False spirea, false goat's beard, whatever you want to call it this Astilbe plant (Astilbe japonica) has become one of my favourite bushes. The one we planted has grown to about five to six feet, has white plume-like flowers in the summer and long fern-like leaves. The flowers attract insects and the leaves are attractive all spring and summer.
False Spirea
(click on image for a larger, clearer view)In autumn, the leaves turn various shades of russet and yellow and they do so individually rather than all at once. Sometimes you have green, yellow and russet all at once -- a photographer's dream.
Some folks are lucky enough that their false spirea attracts butterflies. In particular the fritillaries seem to love them. Not mine though. I get ants and a few garden wasps.
An excellent planting for the backyard photographer.
References:
- http://www.thegardenhelper.com/astilbe.html
- http://www.naba.org/chapters/nabanc/photos/20020713_sorbaria/home.html
- http://plantsdatabase.com/go/32243/
- http://www.perennialnursery.com/plantinfo/astilbe.html
(11-Oct-2003, Revised 16-June-2004)
www.NorthernJourney.com -- gene@wilburn.ca