is appreciated for its dazzling orange, red, and purple-bronze fall foliage that persists into the winter months. 

Japanese Spicebush, Lindera obtusiloba

The Japanese spicebush is a showy shrub that is native to Asia. It grows 10 to 20 feet tall and does well in USDA Zones 6 – 9. In early spring, this species develops dense clusters of golden yellow flowers along the stems, followed by small, dark burgundy-red to black fruits on female plants. The leaves turn an attractive yellow-orange in fall.

Red-Fruit Spicebush, Lindera erythrocarpa

The red-fruit spicebush is a large shrub or small tree native to Asia. This plant is best grown in moist, well-drained soils in USDA Zones 6 – 8. It has relatively large leaves that turn brilliant yellow in fall. It blooms in spring, followed by bronze-red berries. 

Asian Spicebush, Lindera glauca var. salicifolia

Asian spicebush is a medium to large deciduous shrub native to parts of Asia. It grows four to 10 feet tall and is hardy in USDA Zones 5 – 9. This spicebush species develops several thick trunks and make an excellent privacy hedge. The large leaves turn beautiful shades of orange, red, and purple during the fall months and persist on the plant well into the winter. 

Wildlife Value

This shrub is excellent for a wildlife garden and especially for a butterfly-friendly habitat. It is the larval host plant for the Palamedes swallowtail butterfly and the spicebush swallowtail butterfly.

The flowers bloom very early in the year, attracting any early-season pollinators that may be around. By late summer and fall, the small red fruits attract birds and other foraging wildlife. 

Common Problems

Spicebush is a fairly trouble-free plant, and you should not typically have any problems with it. It is a member of the Laurel family, and these plants are all susceptible to laurel wilt disease. Laurel wilt is caused by a fungus (Raffaelea lauricola) and transmitted through infected redbay ambrosia beetles. 

Laurel Wilt 

Watch for tiny holes on the bark of an infected shrub with thin rods of toothpick-like ‘frass’ extending from the hole’s opening. Leaves of infected shrubs turn reddish or bronze-brown color and wilt. A badly infected plant typically dies within a few months. 

Unfortunately, there isn’t anything to be done for an infected shrub other than to try to stop the spread. If your spicebush seems to mysteriously wilt and die suddenly and you suspect laurel wilt, cut it down, cut it into smaller pieces, and bury the infected tree parts to prevent spread to other trees or other areas.

Frequently Asked Questions