Spicebush

BARE ROOT PLANT

Lindera benzoin

Hardiness Zones: 4-9

Soil: Prefers well drained soil with regular moisture. Can adapt to other soil types but will grow lest vigorously. 

Space Required: 6-12 ft wide and high.

Light Requirements: Shade/part shade; enjoys growing at forest edges and along the edges of paths.

Spicebush is a deciduous understory shrub that likes to grow in moist partly shaded areas with rich soil. Spicebush gets bright yellow flowers early in the spring which are followed by berries that ripen to red by late summer/fall. The leaves of Spicebush start as green and turn to bright yellow in the fall. Spicebushes are dioecious meaning each bush will produce only male or female flowers. So, if you intend on getting berries you'll  have better odds if you get multiple plants.

I value this plant most for the amount of interesting butterfly and moth species it is host to. In particular the Spicebush swallowtail and promethea moth. Besides that it also provides food for deer, rabbits, opossums and many bird species as well. All parts of the plant are edible for people too. The leaves can be used as tea. The berries can be dried and used as a culinary spice. I've tasted the raw berries and I honestly think they taste like some sort of men's cologne or something.