Clethra alnifolia "Ruby Spice", 12 cm pot

• Type: Summersweet (Clethra)
• Latin name: Clethra alnifolia
• Cultivar: Ruby Spice
• Mature height: 1–1.5 m
• Pot: 12 cm
• Light: semi-shaded
• Winter hardiness: USDA 3–9

Planting Plant in spring (late April – May) or autumn (September) in a partly shaded spot with fertile, well-drained soil; sites with standing water are unsuitable. Dig a hole twice as wide as the pot, mix the excavated soil with compost, set the plant at the same depth it grew in the pot and water generously. Space plants 1–1.5 m apart. Clethra prefers moist, slightly acidic, humus-rich soil; on dry soil the flower spikes are smaller.

Watering Water a young plant regularly for the first two years and more often in dry spells; an established plant needs watering only in long dry periods. Mulch the soil with bark or wood chips.

Pruning Prune in early spring before bud break: remove dead and old branches; it flowers on the current year's shoots.

Feeding and winter care Feed in spring with compost or an organic fertiliser and, if needed, with a complex fertiliser in spring – early summer; give no nitrogen in autumn. The plant is hardy in Estonia; protect a young plant in its first winter with mulch and spruce boughs if needed.