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Clethra barbinervis
Also called Tree Clethra
Japanese clethra is a deciduous shrub or small tree from eastern Asia, grown for its fragrant white flower spikes in late summer and autumn and its peeling bark. It needs a sheltered spot in temperate gardens.
Clethra barbinervis, the Japanese clethra, is a species of flowering plant in the family Clethraceae. It is native to eastern Asia, where it is found in southern China, Korea, and Japan. Its natural habitat is in open mountain forests. It is a common species in Japan, and is often found in disturbed secondary forests.
It is an upright shrub growing to 3 m (9.8 ft). Its leaves are deciduous, dark green, and are 5 cm (2 in) long. Racemes of small, fragrant, white flowers 15 cm (6 in) long are produced in late summer and autumn. Mature specimens have peeling bark. The bark is plain, blackish brown with twigs turning back.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Clethra barbinervis by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
