Cephalanthus occidentalis
Growing Information
• Plant Type: Shrub
• Sunlight: Full to part sun
• Soils: Moist to wet soils. Tolerates standing water
• Bloom Time: Mid-Summer
• Size: up to 12 ft
Showy, pom-pom like flowers attract tons of butterflies and hummingbirds. Loves water. Makes an attractive hedge or accent shrub at the edge of a pond or in a marshy area. Flowers mature into button-like fruits filled with seeds which attract ducks and other water birds.
Garden Companions
Winterberry (Ilex verticillata); Blue Flag Iris (Iris versicolor); Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis); Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata); Highbush Blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum)
Nature Benefits
• Provides nectar for native bees, hummingbirds, and butterflies
• Seeds are eaten by ducks and other waterfowl
• Larval host to several species of sphinx moth
Natural Habitat
Marshes, wet meadows, bogs, and pond edges