Illustration
Southern Wax Myrtle
Myrica cerifera
Also called southern bayberry, candleberry, wax myrtle and tallow shrub
Southern Wax Myrtle blooms from February through March.
Months here are Northern Hemisphere months; in the Southern Hemisphere, shift them by six months.
Growing Southern Wax Myrtle
Plant it in full sun. It prefers moderate water. It is hardy in USDA zones 7–11. Expect it to reach about 17 ft tall and 9 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 3 years (a house reading).
Pets
- Not yet checked for pets.
Lists differ and none is complete. If a pet eats a plant and seems unwell, call a veterinarian or a pet poison helpline.
No toxicity note is on file for Southern Wax Myrtle. That is not a clearance: check its safety for people and pets before planting.
What was checked
Nine facts were checked against named botanical sources, each recorded beside the sources that carried it: mature height and spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, the trait tags, and years to mature size, which rests on a recorded house rule where no publisher states one and is marked so. Soil, diseases, pests, toxicity and the plant's own names have not yet been read for this plant, and its trait tags are the ones a feature uses rather than every word a page prints. Each fact above carries its own mark. The planting, spacing and size sections are derived from these checked facts by a fixed rule, not checked separately, and the plant type is the library's own classification.
When to plant Southern Wax Myrtle
Plant Southern Wax Myrtle in early spring as soon as the soil is workable, or in early fall at least six weeks before your first frost, so roots establish in cool weather. In zone 8, the middle of its hardy zones 7 to 11, spring means February to April and fall means September or October. Once settled, it blooms from February to March.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar; if you garden near zone 8, the middle of this plant's hardy range, start with zone 8 in February. Derived from the plant's category, zones and bloom months plus typical zone frost dates, not checked separately.
How big does Southern Wax Myrtle get?
17 fttall5 ft 7 inan adult9 ftwideSee Southern Wax Myrtle in a garden plan: the planner shows it in 3D beside everything else you add, growing toward this size over the years.
How far apart to plant Southern Wax Myrtle
Derived from the mature spread above by a fixed rule, not checked separately: spacing is the spread, center to center.
Give Southern Wax Myrtle about 9 ft of clear ground in every direction, measured from its center. It is one plant with room around it, not a row, and a raised bed is too small for it.
Add Southern Wax Myrtle to a garden plan and the planner draws it at its full width, so you see the spacing before you buy.
Where these facts come from
Southern Wax Myrtle's height, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags were checked against 7 published sources on October 21, 2026. Each one is linked below with every fact it carried, which can include a fact this page still marks as not yet checked, because a source carrying a value is not the same as the value being held to the standard. Facts not in that list, and the planting, spacing and size sections, are not covered by these sources.
- NC State ExtensionGardener Plant Toolboxheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- jerseyyards.orgJersey-Friendly Yards, Barnegat Bay Partnershipheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water and bloom months and color
- Missouri Botanical GardenPlant Finderheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water and bloom months and color
- Plant Addictsheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water and trait tags
- Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Centerheight, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- ncagr.govNorth Carolina Forest Serviceheight, spread, hardiness zones and sun
- smithsnurseryinc.comSmith's Nursery, Benson, North Carolinaheight, spread, hardiness zones and water
How the checking works, and what each standard covers, is on the verified plants page.
Where it grows wild
Native to 14 states
United States: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia and 2 more
Recorded growing wild in 424 counties.
Also grows wild, but is not native, in Hawaii and Illinois.
Range data from the World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 4.0, adapted) and USDA PLANTS. How the native range is credited.
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Design a garden with this
Drop this plant onto a 3D plan, see how it fills in, and watch your whole garden bloom across the year.